Business Writing Certificate

Business Writing Testimonials

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Business Writing?

Business writing covers a wide range of types of documents and writing styles that are commonly used in a professional setting. As part of writing certificate programs, business writing is used to educate professionals on ways to communicate effectively with the rest of their organization and other entities. Without business writing courses, many new professionals and mid-level managers would have a hard time communicating their overall strategies, goals, and intentions with regards to the business they're managing.

What is the purpose of improving your business writing?

The easiest way to demonstrate the value of improving your business writing is in how it can help advance your career. If you were a manager or executive looking at hiring someone for a big position in your company, would you hire someone whose resume or email communications had multiple errors in grammar, usage, and spelling? Or would you hire someone who presents a professional image through exceptional writing and a proven track record of strong written communication skills? By learning how to improve and perfect your business writing, you can ensure you're in a better position to communicate your goals, vision, and purpose through your writing.

What are the different document and style types of business writing?

To start, business requires writing for a wide range of document types, most of which are written very differently from one to another. Imagine a business email that confirms the receipt of a document. It has a very different purpose and document style than a business plan, website, annual report or grant proposal that often requires specialized knowledge to present effectively.

By comparison, the writing style will be different based on the type of writing that you're doing. If you're writing a business website or sales content, you'll want to use persuasive language, while a business plan will use an informational tone, and your business processes and procedures are instructional to walk the reader through a process step by step.

How is business writing different from academic writing?

Business writing is about improving the effectiveness of professional written communication. You want to create emails that have headlines that make people want to open them. You want to create proposals that will be approved. These require at least a touch of persuasive language. By comparison, most academic writing is informational, focused on specific facts and presenting a particular argument. 

What will I learn in a business writing course?

Part of what you'll get out of online business writing courses will depend on the specific course you take. If you're interested in exploring CIO or CTO positions in the future, technical writing may appeal to you. This entails developing solid documentation and more fact-based informational or instructive writing. If your interest lies in marketing, courses covering social media and web writing may appeal to you. By focusing on persuasive writing styles, you could help convert readers into potential leads. 

If you're looking at management, courses that focus on writing policies and procedures that use an instructional format to walk employees through these processes will provide you with the specialized writing style that you'll need. Similarly, taking an executive position that requires you to be able to author reports and proposals requires a specific mix of informational and persuasive writing that you'll want to master thoroughly before proceeding.

In these writing certificate courses, using proper grammar and being able to effectively proofread and edit documents is of vital importance to your future success. 

Does the Business Writing Certificate include a Copywriting Course?

While the writing certificate program at the College of Continuing and Professional Studies doesn't include a specific copywriting course, our Writing for the Web and Writing for Social Media do cover the vast majority of projects that most copywriters encounter today. It also provides solid experience in persuasive writing. The pieces you write in class can easily become a part of your professional portfolio, giving you writing samples to demonstrate your expertise to potential employers.

What's more, your Business Writing Certificate includes a range of grammar, editing, and proofreading classes that give you the knowledge you need to work effectively with editors while producing low- or no-error writing in your initial drafts. This knowledge allows you to focus on what you need to write, rather than how it should be written, speeding up your production.