Reference no: EM133052629

1. A freelancer writer has submitted an article to be published on the Productivity Report blog. The piece is generally solid, but Duffy would like to see several changes before posting it. Which of these is the best way to open a message to the writer requesting the changes? Assume that you have had prior contact with the writer to discuss the article but that you don't have a working relationship yet.

a. Yes. This message opens with a neutral buffer and a positive statement that will help establish a productive working relationship before moving on to a reasonable business request.

b. No. There is no reason to apologize in this message.

c. No. If the piece were truly awesome, it wouldn't require changes.

d. No. The lifeless tone of this message will create a distant between you and the submitter.

2. Websites and blogs occasionally suffer from page-loading problems, when a particular web page a visitor requests will not display, even when the rest of a site seems to be working normally. Assume that Productivity Report recently had a spate of these problems with the service that hosts its blog. Which of these is the best way to respond to queries while the company is working to fix the situation?

a. No. This message acknowledges the problem but doesn't provide any information. See (d).

b. No. This message has an unprofessional tone and won't seem sincere to many readers.

c. No. This message also has an unprofessional tone. Moreover, it makes the company sound as though it's not up to the challenge of running a computer-based business.

d. Yes. This message acknowledges the problem and provides whatever information the company has at the moment. Providing this information, as minimal as it is, at least lets customers know that the company is tending to the problem and has made progress toward resolving it.