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EFFECTIVE BUSINESS WRITING COURSE

The core business writing skills every professional needs.

Our bedrock business writing skills course elevates everything you write at work, from emails and memos to letters and reports. Choose instructor-led group training or a self-paced course with personalized instructor feedback.

  • Identify your reader and your purpose before you write, so every document gets the response you need.
  • Plan and organize any document with a repeatable six-step process.
  • Write clear, concise emails, letters, and reports without bloat or jargon.
  • Reduce writing time by at least 25%.
  • Each participant receives individual instructor feedback and a personal grammar diagnosis.

Customizable for Groups

See What's Included

Download the full course outline, including objectives, lessons, and delivery options.

For Groups & Teams

Instructor-led virtual, instructor-led onsite, or a facilitated self-paced course. Every option is customized to the documents your team writes. Volume discounts apply.

Schedule time to speak with an instructor, not a salesperson, about your team's writing.

For Individuals

A self-paced course in which you learn to apply the optimal six-step business writing process to business documents, with detailed written feedback from your instructor.

Fee: $645.

Writing training trusted by professionals at 900+ organizations

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Meta-Logo
Liberty Mutual
Vertex logo
Oracle-Logo
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U.S. Army
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Dupont
Shell
Novo Nordisk
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Training a team? Every engagement is customized to your team's actual documents, readers, and goals.

Who is this for

Built for every professional who writes at work

This course builds the bedrock skills and professional business writing techniques every good business writer needs, and every exercise uses the kinds of documents you typically write at work.

Managers and Team Leads

Write updates, requests, and decisions your team understands and acts on the first time.

Sales and Client-Facing Professionals

Write emails and letters that are professional, persuasive, and focused on the client.

Administrative and Operations Professionals

Handle high email volume and routine documents faster, with fewer rewrites.

Analysts and Technical Professionals

Explain complex information in plain language that busy readers can follow.

Early-Career Professionals

Build strong writing habits now, with a process you will use for your entire career.

Experienced Professionals and Executives

Sharpen skills you already use, write with a confident executive tone, and cut writing time.

Not the right fit: This course builds overall business writing skills across many document types. If you need in-depth training on one document type, we have specialized courses for executive summaries, business email, proposals, and business letters. If English is not your first language, the Business English Writing Course teaches the same process with a deeper grammar diagnosis.

Business Documents You'll Learn to Write

Good business writing starts with your reader, not your grammar. Every document begins with the same questions: Who is reading? What do they need? What response do you want? One six-step process answers them, and you apply it to the documents professionals write most often.

Internal Documents and Memos

Write internal documents that reduce meetings and back-and-forth, including guidance on delivering bad news directly or indirectly.

Business Letters and External Documents

Write to customers, suppliers, and regulators with strong openings, clear closings, and headings that help readers scan.

Email

Structure emails that get the results you want, use attachments with care, and manage high email volume.

Reports and Executive Summaries

Tier and sequence information, assemble a well-organized report, and write an executive summary busy readers can act on.

Any Document, Formatted for Easy Reading

Use white space, headings, and visuals so readers find the main ideas quickly.

Three Effective Business Writing Course Formats

All formats cover the same core curriculum.

Online Self-Paced Effective Business Writing Course with Instructor Feedback

Individuals Teams

 

$645 / individual

Work through ten lessons on your own schedule, write real business documents, and receive detailed written feedback from a dedicated instructor.

You leave with stronger documents and a process you can use on everything you write.

What's Included

  • Detailed, individualized written instructor feedback on a business letter and an email
  • A personal grammar diagnosis with targeted correction strategies
  • Downloadable resources, including the Optimal 6-Step Process Diagram, Reader Focus Sheet, Editing Checklist, and Grammar Correction Guide
  • 24/7 access to all course materials
  • Available for individuals and groups

Instructor-Led Virtual Effective Business Writing Training

Teams

 

Contact Us for Pricing

Real-time, highly interactive virtual instruction customized to your team's actual documents and goals.

Large-group, small-group, and peer breakout exercises keep everyone engaged. Each employee also receives individual feedback on their writing.

What's Included

  • Live virtual sessions via video conferencing
  • Group discussions and breakout activities
  • Curriculum customized to your documents, industry, and readers
  • Individual written instructor feedback for every participant
  • Volume discounts available

Instructor-Led Onsite Effective Business Writing Training

Teams

 

Contact Us for Pricing

Highly interactive training delivered at your location, built around your team's actual documents.

Skills transfer immediately. Participants apply what they learn to the next document they write, and each employee receives individual feedback on their writing.

What's Included

  • Delivered at your location, on your schedule
  • Individual and group exercises using your team's actual documents
  • Customized to your audience, industry, and document types
  • Individual written instructor feedback for every participant
  • Volume discounts available

What You'll Learn in This Effective Business Writing Course

The fundamentals of effective business writing, substance first and then syntax, in every delivery format.

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Customized for Groups and Individuals

This is the standard course outline. Group training is customized to your team's documents. Individual enrollments receive customized feedback based on the documents you write in the course.

Skill Area
00
Getting Started: Set your goals
Meet your instructor and support team, and share your specific writing goals and challenges so feedback addresses your exact needs from the first lesson.
Foundation
01
Lesson 1: Six steps to effective business writing
Prepare to write, then learn the optimal six-step process for planning and writing any document. Your writing improves when you understand the principles behind an effective process.
Process
02
Lesson 2: It's not "Ready, Fire, Aim"
Plan before you write. Write openings that get to the point and closings that get a response, and avoid writer's block.
Process
03
Lesson 3: Apply the process to an internal document
Use direct and indirect techniques to deliver bad news, then watch the six steps applied to an internal document, from planning through drafting and editing.
Practice
04
Lesson 4: External documents and business letters
Write to customers, suppliers, and regulators with strong openings and closings and headings that help readers scan. Online course: write a business letter and receive detailed instructor feedback.
Practice
05
Lesson 5: Email
Use the optimal email structure and techniques, take care with attachments, and avoid common email pitfalls. Write an email and receive detailed instructor feedback.
Practice
06
Lesson 6: Reports
Tier and sequence information, assemble a well-organized report, and learn the role of the executive summary.
Practice
07
Lesson 7: Format for easy reading
Use white space, visuals, and graphics appropriately so readers find the main ideas quickly.
Polish
08
Lesson 8: Clarity
Hone clarity with strong business verbs and clear sentence structure, and eliminate jargon and bloat.
Polish
09
Lesson 9: Confident executive tone
Write to express, not to impress. Use short words, active voice, and reader-focused wording for a professional voice.
Polish
10
Lesson 10: Grammar and tools
Receive a personal grammar diagnosis that identifies the errors you actually make, with the Grammar Correction Guide and tools to fix them.
Polish
10
Wrap Up: Ongoing resources and support
Evaluate the training, access ongoing resources and support, and receive your certificate of completion.
Resources

Certificate of Completion

Participants earn a personalized certificate after finishing this course. You can display it on your LinkedIn profile, print it, or list it on your résumé.
effective- business-writing-course-certificate

Your Effective Business Writing Instructors

Expert instructors. Your real business documents.
Feedback that sticks.

grace-cuddy

Grace Cuddy

Senior Instructor

Business writing coach for international technical and corporate teams across Europe and the United States.

Read more >>

Business Writing Technical Writing Writing with AI ESL Writing
Bailey Lang headshot

Bailey Lang

Instructor

Ph.D. in rhetoric and writing; a decade coaching professionals to write clearly, concisely, and with authority.

 

Read more >>

Business Writing Technical Writing
ElisabethO_Headshot

Elisabeth O'Quinn

Senior Instructor

Business writing and content specialist with extensive experience editing and coaching professionals.

Read more >>

Business Writing Technical Writing Writing with AI
Katie Almeida Spencer

Katie Almeida Spencer

Instructor

Writing coach and instructor whose clients include DuPont, Shell, and the World Wildlife Fund.

 

Read more >>

Business Writing ESL Writing Technical Writing

Effective Business Writing Course Results

Instructional Solutions has delivered this course to teams at Medline, USAA, Freddie Mac, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and organizations across healthcare, finance, government, and education.

"A lot of useful information and exercises to reflect on not only my current writing style but also offer ways to improve."

Participant

Medline

"My writing is more concise as a result of the training. I've received strong tools, ongoing support, and knowledge."

Business Analyst

USAA

"My instructor was so helpful. Her detailed comments about my writing exercises helped me see where my writing can have more impact."

Sales Representative

FedEx

Frequently Asked Questions About the Effective Business Writing Course

Effective business writing gives readers the information they need and gets the response you want, with the least time and effort on both sides. It starts with your audience and your purpose, not with grammar. This course teaches a repeatable process for planning, organizing, and writing any business document.

You apply one process to the documents professionals write most often: emails, internal documents and memos, business letters, and reports and executive summaries. Group training is customized to the documents your team writes.

Yes. No prior training is needed. The course builds the bedrock skills every good business writer needs, and experienced writers use it to sharpen skills, write with a confident tone, and reduce writing time.

Yes. Grammar is the final step of the writing process, not the first. You receive a personal grammar diagnosis that identifies the errors you actually make and provides targeted strategies to correct them. We focus on your patterns, not on generic grammar drills.

Both courses teach the same process and the same core business writing skills. The Business English Writing Course is for non-native English writers. It includes a deeper diagnosis of grammar and syntax, additional grammar resources, and is taught by an instructor with certifications in teaching non-native writers.

Every instructor-led session, virtual or onsite, is built around your team's actual documents, industry, and readers. We can customize our existing curriculum, combine multiple courses, or develop a new course. We handle all scheduling and administration.

The average time on task for all deliveries is 7 hours. Group training can be delivered in several shorter sessions, and the self-paced online individual courses can be accessed to match your schedule and learning style. 

Yes, view this demo on instructor feedback. Every format includes personalized feedback on your writing from an experienced instructor.

Group training accommodates teams of any size. We cap each group at 18 participants to keep the training highly interactive, and we can run multiple cohorts for larger organizations. Volume discounts apply.

Yes. You receive a personalized certificate of completion that you can share on LinkedIn, print, or list on your résumé.

Get Started

Ready to become a stronger, more confident business writer?

Choose your path below or download the full course outline to review with your team.

For Groups & Teams

Instructor-Led Training

For Individuals

Self-Paced Course