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Many business mistakes are the result of miscommunication. Something can easily get misheard or misinterpreted and lead to disastrous effects. If you, your employees and your clients keep getting your wires crossed, here are a few tips that could get you all communicating more clearly.

Write everything down

Putting information in writing can give everyone a point of reference. If you’ve just had a meeting, sending an email afterwards with all the key points that were discussed could help each of you to remember what was discussed. If a mistake is still made after this, it can also prevent people passing the buck by claiming they weren’t told a certain piece of information when clearly, they were.

Repeat, repeat, repeat

Repeating information will help to hammer it home. Of course, you don’t want to bore people by repeating huge amounts of information over and over again – simply pick the key points and repeat them whenever you feel they need to be reiterated. Similarly, if someone has given you information that you think you’ll forget, don’t be afraid to ask them to repeat it just to confirm it.

Keep everyone on the same page – literally!

Cloud technology

has made it much easier to share documents and reports with multiple people. This can be useful for literally keeping everyone on the same page. This could be anything from a rota to a project progress report to a training document. This can be much more useful than giving people this information individually. Many companies now use software and apps to give people real time reports so that all parties are kept in the loop with every passing moment.

Pay special attention to foreign clients

If you’re dealing with customers that don’t speak English fluently, special care must be taken in ensuring all information is conveyed correctly. It could be worth hiring a translator to make thing easier – there are professionals who can help you in all kinds of niche fields from legal translations to medical translations Mistakes can extend beyond language – there may be cultural differences to consider and the added confusion of time zones, so bear all this in mind.

Limit interruptions during important discussions

There may be times when you need to listen closely to what a client and employee is saying. During these times, try to reduce possible interruption that could stop you from absorbing this information. This could include encouraging everyone to turn off their phone during meeting or requesting that employees don’t disturb you until the meeting is finished.

Be concise

Be careful of swamping people with information – try to keep information short and concise when possible to avoid confusion. If you feel that you need to go into detail, make sure that you provide a summary at the end to round up the key points.