{"id":8753,"date":"2021-02-25T01:01:11","date_gmt":"2021-02-25T06:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/?p=8753"},"modified":"2021-02-24T10:03:19","modified_gmt":"2021-02-24T15:03:19","slug":"7-principles-of-communication-with-remote-writers-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/7-principles-of-communication-with-remote-writers-team\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Principles of Communication with Remote Writers Team"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-8756\" src=\"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing1-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing1.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>To begin with, let\u2019s define what is remote work (also known as telecommuting) in the first place.\u00a0 Remote working is also known as telecommuting. It is a work system in which employees aren\u2019t required to be at a designated office to discharge their duties. This work arrangement is akin to freelancing when employees work away from the office, and it is basically the future of work.<\/p>\n<p>Communication is vital for every workforce. Without it, necessary information will not circulate in an organization and teams will work based on assumptions. These communication gaps will inevitably lead to mistakes. If you have a remote team, you need to put extra effort into communication to keep them in line. So, how do you communicate appropriately with them?<\/p>\n<p>A writer\u2019s job is to put ideas into written media for a target audience. Writers may offer an <a href=\"https:\/\/essayusa.com\/\">essay writing service<\/a>, blogging, guest posting services, etc. In essence, they are primarily communicators. However, writers can be notoriously difficult to communicate with when they\u2019re part of a remote team. Luckily, we have some tips at hand to help you solve that problem.<\/p>\n<h2>Principles of Communication With Remote Writers<\/h2>\n<p><strong>1.\u00a0\u00a0 Get Your Timing Right<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>There is a concept known as &#8220;over-communicating.&#8221; This concept involves the repetition of specific information or divulging more details than necessary. The general idea is that the more you repeat a message, the less likely it is that the receiver will muddle it up or forget it.<\/p>\n<p>While the concept works on paper, it doesn\u2019t always work in practice, especially with remote workers. Rather than take this fire brigade approach to communication, try working on the timing of communication. Create a plan detailing when to share information with your remote writers, what channel to use and how to ensure that everyone understands you.<\/p>\n<p>Include reminders that are well-spaced. You can determine the best intervals between reminders by asking your writers directly. Creating a poll can also get the job done.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2.\u00a0\u00a0 Choose an Effective Communication Channel<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In any writing team, members will always have different preferences. These differences can include the medium of communication that they prefer. Some may favor phone calls, while others may choose emails or texts from collaboration software like Slack and Google Hangouts.<\/p>\n<p>So, when choosing a medium of communication with coworkers, consider the best approach for most of the team. Consider the ease of communicating using the platforms, their reach and efficiency. After choosing a communication medium, patiently help team members who aren\u2019t familiar with the new method get used to it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>3.\u00a0\u00a0 Be Proactive<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>When communicating with writers who are working from home, you need to take charge. Like a shark is drawn to blood, your team can sense when you don\u2019t have all the details. When they feel that uncertainty in you, they may not put in as much effort into the job. It\u2019s like a domino effect.<\/p>\n<p>Be proactive. Give clear instructions to specific writers in your team (or to separate units). Get your end of the deal sorted out before giving instructions to your writers. This way, you will lead by example and lift team morale.<\/p>\n<p><strong>4.\u00a0\u00a0 Keep Your Writers Accountable<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To avoid a decline in the quality of work that your writers submit, you need to keep them on their toes. Plan to have every writer meet up with communication standards in your remote work hub. This will help with team building and accountability. You can also have a writer share their progress with the team at the end of every workweek. At the next meeting, have another writer do the same, and so forth.<\/p>\n<p><strong>5.\u00a0\u00a0 Stick to Guidelines<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>When dealing with remote writers, you need explicit communication policies. Before you bring anyone onboard, relay your expectations to them precisely and to the team generally. Your expectations regarding communication can include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The deadline for responding to messages<\/li>\n<li>Time off for remote workers<\/li>\n<li>The time everyone has to be available for communication<\/li>\n<li>Ways to measure accountability<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Relay these expectations before any form of work begins so that nobody will be caught off-guard. Put all of these expectations in a written format and send them to all remote writers. You can also discuss them via an audio or video session if you want. However, always have written copies handy to avoid downplaying the <a href=\"https:\/\/smallbusiness.chron.com\/importance-written-communication-business-2936.html\">importance of written communication<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-8755\" src=\"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing2-300x200.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing2-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing2-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing2-1024x682.png 1024w, https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/writing2.png 1880w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>6.\u00a0\u00a0 Create a Meeting Agenda in Advance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To have practical, thorough, and quick meetings with your team members, create a meeting agenda ahead of time. Once you get a meeting date fixed, send a copy of the plan to all other team members. This approach will give your remote writing team the chance to prepare ahead of time. It will also ensure they understand what and how to contribute to the discussion.<\/p>\n<p><strong>7.\u00a0\u00a0 Cut Back on Unnecessary Meetings<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It is essential to have regular meetings with your team members to discuss core issues. But for some information, you don\u2019t have to call a team-wide meeting. You can pass some instructions or questions across via mail or call. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lucidchart.com\/blog\/how-to-avoid-too-many-meetings\">According to research<\/a>, 33.4% of meeting time is considered unproductive. So unless you absolutely need a meeting (and risk breaking your writers\u2019 flow), use team channels to relay general information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To begin with, let\u2019s define what is remote work (also known as telecommuting) in the first place.\u00a0 Remote working is also known as telecommuting. It is a work system in which employees aren\u2019t required to be at a designated office to discharge their duties. This work arrangement is akin to freelancing when employees work away&hellip;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/7-principles-of-communication-with-remote-writers-team\/\" rel=\"bookmark\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">7 Principles of Communication with Remote Writers Team<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":129,"featured_media":8756,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8753","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/129"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8753"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8753\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8761,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8753\/revisions\/8761"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8756"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}