12 Ways On How To Improve Your Business Communication Skills

“Effective business communication is all about sharing information well, both internally and externally”

Great communication builds great businesses. Strong business communication isn’t about being the loudest in the room; it’s about speaking with clarity, confidence and purpose.

At Body Talk, we’ve helped professionals around the world transform their speaking, using proven techniques that replace vague messages with concise communication.

In this guide, we’ll explore practical, real-world business communication skills that lead to the positive outcomes you’re aiming for.

Key Takeaways

Strong business communication isn’t about saying more. It’s about saying the right thing, in the right way, for the right outcome.

Here’s what to take forward:

• Clarity creates confidence. When your message is structured, concise, and audience-focused, people understand you faster and trust you more. That’s when communication starts to drive real results.
• How you communicate matters as much as what you say. Body language, tone of voice, and presence all shape how your message is received. When your verbal and non-verbal signals align, you come across as credible and authentic.
• Emotion and empathy strengthen impact. Developing emotional intelligence helps you read the room, respond with empathy, and handle challenging conversations with professionalism and control.
• Structure turns information into influence. Whether you’re speaking or writing, shaping your message around what your audience needs to hear and feel is what makes it memorable.
• Listening is a leadership skill. Active listening builds trust, reduces conflict, and transforms conversations into genuine collaboration.
• Stories make ideas stick. Business storytelling helps your audience see themselves in the message, understand the challenge, and believe in the outcome you’re guiding them towards.
• Preparation separates good communicators from great ones. Rehearsal sharpens clarity, tone, and delivery, allowing you to show up calm, confident, and in control.
• Feedback, examples, and authenticity build connection. When you communicate with honesty, practical examples, and constructive feedback, people feel respected, engaged, and motivated to act.
• Great communication is a skill you can train. With awareness, practice, and expert coaching, you can replace second-guessing with confidence in every meeting, presentation, and conversation.

Business communication isn’t about perfection. It’s about intention, alignment, and impact.

And when you master that, every conversation becomes an opportunity to lead, influence, and succeed.

Why is business communication so important?

Communicating well is an essential skill in every part of our lives, but is particularly important when it comes to businesses who want to thrive. 

Communication skills are the number one quality that employers look for – and for good reason.

Here are six reasons why good business communication is so important:

1. It ensures accuracy of information

When your ideas are communicated accurately and your key points are clear, it leads to better engagement and fewer misunderstandings.

Business communication training supports you in uncovering the story behind your message, sharpening your delivery, and helping your audience understand exactly what you mean. And when everyone’s on the same page, that’s when you start driving real engagement and organisational success.

2. It helps to build trust

Clear, purposeful communication helps build trust in business, both across your team and with external stakeholders. When you know how to shape your message to suit your audience, your intentions come through clearly, and your ideas land with greater impact.

Stronger communication also leads to smoother collaborative projects. You’ll create a more open, honest dynamic where people understand expectations and feel confident contributing – building a working relationship rooted in open communication.

3. It helps you deal with conflict

Conflict is inevitable in any workplace, but it doesn’t have to damage relationships. Better conversations make it easier to manage tension and find solutions. When you strengthen your listening skills and learn to handle objections with empathy, you maintain professionalism, keep discussions productive, and move the conversation forward.

4. It improves well-being

Good business communication is essential to promoting good mental health and well-being in the workplace. By encouraging teams to listen to one another and to articulate their thoughts and feelings better, staff are better equipped to share ideas, collaborate freely, and speak up if they have any problems or concerns.

5. It helps you get the results you deserve

By sharpening your business communication skills, you’ll stand out in meetings, influence decision-making, and build a reputation as someone who delivers. That’s the key to career development, and a core part of your continuing professional development.

6. It helps you become more confident

Many people will secretly admit that they don’t really feel confident: they may suffer from impostor syndrome in their role, or feel nervous or anxious before a big meeting or presentation.

This is normal, but it can restrict us from reaching our full potential. Part of business communication involves learning how to communicate more assertively and to look confident on the outside, even if you don’t feel it on the inside.

If you’d like to explore this in more depth, our guide on why communication is so important breaks down the wider impact strong communication has on performance, confidence, and success.

How to improve business communication skills: 12 methods

Making the decision to improve your business communication skills can reap huge benefits. Working with a business communication coach will help you to hone your abilities in the following areas:

1. Developing your emotional intelligence 

A large part of successful business communication involves recognising your own emotions and those of others; in other words, developing your emotional intelligence. Understanding emotions can help to guide your own thinking and behaviour, build healthy relationships and make better choices for your business.

Becoming more empathetic can help you better understand your colleagues’ needs and better equip you to resolve conflict situations.

2. Structuring your messages 

How much thought do you give to the structure of your messages or updates before you share them?

People often start planning presentations or team meetings by thinking of the information they want to share, but this isn’t good communication; it’s just passing on facts.

Great communicators shape their message around what the audience needs to hear and feel. That’s what makes the difference between being heard and being remembered.

Whether you’re working on written communication or speaking to a room, the structure of your message matters. A business communication coach can help you master the writing skills and spoken techniques that create emotional connection and clarity, so you get the outcomes you want, every time.

3. Pay attention to body language

We all send out nonverbal communication signals, whether through our posture, facial expressions, or movement. When your words align with your nonverbal signals, you come across as more confident, credible, and engaging.

What are your movements saying to others? What cues are you picking up from the people around you? From maintaining eye contact to using open gestures, positive body language helps to build trust and make you more relatable.

4. Adopt the 7Cs of effective communication

Scott Cutlip and Allen Centre introduced the 7 Cs of effective communication in Effective Public Relations (1952), and they remain just as relevant today. They’re a brilliant benchmark for anyone looking to elevate their business communication skills.

Use them as a checklist to sharpen your message, strengthen your presence, and drive action.

1. Completeness

Good communication ensures the audience has everything they need to understand your message and take the next step. This means providing relevant context, facts, figures, and any supporting information.

2. Conciseness

Concise communication gets to the point. It trims out unnecessary filler or repetition while keeping your message clear and powerful. In business settings, being concise shows respect for others’ time and ensures your ideas are absorbed more easily.

3. Consideration

This is about audience-first communication, shaping your message around what they need to hear.

4. Concreteness

Concrete communication uses specific examples, evidence, and vivid details to bring abstract concepts to life.

5. Clarity

Clarity means using simple language, structuring your ideas logically, and avoiding jargon or ambiguity.

6. Courtesy

Courtesy means communicating in a way that respects your audience’s feelings. It helps you build stronger relationships and maintain professionalism, especially during difficult conversations or feedback.

7. Correctness

Your message should be factually accurate. This builds credibility, protects your reputation, and ensures you don’t mislead or misinform your audience.

5. Preparing ahead of time

Rehearse your key points in advance. That might mean practising in front of a trusted colleague or friend who can give honest feedback, or recording yourself to spot where your message gets lost. This gives you the chance to refine your tone, pace, and body language so you come across with confidence and clarity.

Without preparation, even the most talented professionals can fall into the trap of poor communication.

6. Utilising business storytelling

Great business storytelling casts your audience as the hero of the story, and your brand as the mentor who helps them reach their goal.

Start with their reality, not yours. Show that you understand their frustration – the slow meetings, the unclear goals, the missed opportunities. Then guide them towards a better way: the success they could achieve with your insight, product, or service by their side.

That’s the power of business storytelling. It helps your audience see themselves in the story, relate to the challenge, and believe in the outcome.

7. Practising active listening skills

Listening actively shows respect, builds trust, and makes the other person feel truly heard. That’s what turns a conversation into a connection.

When you listen carefully, you catch more than just words. You notice tone, emotion, and what’s left unsaid. That level of attention tells the other person: “I get you. I understand what matters here.”

To listen effectively, stay present, avoid distractions, and reflect back what you’ve heard to confirm understanding. This not only sharpens your own response but also reassures the other person that their message has landed.

8. Developing presentation skills

How do you present well? Slow down. Pause. Speak clearly. Give people space to reflect on what you’ve just said. Those moments of silence let your audience process, absorb, and engage.

Interaction is just as important. Ask questions, invite opinions, and read the room. A presentation isn’t a monologue; it’s a conversation with many voices. When you involve people, you keep them focused, curious, and invested in your message.

9. Learning to give constructive feedback

Giving feedback can feel uncomfortable, but mastering it is what separates good communicators from great ones.

Start by highlighting what worked well, so the person feels recognised for their effort. Then point to one or two areas that could be improved, and offer specific, practical suggestions on how to make those changes.

For example, rather than saying, “That didn’t go well,” you might say, “Your opening was strong, and if you pause more between points, your message will land with even greater impact.”

10. Using examples

Nothing brings a message to life faster than an example. It keeps your audience engaged because it puts them into a real situation they can picture. Whether it’s a quick story, a case study, or a scenario they might face themselves, examples make your point feel relevant and concrete.

Instead of speaking in abstract terms, show what it looks like in practice. When they can visualise it, they connect with it.

11. Considering your tone of voice

Your verbal communication skills aren’t just about the words you use, they’re about how you say them. Many people accidentally sound flat or unenthusiastic without even realising it.

That’s why it’s so important to notice how your voice sounds. Are you bringing energy? Are you showing interest? Or are your spoken words undermined by a tone that doesn’t match your intention?

Choosing an appropriate tone means considering the context and the audience. Are you motivating a team? Reassuring a client? Challenging an idea? Your tone should shift to match the moment so your spoken words land with clarity and impact.

12. Being authentic

The most powerful communication happens when you bring you into the room. When you let your personality show, your audience feels they’re hearing from a real person, not a script.

Think of it the same way businesses use a brand voice. Every strong brand has a personality that sets it apart. That personality draws people in and makes the brand memorable.

For example, the LEGO brand is playful, imaginative, and creative in their communications – the same qualities that define their product. Everything they do, from campaigns to customer experiences, reflects that spirit. It’s consistent, it’s real, and it makes people feel part of something bigger.

Master every conversation with business communication coaching

A communication coach helps you spot the blind spots you can’t see yourself.

Maybe your body language is sending the wrong signal. Maybe your tone hides your passion. Maybe you’re missing the pauses and gestures that would make your words land with more power.

With expert guidance, you’ll learn to flex your style so every message connects. And you’ll do it through practice – real-world scenarios that matter.

With Body Talk coaching, you gain:

• Practical tools you can apply immediately in business-critical moments
• Science-backed techniques trusted by leaders worldwide
• A proven process that gives you control and confidence in every conversation

The outcome? You stop second-guessing yourself or wondering if your words are enough. Instead, you walk into meetings, pitches, and presentations knowing you can connect, inspire, and create results.

Explore Communication Skills Training

Frequently asked questions

How do I improve my corporate communication skills?

To improve your corporate communication skills, focus on the core habits we’ve covered in this blog:

• Prepare ahead so your message is clear, structured, and confident.
• Use communication tools like active listening to show people you value their input and make them feel understood.
• Match your tone and body language to your message so everything works together.
• Bring in stories and examples to make your points more memorable and persuasive.

How has business communication evolved? 

Thirty years ago, business communication looked very different. Most offices relied on phone calls, memos, and letters to share ideas. Messages travelled slowly, and getting everyone on the same page often took days.

Then email arrived, and suddenly information moved at lightning speed. The internet opened up new ways to collaborate, and paper-stacked desks gave way to paperless offices. Mobile phones got smarter, and tools like PowerPoint and Keynote gave everyone the power to present their ideas with confidence.

Fast-forward to 2020, and video conferencing exploded. Almost overnight, teams were running entire businesses from their living rooms. That shift didn’t disappear when the pandemic eased; it reshaped the way we work. Today, hybrid communication is the new normal, with companies equipping staff to connect seamlessly from the office, from home, or anywhere in the world.