Communication Styles

One-to-Many

For example, a manager sends out an email to all of his sub-ordinates – but how do we know if the receivers understand the message being sent? Television broadcasting operates in this style, the broadcaster can reach up to several million people at once, but has no immediate means of feedback so evaluation of the success of the communication is limited.

One-to-One

This is more targeted and more likely to be acted upon, for example direct communication with a customer or supplier. This approach is often best where clarification is likely to need to be sought, during a negotiation or when the message is not expected to be well received.

Many-to-Many

This model has significantly evolved in recent times with the increased use of social media networks, such as Facebook and Twitter. On the positive side, social media has enabled networking on a global scale from the comfort of our own offices or homes. On the negative side, messages can be confused, misunderstood, misinterpreted and repeated out of context which can all affect the effectiveness of the communication.

Interactive Communication (two-way)

Interactive communication may be described as the real-time exchange of information via a transmission medium. The important element is feedback, to check if the message has not only been received but also understood!

Examples are:

  • face-to-face conversation
  • telephone call
  • video conferencing
  • web-based chat session
  • social networking websites

Non-interactive Communication (one way)

Typical non-interactive communication methods are:

  • email
  • text messages
  • fax
  • intranet business systems
  • electronic bulletin boards
  • letters