Concept of Communication

Since childhood, you must have been hearing about the word “communication.” It is originally derived from a Latin word known as “communis”, meaning common sense. Every time speaking to someone or sharing a thought or a message is referred to as communication. In simple words, the interaction between two people or sharing ideas, opinions, or even feelings comes under communication. 

Today in this article, we will get the concept of business communication study material in detail along with other related topics. So, without any further pause, let’s get started with the study material notes on the concept of communication.

What is Communication? 

Communication can be defined as a process of sending and receiving specific messages either through verbal communication or non-verbal communication. For example, every time you send a message to your friend, and he replies with feedback, it comes under communication. Although it looks simple; however, it can be highly complicated and is influenced by several factors. 

The communication method mainly involves two types of communication; oral and speech. Note communication is always two-way, where thoughts, opinions, and feelings are shared between two or more than two individuals. 

Types of Communication 

Mainly, there are four types of communication. These include- 

• Verbal communication – In verbal communication, a person speaks to another person to convey a piece of information or a message. Verbal communication is the most preferred and effective way to conduct a conversation. It is usually practised daily while giving presentations, phone calls, one-to-one discussions, video conferences, and meetings.   
• Nonverbal communication – Nonverbal communication can be defined as using body language to pass on messages effectively. It includes hand movements, facial expressions, body gestures, etc. The most common example of non-verbal communication is shaking hands. This type of communication is implied both deliberately and non-deliberately. 
• Written communication – Written communication mainly covers writing, typing, symbols, printing, letters, and so on to transfer a piece of information. Written communication is used to maintain records. 
• Visual communication – Visualising is another form of communication that includes charts, graphs, photographs, or drawings to deliver a message or convey information. It is mainly used during presentations in offices and written and verbal communication. 

Process of Communication

The communication process involves a variety of steps that mainly has three recipients. Sender, recipient, and message. Here is the complete communication process- 

• Sender – The first component is the sender, who passes the message to the recipient. In simple terms, he is the one who starts the conversation. 
• Encoding – In this process, the sender encodes his feelings or opinions into words or chooses any non-verbal means for translating his feelings. 
• Message – The message is the body which can either be an idea, truth, feelings, knowledge, or opinion. The sender encodes the message. 
• Communication channel – In this stage, the sender chooses a medium through which they want to pass on the message. 
• Receiver – Now, the receiver receives the message sent by the sender. 
• Decoding – In this step, the receiver tries to understand what the sender wants to convey by decoding the message. 
• Feedback – The last step of the entire communication process is the feedback where the receiver has received and understood the message and is now ready to answer back. 

Importance of Communication

Without communication, working in an organisation would not be easy. Here, we have listed several points that reflect the importance of communication. Let’s have a look- 

• Increases efficiency – Without a doubt, efficient communication increases managerial efficiency. Without communication, nothing can happen in an organisation. Hence, it can be said a manager’s efficiency can be measured with his ability to communicate.  
• Facilitates coordination – Communication promotes exchanging ideas, bringing harmony and purpose that facilitates coordination.  
• A smooth organisation working – Experts believe communication acts as a lubricant to foster smooth organisation. Hence, it can be said that a lot depends on communication quality when it comes to organisation and life in general. 
• Easy decision-making – Communication plays a significant role in making decisions and planning for the future. It allows management to store information easily; else, it would be nearly impossible to make any reliable decision. 

Communication Barriers 

On the one hand, where communication bridges the gap, several barriers in the communication process can lead to downfall. Here are some of the significant communication barriers:

• Content that does not relate to customers 
• Lack of maintaining dual communication 
• No or very little flow of ideas
• Improper feedback or style  
• Semantic Problems.
• Lack of enthusiasm.
• Lack of leadership.
• Zero support
• Bad weather 

Conclusion 

With this, we come to the end of our discussion about the concept of communication. In this article, we covered multiple areas of the concept of business communication, including the definition of communication, which can be defined as sending and receiving specific messages either through verbal or non-verbal communication. There are mainly four types of communication. These include verbal, non-verbal, written, and lastly, visual. In this concept of communication study material, we discussed all four types and the importance of communication in an organisation. 

In the end, we talked about several Communication barriers that can hamper the overall communication process. We hope this study material notes on the concept of mass communication must have helped attain a greater understanding of Communication barriers.