Effective verbal communication is a fundamental skill that enhances personal and professional growth. It enables you to clearly and effectively express your ideas and emotions. It can also help foster strong relationships and collaboration, which are essential in and out of the workplace.
Exploring the difference between verbal and nonverbal communication can help you become a more effective communicator. It’s also helpful to be aware of the types of verbal communication so you can improve your verbal communication skills. By mastering verbal communication, you empower yourself to navigate social and work settings with confidence.
What is verbal communication?
Verbal communication is the use of spoken and written words to convey a message. It includes everything from fluctuations in your voice to the way you compose sentences. Verbal communication is an essential skill in the workplace for clearly imparting ideas and aligning on shared goals.
While verbal communication most commonly focuses on speech and sometimes sign language, it’s not the same as “oral communication,” which typically refers to speech-only communication. Verbal communication can also include written communication, such as emails, text messages, and letters.
A 2023 poll by Grammarly found that business leaders and workers are spending increasing amounts of time using written communication. However, this same report states the effectiveness of written communication has decreased by 12% since 2022, causing a drop in productivity and an increase in stress.
To ensure you accurately convey information and avoid unnecessary acute stress, it’s crucial to improve all types of verbal communication.
Types of verbal communication
You can use different types of verbal communication in different settings to help your message come across more clearly. In addition to written communication, verbal communication comes in the following forms:
- Intrapersonal communication: This type of communication refers to communicating with yourself. It may include verbal self-talk, audibly recalling a memory, or written self-reflection, such as journaling.
- Interpersonal communication: This communication refers to the exchange of ideas between two or more people. Interpersonal communication may be verbal or nonverbal.
- Small-group communication: As the name suggests, this form of communication occurs when you’re talking to multiple people simultaneously in a small-group setting. A group is considered small when each person has plenty of time to interact in the discussion. You may use verbal small-group communication when answering a question during a meeting.
- Public communication: This communication type addresses a large number of people and typically involves one speaker and a variety of “receivers” or listeners. Examples of public communication include a political figure giving a speech or someone starting a discussion in a public online forum.
Verbal vs. nonverbal communication
Verbal and nonverbal communication are the two main types of communication, but they have key differences. While verbal communication focuses on your voice and words, nonverbal communication refers to sharing messages without written or spoken words. It includes communication tools like how you sit, move, and show emotion.
Verbal communication examples include the following:
- Rate of speech, which refers to how quickly or slowly you speak
- Sentence structure, which is the way you order your words
- Public speaking, which includes giving a presentation in a structured manner
- Dialect, or the language you’re speaking in
Examples of nonverbal communication include the following:
- Body language, such as facial expressions, eye contact, posture, and body movement
- Appearance, which may include features like tattoos or piercings, what you’re wearing, and your hairstyle
- Proximity is a form of nonverbal communication that refers to how close you’re standing to another person when communicating
- Communication by human touch, which happens when you give a hug, shake hands, or pat someone on the back
Some types of communication use both verbal and nonverbal communication, such as face-to-face communication. This combines verbal and nonverbal cues, including your use of words, hand gestures, and tone of voice. Welding the two together can enhance communication in relationships, including those in the workplace.
Verbal communication skills in the workplace
Communication is key in the workplace. Strong communication skills can help improve team alignment, avoid workplace conflict, and lead to a positive workplace environment.
Due to more hybrid and remote work options, digital communication has become increasingly utilized. According to a Forbes Advisor report, 31% of workers spend between 16 and 25 hours per week on digital communication platforms. The report linked digital communication to lower productivity, reduced employee satisfaction, and higher stress levels.
Excellent oral communication skills can bring value to your career, especially when it comes to giving quality presentations, responding to defensiveness or confrontations, and offering constructive feedback. It helps ensure your message comes across clearly and is correctly interpreted by the receiver.
12 verbal communication skills
Becoming a good communicator starts with practice and intention. Here are some effective strategies to improve your communication skills.
1. Understanding your audience
It’s important to consider who you’re speaking with when determining the best way to communicate. People may interpret messages differently due to factors like their cultural backgrounds, age, socioeconomic status, and communication styles. With increased diversity among U.S. workers, adapting messages to different audiences will only become more important.
2. Reading the room
Knowing how to read the room is another essential component to understanding your audience, as people’s attitudes and reactions to your words may change as you communicate.
For example, if you’re giving a work presentation and notice some people look confused, it may be a good time to pause and ask if anyone has questions. Adjusting your verbal communication to match your audience is useful to make sure you stay on the same page.
3. Knowing what you want to say
It’s always a good idea to walk into a conversation knowing the message you want to convey. The way you order your words matters, and it can be easier to speak clearly when you’ve already thought through your ideas. This is especially important when you’re worried about how a message may be received.
For example, let’s say you want to ask for a raise. Entering the conversation knowing how you plan to ask the question can help calm anxiety and make you appear more confident.
4. Staying simple and direct
Effective communication skills are often concise and to the point. Keeping your message simple can help avoid miscommunication.
For example, if you’re giving an assignment to a new hire, explain the exact deliverable and provide a specific due date that includes the day and time. Don’t offer more information than they need or talk about future responsibilities. Focus on what is required at that moment.
5. Avoiding jargon and acronyms
A lot of industries have sector-specific words and acronyms that are regularly tossed around, but that doesn’t mean everyone understands them. For example, using terms like “SaaS,” “CTA,” and “B2B” can cause confusion if they aren’t thoroughly explained.
Even if you feel your target audience should understand these terms, there’s always a chance you’re talking to someone who might be new to the topic or industry. It’s better to ensure clarity than leave room for ambiguity.
6. Working on your confidence
If you’ve ever watched someone nervously give a speech, you know their anxiety can be distracting. Their voice may shake, they may stutter, or they may use a lot of filler words. These verbal cues can take attention away from the main message.
Before heading into a presentation or important sales call, make sure you feel confident about what you’ll be discussing. Ask yourself if you feel prepared. If you don’t, try writing down a bulleted list of points you want to cover or answers to questions you might get asked.
This preparation can help you feel more confident and increase your perceived credibility. If you believe in what you’re saying, others are more likely to believe it, too.
7. Actively listening
Hearing vs. listening are two separate actions. Active listening is a type of listening that helps you understand and retain the message being conveyed. It’s a listening skill that prioritizes attentiveness and active participation.
Using active listening exercises to grow your skills can help you become a better communicator by improving your focus and understanding. Since you’re more likely to catch essential information when you’re engaged in a conversation, active listening can also help you prepare an appropriate response.
8. Asking for listener feedback
Communication feedback refers to the response given by the individual decoding the information, which can be verbal or nonverbal. The point of feedback is to confirm to the speaker that you understand what they’re saying.
Without effective feedback, you may be more likely to duplicate work or misunderstand expectations. You may also be at risk of missing deadlines if you aren’t clear on what they are.
9. Asking questions to understand
Similarly, when you’re on the receiving end of a conversation, it’s important to ask questions about things you don't understand. This can help you align with the speaker’s expectations.
For example, if your manager asks you to contact a client to resolve a specific issue, a good question to ask may be how you should contact them. This way, you’ll know whether the contact should be an email, phone call, or in-person discussion. This leaves less room for ambiguity.
10. Summarizing
Whether you’re the speaker or listener, a good way to improve communication is to summarize conversations at the end of discussions. This may involve repeating action items or sharing your understanding of the dialogue. This can help everyone involved leave feeling confident and productive.
11. Closing
The way you close a conversation or presentation has a huge impact on the way your message is remembered. It’s important not to end the conversation too abruptly so the other person has time to digest the information. You should also use obvious verbal and nonverbal cues to indicate the discussion has ended, such as saying, “Well, I must be going” and making progressively less eye contact.
12. Reinforcing
After a conversation, following up can remind the other person(s) about expectations related to the conversation. The practice of following up can help jog their memory and reinforce the discussion, keeping it top of mind.
For example, if you hand off a large assignment to a coworker, it might be worth checking in a few days later. Ask them how the assignment is going and whether they’ve run into any challenges, offering support if needed. This will help reinforce your discussion in a way that’s beneficial for both parties.
Improve your verbal communication to achieve deeper clarity
No one is a mind reader, which is why verbal communication is a critical life skill. Improving verbal communication is especially valuable in the workplace, where you may be interacting with team members you don’t know well or who come from different backgrounds.
Working with a communication coach can help you align verbal and nonverbal messages, enhance your conflict resolution skills, and teach you how to be more persuasive. A relationship with a coach can also help you advance your career and better your day-to-day interactions.
Work with a BetterUp Coach to develop your communication skills and get more out of your personal and professional relationships.
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