What Are the Different Types of Verbal Business Communication?

Verbal business communication tends to be placed in one of four different categories. Impromptu communication is the type of unscripted verbal discourse that transpires between associates everyday in the regular course of business. Scripted conversational communication uses a general outline, but the speaker talks directly to the other party and is responsive to changing topics. Memorized communication uses remarks that were prepared in advance and are delivered verbatim from memory. Manuscript communication uses prepared remarks that a person reads out loud from a document.

Most of the verbal business communication that takes place can be classified as impromptu. There is no scripting involved in the interaction, and people simply talk and respond to one another. Examples of this type of verbal communication are an employee who must talk to his boss during an unscheduled meeting or an executive who talks to a prospective client he runs into at a sporting event. Impromptu communication can be internal or external to the company. Businesses sometimes focus on training their executives to be more adept at impromptu communication, hoping to improve their ability to make small talk and engage other people socially.

The second type of verbal business communication can be considered scripted conversational interaction. It is the type of verbal communication that happens in a workshop or seminar, or that a teacher engages in when lecturing a class. The dialog follows a certain script, but the tone is conversational, allowing the person to speak from memory and engage the audience directly. This type of communication accommodates changes in topics as the conversation progresses.

Memorized verbal communication is the type of discourse that happens when someone is delivering a speech. The speech is memorized, and the delivery does not allow for audience participation until the speech is over. A copy of the speech or relevant highlights might be available in writing for reference, but the speaker is not reading the speech from the written copy.

Manuscript verbal communication is the type of speech-delivery where the speaker reads prepared material. It often happens at a press conference, where prepared comments are read, and then questions are taken. Most often, this is the type of verbal business communication that a person uses if he needs to be very careful about what he says. For example, a police representative who reports to the press about the status of a criminal investigation will often use a manuscript style of verbal communication that has him reading approved copy directly from a written document.