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Business letters
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Business letters are formal paper communications between, to or from businesses and usually sent through the Post Office or sometimes by courier. Business letters are sometimes called " snail-mail" (in contrast to email which is faster).
Most people who have an occupation have to write business letters. Some write many letters each day and others only write a few letters over the course of a career. Business people also read letters on a daily basis. Letters are written from a person/group, known as the sender to a person/group, known in business as the recipient. Here are some examples of senders and recipients: business - business, business – consumer, job applicant – company, citizen - government official, employer – employee, and staff member - staff member.
There are many reasons why you may need to write business letters or other correspondence: - to persuade, - to inform, - to request, - to express thanks, - to remind, - to recommend, - to apologize, - to congratulate, - to reject a proposal or offer - to introduce a person or policy - to invite or welcome, - to follow up, - to formalize decisions.
v Task 1. Increase your Business Letter vocabulary:
| Attachment | extra document or image that is added to an email |
| block format | most common business letter format, single spaced, all paragraphs begin at the left margin |
| Body | the content of the letter; between the salutation and signature |
| Bullets | small dark dots used to set off items in an unnumbered list |
| certified mail | important letters that sender pays extra postage for in order to receive a notice of receipt |
| Coherent | logical; easy to understand |
| Concise | gets to the point quickly |
| confidential, personal | private |
| diplomacy, diplomatic | demonstrating consideration and kindness |
| direct mail, junk mail | marketing letters addressed to a large audience |
| double space | format where one blank line is left between lines of text |
| Enclosure | extra document or image included with a letter |
| Formal | uses set formatting and business language, opposite of casual |
| Format | the set up or organization of a document |
| Heading | a word or phrase that indicates what the text below will be about |
| Indent | extra spaces (usually 5) at the beginning of a paragraph |
| Informal | casual |
| inside address | recipient's mailing information |
| justified margins | straight and even text, always begins at the same place |
| Letterhead | specialized paper with a (company) logo or name printed at the top |
| Logo | symbol or image that identifies a specific organization |
| Margin | a blank space that borders the edge of the text |
| memorandum (memo) | document sent within a company (internal), presented in short form |
| modified block format | left justified as block format, but date and closing are centered |
| on arrival notation | notice to recipient that appears on an envelope (e.g. " confidential") |
| Postage | the cost of sending a letter through the Post Office |
| Proofread | read through a finished document to check for mistakes |
| Punctuation | marks used within or after sentences and phrases (e.g. periods, commas) |
| reader-friendly | easy to read |
| Recipient | the person who receives the letter |
| right ragged | format in which text on the right side of the document ends at slightly different points (not justified) |
| Salutation | greeting in a letter (e.g. " Dear Mr Jones") |
| sensitive information | content in a letter that may cause the receiver to feel upset |
| semi-block format | paragraphs are indented, not left-justified |
| Sincerely | term used before a name when formally closing a letter |
| single spaced | format where no blanks lines are left in-between lines of text |
| Spacing | blank area between words or lines of text |
| Tone | the feeling of the language (e.g. serious, enthusiastic) |
| Transitions | words or phrases used to make a letter flow naturally (e.g. " furthermore", " on the other hand") |
v Task 2. Study the Business Letter formats:
There are certain standards for formatting a business letter, though some variations are acceptable (for example between European and North American business letters). Here are some basic guidelines:
· Use A4 (European) or 8.5 x 11 inch (North American) paper or letterhead
· Use 2.5 cm or 1 inch margins on all four sides
· Use a simple font such as Times New Roman or Arial
· Use 10 to 12 point font
· Use a comma after the salutation (Dear Mr Bond,)
· Lay out the letter so that it fits the paper appropriately
· Single space within paragraphs
· Double space between paragraphs
· Double space between last sentence and closing (Sincerely, Best wishes)
· Leave three to fives spaces for a handwritten signature
· cc: (meaning " copies to") comes after the typed name (if necessary)
· enc: (meaning " enclosure") comes next (if necessary)
· Fold in three (horizontally) before placing in the envelope
· Use right ragged formatting (not justified on right side)
v Task 3. Study the structure of Business Letters: