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BUSINESS LETTER WRITING

Ms. Julie Liezel Calma- Ferrer Technical Writing Tarlac Christian College

Essential Parts of a Business Letter


1. HEADING or RETURN ADDRESS - the full address of the writer - date of the letter

2. INSIDE ADDRESS or RECIPIENTs ADDRESS - address for whom the letter is written

Samples of Inside Address


Ex. 1 The Linguistic Society of the Philippines De La Salle University Taft Avenue, Manila Attention: Bro. Andrew Gonzales, President Ex. 2 Bro. Andrew Gonzales, President Linguistic Society of the Philippines Dela Salle University Taft Avenue, Manila

3. Salutation or Greeting - should be consistent with the tone of the letter - two spaces below the inside address - always followed by a colon Ex. Dear Sir: Dear Madam: Gentlemen:

4. Body of the Letter

- should follow the principles of good writing - usually single-spaced with a doublespacing between paragraphs - subject matter should be well-organized and its tone should be taken and direct

5. Complimentary Close

- should be consistent with the tone of the letter and with the salutation Ex.
Sincerely yours, Sincerely, Cordially yours,

6. Signature - should be directly below the complimentary close - a married woman should sign her maiden name and not her husbands name and her status is indicated by the use of parentheses Ex. (Mrs.) Carmelita Castro Lopez

General Principles in Letter Writing Be clean and neat Be businesslike Be brief and go directly to the point Be courteous or polite Be prompt Be self-critical Be complete and thorough

Optional parts: typists initials; enclosure; and, carbon copies 1. typists initials If someone else types your letter for you, the typists initials should appear two line spaces below your typed name and title (or, if listed, below your telephone number, fax number, and/or e-mail address). The initials should be set in lowercase letters with no periods between them. jlk

If one person writes a letter, another types it, and a third person signs it, the signers initials, set in all capitals, should be inserted before the writers initials, also set in all capitals. The typists initials should follow the first two. Place a colon or slash between them. FMR:NB:jlk

If one person writes a letter and another types it, the writers initials, set in all capitals, should be inserted before the typists initials. Place a colon or slash between them. NB:jlk NB/jlk

2. Enclosures If any materials are to be sent along with the letter, insert the word Enclosures or the abbreviation Enc. or Encl. two line spaces below the typists initials. To keep a record of what was sent, you can insert a colon after the word or abbreviation and either note the number of items enclosed or list a description of each. Enclosures: 3 Encl.: Job application

3. Carbon Copies If you send copies of a letter to anyone other than the person to whom it is addressed, insert the abbreviation cc. (for carbon copy) two line spaces below the enclosures line. Follow cc. with a colon and the names of everyone who received a copy. Use the same form for all of the names listed.

Incorrect: cc: Mr. Bennett Josie Morris Tom


Correct: cc: Harold Bennett Josie Morris Thomas Peterson

If more than one person receives a copy, list their names either according to their rank in your company or in alphabetical order.

Structuring the Body of a Letter


Most letters can be divided into three parts:
an introduction, which communicates your purpose in writing the letter supporting information, which offers background on the topic of the letter, the reasons for a decision you have reached or recommendation you want to make, or the justification for a request you have of the reader a conclusion, which restates your central point and, if necessary, reminds the reader of any action you want that person to take

Striking the Right Tone An underlying goal of most business letters you write is to promote goodwill between you and your reader. Especially when writing to someone for the first time, you should use a tone that will encourage that person to listen to you and want to work with you now and in the future. If your letter is primarily informational or contains good news, a direct approach is usually best. State your point or offer your news immediately and briefly, and then explain any other information the reader needs to know.

Finding the proper tone is more difficult if you are delivering bad news. In this case, taking an indirect approach may be a better strategy. In the first few sentences, for example, you could begin on a positive note by stating how much you want to work with the readers company or by reminding the reader of times you accommodated his or her requests in the past. When you do get to your point, try to minimize the readers disappointment or anger by delivering the message in carefully considered language that conveys your news clearly but tactfully.

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