Essential Qualities of a Good Business Letter.

A letter should serve the purpose for which it is written. If a businessman writes a letter to the supplier for purchase of goods, the letter should contain all the relevant information relating to the product, mode of payment, packaging, transportation of goods, etc. clearly and specifically. Otherwise, there will be confusion that may cause delay in getting the goods. Again pay attention to the quality of paper used in the letter, its size, colour etc. because it creates a positive impression in the mind of the receiver. We may classify the qualities of a good business letter as:

a. Inner Qualities; and

b. Outer Qualities

a) Inner Qualities - The inner qualities of a good business letter refer to the quality of language, its presentation, etc. These facilitate quick processing of the request and that leads to prompt action. Let us discuss the various inner qualities of a good business letter.

 

(i) Simplicity - Simple and easy language should be used for writing business letters. Difficult words should be strictly avoided, as one cannot expect the reader to refer to the dictionary every time while reading letter.

 

(ii) Clarity - The language should be clear, so that the receiver will understand the message immediately, easily and correctly. Ambiguous language creates confusion. The letter will serve the purpose if the receiver understands it in the same manner in which it is intended by the sender.

 

(iii) Accuracy - The statements written in the letter should be accurate to the best of the sender’s knowledge. Accuracy demands that there are no errors in the usage of language - in grammar, spellings, punctuations etc. An accurate letter is always appreciated.

 

(iv) Completeness - A complete letter is one that provides all necessary information to the users. For example, while sending an order we should mention the desirable features of the goods, i.e., their quality, shape, colour, design, quantity, date of delivery, mode of transportation, etc.

 

(v) Relevance - The letter should contain only essential information. Irrelevant information should not be mentioned while sending any business correspondence.

 

(vi) Courtesy - Courtesy wins the heart of the reader. In business letters, courtesy can be shown/expressed by using words like please, thank you, etc.

 

(vii) Neatness - A neat letter is always impressive. A letter either handwritten or typed, should be neat and attractive in appearance. Overwriting and cuttings should be avoided.

 

b) Outer Qualities - The outer qualities of a good business letter refer to the appearance of the letter. It includes the quality of paper used, colour of the paper, size of the paper etc. Good quality paper gives a favourable impression in the mind of the reader. It also helps in documenting the letters properly. Let us discuss the various outer qualities of a good business letter.

 

(i) Quality of paper - The paper used should be in accordance with the economic status of the firm. Now-a-days the cost of the paper is very high. Therefore, good paper should be used for original copy and ordinary paper may be used for duplicate copy.

 

(ii) Colour of the paper - It is better to use different colors for different types of letters, so that the receiver will identify the letters quickly and prompt action can be taken.

 

(iii) Size of the paper - Standard size paper (A4) should be used while writing business letters. The size of the paper should be in accordance with the envelopes available in the market.

 

(iv) Folding of letter - The letter should be folded properly and uniformly. Care should be taken to give minimum folds to the letter so that it will fit the size of the envelope. If window envelope is used then folding should be done in such a way that the address of the receiver is clearly visible through the transparent part of the envelope.

 

(v) Envelope - The size and quality of the envelope also need special attention. The size of the letter should fit the size of the letters. The business firms use different types of envelopes i.e., ordinary envelope, window envelope, laminated envelope etc. In window envelope there is no need to write the address of the receiver separately on the envelope. It is clearly visible through the transparent part on the face of the envelope, which may be called as window. In laminated envelope a thin plastic sheet or cloth is pasted on the inner side that gives extra protection to letters from being damaged during transit.

Task 2.

 

I. Fill in the blanks with suitable words.

i) Apart from ordinary envelopes, we may also use ________ or ________ envelopes for sending business letters.

 

ii) To make a letter courteous, words like ________ and ________ should be used.

 

iii) Business letter should contain only ________ information.

 

iv) Accuracy demands no error in the usage of ________.

 

v) Business letters should be always neat and ________ in appearance.

 

II. Match the following sentences with appropriate words.

a) The receiver understands the message i) Relevance

in the same way as intended by the sender.

 

b) There should be no errors in the usage ii) Courtesy

of language in business letter.

 

c) Relevant information should be iii) Accuracy

provided in business letter.

 

d) Words of anger should iv) Clarity

not be used in any business letters.

 

I.2. STRUCTURE OF A BUSINESS LETTER

Business letters include all kinds of commercial letters, inquiries, replies to inquiries, Letters of Credit (L/C), invoices, Bills of Lading (B/L), Bills of exchange or drafts, letters of insurance, explanatory letters, orders, letters of packing, letters of shipment, letters of delivery, offers, letters of complaint, replies to those of mentioned above, etc.

A business letter should be as short as possible, intelligible, polite, benevolent and its language must be simple.

Rules and traditions of correspondence vary in time but some basic principles of a commercial letter remain unchanged.

A private business letter is written by hand, each paragraph begins with an indented line. But if a letter is send by an organization it is typed on the form of this organization. In this case it is not necessary to use indented lines.

A letter is composed of the following elements: heading, date, address, salutation text, subscription.

A letter can be typed on the organization’s form. Any form has its letter-head printed typographically. The letter-head bears the name of organization or firm, sending this letter, its address, address for telegrams, telephone, telex, fax. If you do not use the form, write your address (as a sender) on the upper right side of the letter. Do not indicate your name here, it will follow your signature. Ukrainian names of foreign trade organizations are not translated into foreign languages. They are written with Latin letters using English transcription. Your telephone number may be written below.

The date is written on the right side above (under your address if the letter is written on a form or under a typographical letter-head of the form).

In Great Britain the date may be indicated as follows: 7^th April, 2010 or 23 March, 2010.

In the USA it is usually written like this: April 7, 2010.

As a rule, before the address of the recipient a reference is indicated which the sender asks to mention in the reply to the letter. A common reference represents the initials of the person who wrote the letter and those of the typist who typed it.

For example:

Our Ref: MRE/JNK – MRE are the initials of the author of the letter (M.R. Erickson). JNK are the initials of the typist.

The address of the recipient (inside address) is written on the left above, under the reference. Lower, the name of the firm is written under which the number of the house, street, city or town, state or country is indicated, the last element being the country.

The salutation is written on the left (not in the centre).

The salutation “Dear Sir” is appropriate, when you write to a real person if you do not know him. If you know this person, you should write “Dear Mr Jones”, for example.

If the letter is addressed to a firm, the salutation should be “Dear Sirs”. In modern business correspondence it is needless to use any other forms of politeness.

As was mentioned above, the text of the letter should be as short, simple and clear as possible.

In the subscription the expression “Yours faithfully” is usually used if you are not acquainted with the person(s) or “Yours sincerely” if you write to a man (woman) whom you know at least by correspondence. In American English the above expressions are rarely used. More common are the expressions “Sincerely yours”, or simply “Sincerely”, and sometimes “Very truly yours”.

The signature is affixed by hand above the typed name of the author. It is not obligatory to indicate your position. If near the signature there are two letters “p.p.” (per pro) it means that the letter is “by warrant”.

The heading may be written above the main text of the letter. The heading indicates short contents of the letter or its subject.

If some material is added to the letter the words “Enclosure” (“Enclosures”) or the abbreviation “Encl” (доповнення, додаток) are written in the left lower corner of the letter. You can also use the expression “We enclose …” (додаємо…).

Active Vocabulary

Inquiry – запит

Reply to inquiry – відповідь на запит

Letter of Credit (L/C)- акредитив

Invoice – рахунок-фактура

Bill of Lading (B/L) - коносамент (документ, в якому вказані умови договору перевозки. Видається перевізником відправнику після прийому вантажу до перевозки)

Bill of exchange (draft) – тратта, перевідний вексель

letter of insurance - страховка

expl a natory letter – пояснювальний лист

order - замовлення

letter of packing – лист про пакування

letter of shipment – лист про відправлення

letter of delivery - лист про доставку

offer - пропозиція

letter of complaint – рекламація, скарга

indented line- червона строчка[ɪn'dentɪd]

form - бланк

heading – заголовок листа

address - адреса

salutation - звернення

subscription – підпис, заключна форма ввічливості

letter-head – заголовок бланку

recipient - утримувач

reference- тут. посилання

sender - відправник

reply(to) – відповідь (на)

to affix a signature – ставити підпис, розписуватись

position - тут. посада

“p.p.” (per pro), “by warrant” – за дорученням

subject – предмет обговорення

enclosure - додаток

to enclose – додавати

Comprehension questions

1. What letters are included into business correspondence?

2. What are the major elements of a business letter?

3. When is the letter-head used?

4. What does the reference mean in a letter?

5. What information is given in the address?

6. What are the requirements established for the text of a business letter?

7. What expressions are used in the salutation of a business letter?

8. What should be indicated in the heading of a business letter?

9. What subscription should be in a business letter?

10. What may be enclosed in a business letter?

Translate into Ukrainian:

BUSINESS LETTER

Keep business letters which you receive in English (for example from a school or company) and try to learn from heir [ɛə] style. Note that there are some differences in style between letters written in American English and British English. For example, the way of writing dates is different (the order is day, month, year in Britain, e.g. 1/2/2002 or 1 Feb 2002 or 1st February 2002; month, day, year in the US, e.g. 2/1/2002 or Feb 1 2002 or February 1st 2002), and the way of starting and ending the letter may also be different.

You should normally type a business letter, but a letter which is written neatly by hand is also acceptable. Writing the letter by hand may be better to write by hand in some less formal situations, for example if you are applying for a part-time job in a tour agency or if you want to be an au pairand are writing to the parents.At the top of the letter, write your address (using English letters) on the right hand side. You do not need to put your name at the top of this address, because it will already be written at the bottom of the letter (see below). As well as your postal address, you may want to include your telephone or fax number (if you are not in the same country as the person to whom you are writing, you should use the international way of writing this, including the country code). You may also want to include your e-mail address. Write the full name and address of the person to whom you are writing on the top left hand side of the letter. On the right hand side, underneathyour own address, write the date on which you wrote the letter. To avoid any possible confusion, it may be better to write the date in full (for example: 1st February 2012).

In Britain, when you do not know the name of the person to whom you are writing (or if you know the name but you want to write in a very formal style), you normally start a business letter with the words "Dear Sir". "Sir" is a word for a man, but it is understood that it is just a convention to use this and that the letter may be read by either a man or a woman. You can write "Dear Sir/Madam" instead if you prefer, but it is not common to write "Dear Madam" unless you are certain that the letter will be read by a woman. You should end the letter with "Yours faithfully" ("Faithfully yours" is only used in American English). If you know the person's name (for example, Mr Green), you should normally start a business letter with "Dear Mr Green". If you are writing to a woman who is married (for example, Mrs. Green) you should start the letter "Dear Mrs Green". If you are writing to a woman who is not married and refers to herself as Miss Green, you should start the letter "Dear Miss Green". If you are not sure if the woman is married or not, it is more polite to write "Dear Ms Green" (Ms can be an abbreviation for either Mrs or Miss). You should end the letter with "Yours sincerely". Note that you shouldn't add a full stop at the end of abbreviated words if the last letter of the abbreviation is the same as the last letter of the full word. For example, you should write Mr Smith (short for Mister) or Dr Smith (short for Doctor), but Prof. Smith (short for Professor) - there is a full stop in the last example because "f" is not the last letter of the word "professor". When you start the letter, you may want to put a special heading to make the subject of the letter clear, especially if your letter is quite long. It is common to start this "Re:" [ri] ("re" introduces the subject: it means "about") and then give a one-line summary of the subject (for example: "Re: application for General Manager position"). You should mention the last letter you have received, including the date written on the letter and the reference number if there is one (for example: "Thank you for your letter of 2nd February, reference MC/0275"). If you are sending some documents with your letter, you should mention this (for example: "Please find enclosed my completed application form", or "Please find attached a copy of my CV"), and you should write "Enc:" and a list of these documents at the bottom of the page (after your signature). It is better to sign the letter personally as well as typing your name underneath. Your signature proves that you wrote the letter, and also makes it a little bit more personal. You can sign using your own language, but do remember to write your name clearly underneath your signature using English letters. If you are writing about business in an e-mail, the style used is often less formal, although you can follow the formal rules above if you wish. For example, it is common to start the message without the word "Dear", or to use the person's first name (if someone writes to you in this way, it is normally alright to reply in the same style). A less formal ending would be just "Yours", or something like "Regards" or "Best wishes". As a signature, it is common just to type your name.

Parts of a Business Letter (Ist part).

Different parts of a business letter- 1. Heading 2. Date 3. Reference 4. Inside Address 5. Subject 6. Salutation 7. Body of the letter 8. Complimentary 9. Signature 10. Enclosures 11. Copy Circulation 12. Post Script

We have discussed above the qualities of a good business letter. The quality will be maintained if we give proper attention to each and every part of the letter. Let us now learn about the different parts of a business letter.

The essential parts of a business letter are as follows:

 

1. Heading -The heading of a business letter usually contains the name and postal address of the business, E-mail address, Web-site address, Telephone Number, Fax Number, Trade Mark or logo of the business (if any якщо є)

 

2. Date - The date is normally written on the right hand side corner after the heading closes the day, month and years. Some examples are 28 Feb., 2003 or Feb. 28, 2003.

 

3. Reference - It indicates letter number and the department from where the letter is being sent and the year. It helps in future reference. This reference number is given on the left hand corner after the heading. For example, we can write reference number as AB/FADept./2003/27

 

4. Inside address - This includes the name and full address of the person or the firm to whom the letter is to be sent. This is written on the left hand side of the sheet below the reference number. Letters should be addressed to the responsible head e.g., the Secretary, the Principal, the Chairman, the Manager etc. Example:

 

M/S Bharat Fans The Chief Manager,

Bharat Complex State Bank of India

Hyderabad Industrial Complex Utkal University Campus

Hyderabad Bhubaneswar,

Andhra Pradesh - 500032 Orissa- 751007

 

5. Subject - It is a statement in brief, that indicates the matter to which the letter relates. It attracts the attention of the receiver immediately and helps him to know quickly what the letter is about. For example,

Subject: Your order No. C317/8 dated 12th March 2003.

Subject: Enquiry about booking the hotel room.

6. Salutation - This is placed below the inside address. It is usually followed by a comma (,). Various forms of salutation are:

Sir/Madam: For official and formal correspondence

Dear Sir/Madam: For addressing an individual

Dear Sirs/Dear Madams: For addressing a firm or company.

7. Body of the letter - This comes after salutation. This is the main part of the letter and it contains the actual message of the sender. It is divided into three parts.

(a) Opening part - It is the introductory part of the letter. In this part, attention of the reader should be drawn to the previous correspondence, if any. For example - with reference to your letter no. 326 dated. 12th March 2003, I would like to draw your attention towards the new brand of television.

(b) Main part - This part usually contains the subject matter of the letter. It should be precise and written in clear words.

(c) Concluding Part - It contains a statement of the sender’s intentions, hopes or expectations concerning the next step to be taken. Further, the sender should always look forward to getting a positive response. At the end, terms like Thanking you, With regards, With warm regards may be used.

8. Complimentary close - It is merely a polite way of ending a letter. It must be in accordance with the salutation. For example:

 

Salutation Complementary close

i. Dear Sir/Dear Madam Yours faithfully

ii. Dear Mr. Raj Yours sincerely

iii. My Dear Akbar Yours very sincerely (express very informal relations.)

9. Signature - It is written in ink, immediately below the complimentary close. As far as possible, the signature should be legible. The name of the writer should be typed immediately below the signature. The designation is given below the typed name. Where no letterhead is in use, the name of the company too could be included below the designation of the writer. For example:

Yours faithfully

For M/S Acron Electricals

(Signature)

SUNIL KUMAR

Partner

10. Enclosures - This is required when some documents like cheque, draft, bills, receipts, lists, invoices etc. are attached with the letter. These enclosures are listed one by one in serial numbers. For example: Encl: (i) The list of goods received

(ii) A cheque for Rs. One Thousand dtt. Feb. 27,2003 (Cheque No........) towards payment for goods supplied.

11. Copy circulation - This is required when copies of the letter are also sent to persons apart of the addressee. It is denoted as C.C. For example,

C.C. i. The Chairman, Electric Supply Corporation

ii. The Director, Electric Supply Corporation

iii. The Secretary, Electric Supply Corporation

12. Post script - This is required when the writer wants to add something, which is not included in the body of the letter. It is expressed as P.S. For example, P.S. - In our offer, we provide two years warranty.

 

Parts of a Letter (2^nd part).

1. Letterhead – Writer’s return address is centered at the top of the letter. Spell out the city and state and include phone numbers and email addresses.

2. Date – type today’s date at the left margin. The month should be fully spelled out and the year written with all four digits (July 24, 2004)

3. Inside Address – This is the reader’s name and address. Be sure to spell the person’s name correctly. A business title (Assistant Manager, Director, etc) should follow the name. Separate the reader’s name and title with a comma.

4. Greeting – Always begin with Dear and Mr., Ms., or Mrs. If you don’t have the person’s name, use Dear Sales Manager or Dear Human Resources Director.

5. Body Paragraphs –

a. The first paragraph should state the purpose of the letter.

b. The second paragraph should give details (who, what, why, when, where, how).

c. The third paragraph should be a positive finish (“I look forward to hearing from you” or “Call me if you need more information”).

6. Closing – use a simple closing like Sincerely, Sincerely yours, or Yours truly. (Note: the second word of the closing is NOT capitalized)

7. Signature and Writer’s identification - This part includes both a typewritten and handwritten name. Usually three blank lines separate the typewritten and handwritten name.

8. Initials, Enclosures, Copies – Initials are to be included if someone other than the writer types the letter. Enclosure means that something is included in the letter. cc means a copy or copies are sent to someone else.

A business letter should be typed on letterhead for a professional appearance. In this Letter we will be using Block Style (everything lines up on the left, except the letterhead) with standard punctuation a colon after the greeting and a comma after the closing). Use one inch margins top, bottom, left, and right. Center the letter vertically and horizontally on the page.

1. Letterhead

Sally Jones

23456 N. Redmond

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73142

 

(2 spaces)

June 25, 2004 2. Today’s date

 

(4 spaces)

3. Inside address (who you are sending the letter to)

Ms. Mary Smith, Office Manager

Mac Industries

4567 Commerce Blvd.

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73103

 

(2 spaces) 4. Greeting

Dear Ms. Smith:

(2 spaces)

I will be in the Oklahoma City area next Tuesday, July 6, between 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. Could I drop by your office and leave a copy of our latest catalog and some free samples? We have expanded our product line to include custodial supplies and paper products. Along with our other services, we deliver or ship free. I am enclosing a 10% coupon for your next order. Please call me if I could drop by and see you Tuesday. I look forward to seeing you.

 

(2 spaces)

Body Paragraphs

 

Who? What? Where? When?

(3 spaces) Why? How?

Closing