Inside Address

The inside address, typed flush on the left margin, con­tains information about the person or company that receives the letter. It should conform to the address on the envelope. Usually, it consists of three parts:

Person or company

Street address

City, State ZIP

Use Mr., Mrs., Ms., or Dr. before the person's name and, if it is short, the person's position in the company:

Mr. Max Lenowitz, Manager

If the title is long, it may be placed under the name:

Mr. Max Lenowitz

District Sales Manager

For ministers, medical doctors, and professionals who hold doctoral degrees, use either Dr. or Doctor before the name, or put the degree after the name:

Katherine Grady, Ph.D.

or

Doctor Katherine Grady

Reverend Thomas Leach, D. D.

or

Reverend Dr. Thomas Leach

Attention Line

An attention line is frequently included in business let­ters that are addressed impersonally to a company. Such a letter may require the attention of a specific person, posi­tion, or division. Several styles are acceptable:

Attention: Mr. Malik Lipscomb

Attention: Mr. Malik Lipscomb, Sales Manager

Attention: Sales Manager

Attention of Sales Manager

Salutation

The salutation is the greeting to the reader of the letter. Use the name and title of the person listed in the inside address.

Dr. Gerald Royster

23 Charlotte Road

Topeka, Kansas 00000

Dear Dr. Royster

Salutations establish a relationship between the reader and the writer which can be either formal or informal. If you know the reader well and desire a casual tone, use an informal salutation. Official business correspondence usually requires a formal greeting, though the current trend is to be more informal. To be very formal, omit the personal dear.

Very formal	Formal	Informal
Sir:	Dear Dr. Royster	Dear Gerry
Madam:	Dear Ms. Johnson	Dear Tony
Sir or Madam	Dear Prof. Sekora	Dear Vitaly
Staff:

Use either the first name or the last name of the addressee in a salutation, not both. If you do not know whether a woman is a Miss or Mrs. use Ms. If you are unsure whether the person is a man or a woman you may use first and last names:

Dear Lee Jones:

Dear Jean LaFrance:

If you do not know who will be reading the letter, use a salutation that will include all possible readers. For this reason, use a greeting that does not define the reader's sex.

Dear Sir or Madam:

Dear Madam or Sir:

Dear Friend:

Dear Customer:

Dear Staff:

In standard punctuation, a colon is placed after the salutation in a business letter. A comma is used only in a personal letter. Some businesses use an open punctuation style which does not require a punctuation mark after the salutation.

Subject line

A subject line informs the reader briefly about the letter's contents. Many styles are acceptable:

Subject: Computer sales

SUBJECT: Inventory control

Subject—Revised Pricing Policy

Subject: New Credit Guidelines

Subject: Order No. 7176

CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS

Some companies prefer to use the Latin word re (thing) in place of subject:

Re: Computer sales

RE: Inventory Control

The subject line is located two spaces directly under the salutation:

Dear Mr. Lee:

Subject: Computer sales