1. Answer the questions:

1. Who usually writes business letters?

2. What are the reasons for writing business letters?

3. Why are business writing skills important?

Text 2 business letter structure

A business letter is a letter written in a formal language, usually used when writing from one business organization to another, or for correspondence between such organizations and their customers, clients and other external parties. Business letters usually follow a block format. Business letters are subject to more rules than personal letters.‎

A modern business letter should contain the following parts:

1. Letterhead /Sender's address

2. Date

3. References [optional]

4. Special Mailing Notations [optional]

5. On-Arrival Notations: [optional]

6. Recipient's address in a business letter/ inside address ‎

7. Attention line [optional]

8. Salutation / Opening Greeting ‎

9. Subject line

10. Body of a letter /text

11. Complimentary closing

12. Signer’s identification/Signature block (the writer's signature, name ‎and the writer's official position)

13. Reference/identification initials

14. Enclosure [optional]

15. “c.c.” notation [optional]

SENDER'S ADDRESS

Don't write your address if you use paper with a ready-printed sender's address (letterhead).

If you write your own address, only give the following information: house number, street, area code, place, country, telephone. (Don't include your name here; in English the name is only put at the end of the letter.)

Note: The order for sender's addresses in English is: house number, street, area code, place. If the order is different in your culture, keep to the structure used in your country, don't adopt the English way.

British English

Position: In British English, the sender's address is usually placed in the top right corner of the letter.

American English

Position: In American English the sender's address is usually placed in the top left corner, below the date, or at the end of the letter, below the signature..

Sender's address below the date:

Sender's address below the signature:

On envelopes, the post office requests all addresses be typed flush left, and written or typed in all capitals with no punctuation marks unless they are part of a place name (e.g., ST.JOHN'S).

Examples:

Example 1 (within USA)	Example 2 from UK to USA
MR. COLIN THOMAS ACCOUNT MANAGER MICRO-MACROS INC 323 LAKE SHORE ROAD CRYSTAL CITY SK K5K 3B3 CANADA (if required)	MR. COLIN THOMAS ACCOUNTANT MANAGER MICRO-MACROS INC 323 LAKE SHORE ROAD CRYSTAL CITY MA 32119-4678 USA (if required)

In Canadian addresses, the two-letter province abbreviation is separated from the postal code by two spaces.

In American addresses, separate the zip code from the state abbreviation by two spaces. The zip code may be either five or nine digits. If the nine digit format is used, there will be a hy­phen between the fifth and sixth digits.

Use the country name only if your letter is being sent out­side your country.

Here are some more examples of addresses:

Example 1 (within USA)	Example 2 from UK to USA
Jesse Maggio 101 Roaring Rd. Shirley, NY 11967	Registered / Recommender Special Logistics Team Ltd ‎ Engineering Company ‎ Attn: Ms Jenny Testperson ‎2100 Harding Rd ‎ Costa Mesa, CA 92626 USA

DATE LINE

The date line is used to indicate the date the letter was written. However, if your letter is completed over a number of days, use the date it was finished in the date line.

British English

In British English the day is usually put before the month. If you wish, you can add the ending of the ordinal number. The preposition of before the month is usually dropped. You can put a comma before the year, but this is not common anymore in British English.

Example: 5(th) (of) October(,) 2004

American English

In American English the month is usually put before the day. If you wish, you can put the definite article before the day. It is common to write a comma before the year.

Example: October (the) 5(th), 2004

You can also write the date by using numbers only. The most common forms are:

Example: 5/10/04 or 5-10-04

Note, however, that 5/10/04 usually means 5 October 2004 in British English and May 10, 2004 in American English. To avoid any possible confusion, you should spell out the month or use the abbreviation.

The date can go in one of two places – beneath your address or beneath the reader’s address.

It is always best to write the month in full because the British dating system is different to the American dating system (eg: 8/10/2002 is 8th October 2002 in Britain but August 10th in America).

Note that you do not need to write ‘the’ or ‘of’ in a date (eg: ‘the 16th of October’ October 2004.

British English

Write: 30 October 2003

Position: on the right, one line below the sender's address (in letters with a ready-printed sender's address, the date can also be put in the top left corner)

American English

Write: October 30, 2003

Position: top left corner (sometimes centred)

REFERENCE LINE

A reference line containing a file, policy, invoice, or order number may be included for file purposes. If you're replying to a letter, refer to it here (e. g. Re: Your letter dated 1/1/200_)

This informa­tion always appears one to two lines under the date.

Example:

March 1, 200-

Reference #17540 - 620499

Ms. Helen Smith

Conference Coordinator

Humber College

205 Humber College Boulevard

Etobicoke ON M9W5L7

SPECIAL MAILING NOTATIONS

Type in all uppercase characters, if appropriate. Examples include:

• SPECIAL DELIVERY

• CERTIFIED MAIL

• AIRMAIL

ON-ARRIVAL NOTATIONS

Type in all uppercase characters, if appropriate. You might want to include a notation on private correspondence, such as a resignation letter. Include the same on the envelope. Examples are

• PERSONAL

• CONFIDENTIAL

RECIPIENT'S ADDRESS /Inside Address

The inside address is the recipient’s address. It is typed as it will appear on the envelope, three to eight lines below the last component you typed. Four lines are standard. It should be left justified, no matter which format you are using. If you don’t know the name of the reader or type an Attention Line, skip the person's name here.

It is always best to write to a specific individual at the firm to which you are writing. If you do not have the person’s name, do some research by calling the company or speaking with employees from the company. Include a personal title such as Mr., Ms., or Dr. If there is a possibility that the person to whom you are writing is a Dr. or has some other title, use that title. Usually, people will not mind being addressed by a higher title than they actually possess.

To write the address, use the Post Office Format. For international addresses, type the name of the country in all-capital letters on the last line.

• Mr /Ms / Dr + recipient’s name

• recipient’s position (if known)

• company name

• house number, street

• place

• area code

• COUNTRY (in capital letters)

In British English, the recipient's address may start on the same line as the date or one line below the date. The area code is usually at line after the place.

In American English, the recipient's address starts two lines below the sender's address (or two lines below the date if the sender's address isn't placed in the top left corner). The area code is usually at the same level as the place, separated by a comma.

ATTENTION LINE

This is not always required. It should be used when the letter is addressed to a company or organization as a whole, but you want it to be handled by a specific individual at the company or within the organization. It should be underlined or typed in capitals. If you type the person's name in the Inside Address, skip this.

With formal letters, the "Attention: [full name of recipient]" is placed two spaces below the inside address.

SALUTATION / OPENING GREETING ‎

Salutation

Use the same name as the inside address, including the personal title. If you know the person and typically address them by their first name, it is acceptable to use only the first name in the salutation (i.e., Dear Lucy:). In all other cases, however, use the personal title and full name. Leave one line blank after the salutation.

Names

Although rules have relaxed over the years, it is still important to address someone correctly. This will depend on your relationship with the reader:

• Informal or Neutral: Dear Peter: …

• Formal: Dear Mr. Galanaugh: …

The formal style is reserved for customers, members of the public or people in high authority. Unless a reader is entitled to a different style, such as Rev. or Dr., then it is common business practice to use the reader's title of Mr. or Ms. in the inside address and the salutation line. (If a woman prefers to be referred to as Miss or Mrs., she should sign her letters with this title. It is then the reader's responsibility to ensure that all future correspondence is addressed correctly.) Doctors are ad­dressed as Dr. Brown or as Susan Brown, MD.

Example:

Dear Mr. Green:

Dear Ms. Blakey:

Dear Dr. Brown:

Some writers don't want to use Dear because they feel the reader is not their dear. However, this salutation is traditional and many readers would be upset if it were missing from a letter.

Note: The abrreviations Mr, Mrs etc. are usually written without full stops (Mr) in British English and with full stops (Mr.) in American English.

You can also write the person's full name. In this case, leave out the title (Mr/Ms). This way of writing the salutation is very handy if you don't know the gender of the person.

Example:

Dear Chris Miller:

Many writers are dropping the Mr. and Ms. from the inside address and the salutation line. This works well when you do not know the sex of the reader and do not have time to find out. The same tactic applies if you are unsure of which name is the surname. In these instances, use the reader's full name.

Example:

Dear Chris Stone:

Dear R.J. Deakin:

Dear Young Kil:

If you do not have a name, address the letter to the position.

Example:

March 1, 200-

Human Resources Manager

Onsite and Customized Programs Division

Canadian Management Centre

5th Floor, 150 York Street

Toronto ON M5H 3S5

Dear Human Resources Manager:

If you do not have a name or position, omit the salutation line and use a subject line only:

Onsite and Customized Programs Division

Canadian Management Centre 5th Floor,

150 York Street

Toronto ON M5H 3S5

Request for Information

You might also use several more possibilities to address people that you don't know by name:

SALUTATION	WHEN TO USE
Dear Sir / Dear Sirs	male addressee (esp. in British English)
Gentlemen	male addressee (esp. in American English)
Dear Madam	female addressee (esp. in British English)
Ladies	female addressee (esp. in American English)
Dear Sir or Madam	gender unknown (esp. in British English)
Ladies and Gentlemen	gender unknown (esp. in American English)
To whom it may concern	gender unknown (esp. in American English)

Note: Nowadays in the USA the terms To Whom It May Concern, Dear Sir/Madam, or Ladies and Gentlemen, are considered old-fashioned and should not be used.

Business partners often call each other by their first names. In this case, write the salutation as follows: Dear Sue.

Punctuation

Regardless of punctuation style, the only letter parts (outside of the body) to be followed by punctuation marks are the salutation and complimen­tary closing. Within the body, the general rules of punctuation apply.

OPEN: No punctuation is used, except in the body.

STANDARD: The salutation is followed by a colon or a comma; the complimentary closing is followed by a comma.

Note: The salutation and closing should be punctuated con­sistently: either both are followed by punctuation or neither is followed by punctuation. Note, too, that in American English a comma is NOT used after the salutation. (This practice is reserved for private correspondence.)

SUBJECT LINE

Like the attention line, this is often omitted, but its inclusion is a courtesy to your reader. By alerting him to the content of your message, you enable him to decide whether the letter re­quires immediate attention.

Subject line usually appears below the salutation and above the first line of the message. It starts at the left margin or is centered on the page for emphasis. The subject line may be introduced by the word “Subject:” or “Re:” (Latin for “matter”), or the word may be omitted. Subject lines may be emphasized by underlining, using bold font, or all capital letters. 

British English

The subject line is usually placed between the salutation and the body of the letter (with a blank line in between).

American English

In American English, the subject line can also be placed between the recipient's address and the salutation (with a blank line in between).

BODY OF A BUSINESS LETTER

When writing a business letter, be careful to remember that conciseness is very important. In the first paragraph, consider a friendly opening and then a statement of the main point. The next paragraph should begin justifying the importance of the main point. In the next few paragraphs, continue justification with background information and supporting details. The closing paragraph should restate the purpose of the letter and, in some cases, request some type of action.

Your letter should be neither too long nor too short. The length of your letter will depend on whether the subject of the letter is a simple or a complicated one. You have to decide on the right amount of info to include in your letter. The reader will not be able to understand the message if you leave out important information. If you include too many details, he may be irritated.

Planning your letter in advance is the best thing to do. In this way you will be able to decide what to include, in which order and how you are going to express it. The best way produce a good business letter is to use the KISS formula (keep it short and simple). The body of most letters can be divided into three paragraphs, though some more may be necessary sometimes.

You should also avoid informal, colloquial language as well as phrasal verbs, idioms and short forms. This kind of vocabulary is considered inappropriate.

Capitalise the first word of the text (even if the salutation ends with a comma). You may use “I” and “we” in the same letter. “I” means you as an individual. “We” means your whole organization.

Content

• first paragraph: introduction and reason for writing

• following paragraphs: explain your reasons for writing in more detail, provide background information etc.

• last paragraph: summarise your reason for writing again and make clear what you want the recipient to do

Note: Your text should be positive and well structured. Remember that opening and closing paragraphs should not exceed four lines. The paragraphs of the body should not exceed eight lines.

COMPLIMENTARY CLOSING

This is a polite, formal way to end a letter. The acceptable closings for today's letters are Sincerely, Yours sincerely or Regards. Regards is used when writing to a business associate who is also a personal friend. Yours truly is used nowadays for more formal writing, such as when writing to ecclesiastical or diplomatic circles. Excessively familiar closings should be avoided, except in special situations. "Best wishes," for example, could be used when the reader is well known to you. Expressions such as "Fondly” or “Love” should, obviously, be reserved for private correspondence.

Position.

The closing begins at the same horizontal point as your date and one line after the last body paragraph. Capitalize the first word only (i.e., Thank you) and leave four lines between the closing and the sender’s name for a signature. If a colon follows the salutation, a comma should follow the closing; otherwise, there is no punctuation after the closing.

The word ‘dear’ always comes before the name of the person you are writing to, even if you don’t know them. However, what follows after ‘dear’ determines how you are going to write the ending of your business letter. If your letter begins ‘Dear Ms Foster’, ‘Dear Gary Stewart’, ‘Dear Wendy’, etc, then your letter should end with ‘Yours sincerely’. If your letter is informal or neutral in style and you know the person fairly well, then you can use ‘Best wishes’, or ‘Kind regards’ instead.

If you do not know the name of the person you are writing to then your greeting should be ‘Dear Sir or Madam’ and your ending should be ‘Yours faithfully’.

British English

Salutation	Complimentary closing
Dear Ms Wexley Dear Jane Wexley Dear Jane	Yours sincerely / Sincerely yours
Dear Sir/ Dear Sirs Dear Madam Dear Sir or Madam	Yours faithfully / Faithfully yours

American English. In the US, any business letter ends with “Yours sincerely / Sincerely yours”, if it’s not written to ecclesiastical or diplomatic circles.

SIGNER’S IDENTIFICATION (SIGNATURE BLOCK)

Signature block includes the signer’s name and any relevant titles. The writer's name and title are normally typed four lines below the complimentary closing or the company name. If the letter is short you could leave six lines; if it is long, reduce the space to two lines. Usually a man does not type Mr. in his signature, but if he has a name that could be mistaken for a woman's and he wants to ensure that the reader knows who he is, he should use Mr. in either his handwritten signature or his typed signature. The same advice holds true for women who want to be referred to as Mrs. or Miss.

Example:

Cordially,

Kris Burton

Mr. Kris Burton

Executive Assistant

REFERENCE (IDENTIFICATION) INITIALS

If someone typed the letter for you, he or she would typically include three of your initials in all uppercase characters, then two of his or hers in all lowercase characters. Common styles are below.

• JAD/cm

• JAD:cm

Nowadays adding the writer's initials is considered unnecessary because the writer's name is already in the signature block. The typist’s initials may be placed at the left margin in upper or lower case. The practice of adding initials is fading as many people now type their own material.

ENCLOSURE

Consisting of the word “enclosure” (or “enc” or “end”), or the word “enclosure" followed by a list of the enclosed items, this is a practical courtesy to prevent your reader from discarding important matter with the envelope.

If you have enclosed any documents along with the letter, such as a resume, you indicate this simply by typing “Enclosure”/ “Enclosures” at the left margin, two lines under the typist's initials, or under the signature block if there is no need for the typist's initials. Type the singular for only one enclosure, plural for more.

Example:

Enclosure

Enclosures: 3

Enclosures (3)

As an option, you may list the name of each document you are including in the envelope. For instance, if you have included many documents and need to insure that the recipient is aware of each document, it may be a good idea to list the names.

“C. C." NOTATION

Stands for courtesy copies (formerly carbon copies). List the names of people to whom you distribute copies, in alphabetical order. If addresses would be useful to the recipient of the letter, include them. If you don't copy your letter to anyone, skip it.

1. Answer the questions.

1. Name parts of a business letter.

2. What is the difference between British and American traditions of writing sender’s and recipient’s address?

3. What is the peculiarity of American dating system?

4. Define the terms “attention line” “subject line” and “reference line”.

5. What is a correct form of salutation when the reader’s gender or name is unknown?

6. What does business letter body consist of?

7. In what way does complimentary closing depend on salutation?

8. What is “reference/identification initials”? What is their role in modern business correspondence?

9. What is “enclosure”? What kind of documents can be enclosed into the letter?

10. What is “c.c”? How is it used in correspondence?