- •Introduction
- •1 Business letter writing
- •2The letter heading and the layout
- •2.1. The parts of the letter
- •2.2. Style of american firms
- •3. Structure and presentation
- •1. Read the following statements and decide which are true t and which are false
- •2. Put the verbs in brackets into either the present simple, (e.G. He works), or the present continuous, (e.G. He is working).
- •3. Put the following names and addresses in order.
- •5. Complete the following letter of enquiry with the correct prepositions.
- •Veto Sport ag
- •3.1. Content and Style
- •1. Read this letter from a computer company to a company trainer, and fill in the blanks with the correct verb taken from the list below.
- •2. Put the phrases below in the correct order to form a letter requesting information.
- •3. Rewrite the following request for payment in a more polite form.
- •4. Other methods of communication
- •4.1. Competition
- •Curriculum vitae
- •Interests/hobbies
- •4.2. Forms
- •4.4. Faxes
- •4.5. Notices
- •4.7. Memoranda
- •5 The enquiry
- •Requests for catalogues and price lists
- •General enquiries and replies
- •Enquiries cliches
- •Enquiries
- •1. Fill in the missing words:
- •3. Match these words from Exercise 2 with their definitions
- •4. Rewrite the following questions in a less direct form, beginning with the words given.
- •5. Make words from the jumbled letters and match them with the definitions in the sentences below.
- •6. John Phillips is telling his secretary what to write when she types out the day's letters. Change his instructions into an acceptable form for business correspondence.
- •7. Complete the following letter of enquiry with the correct prepositions.
- •8. Read this reply to a letter of enquiry. Underline the words in the letter which correspond to the words and phrases below.
- •Glaston potteries Ltd
- •Reply to an enquiries (offers)
- •Replies to enquiries cliches
- •Replies and quotations
- •1. Read the following reply to a letter of enquiry. Mr. Fest refers to specific questions asked by Mr Whang. Which of the items below did he request information about?
- •6. Invoices and adjustments
- •Inform the buyer of the amount due.
- •Invoice
- •Invoice
- •Debit and credit notes
- •Varying the terms of payment
- •Useful expressions
- •7. Letters requesting payment tone
- •Late payments
- •Collection letters
- •Second application letters
- •Third application letters
- •Final collection letters
- •Checklist
- •8. Complaints and adjustment
- •Complaints concerning goods
- •Complaints concerning delivery
- •Checklist
- •Useful expressions
- •Complaints and adjustments
- •In the following sentences, the word in italics is not very appropriate for formal correspondence. Choose a more suitable alternative from the list.
- •British Suppliers plc
- •9. Credit and status enquiries
- •Lending restrictions and bad trade
3. Rewrite the following request for payment in a more polite form.
Dear Sir
Your have owed us £567.00 since February, which means you haven't paid us for three months.
We wrote to you twice and amazingly you didn't bother answering us, yet you've been a customer for years. Anyway, we're not going on like this, so if you don't tell us why you haven't paid, or send the money you owe us in ten days, we'll sue you. After all we've got bills from our own suppliers, and besides we explained our rules for giving credit, i.e. payment on final dates some time ago.
Yours, etc
R. Lancaster
4. The following is the reply to the letter in Exercise 2. It was received by R. Lancaster's secretary. Write a memo from the secretary to her boss, telling him about the reply, and summarizing its contents.
Deal Sir
I am writing to you in reply to your letter dated 9 May which we received on 10 May, in which you reminded us of our outstanding balance, which now amounts to the sum total of £567.00.
I should like to offer my humblest apologies for our failure either to settle the account, or to reply to your two previous communications. However, I feel that I must explain the cause of this oversight. We have been the unfortunate victims of a tragedy. Two months ago, our premises were almost completely destroyed by fire. Although I am happy to report that we sustained no casualties, all our accounts records, stock, orders ready for despatch and so on were consumed by the flames.
Now, at last, our fortunes are beginning to rise again, and our insurance company will shortly be releasing funds to facilitate our recovery. Let me assure you that you will be remunerated in full as soon as possible. In the interim, I would be grateful if you would accept a small sum towards the settlement of our account, with my personal promise that the remaining amount will be forwarded to you as soon as it becomes available.
Please find enclosed a cheque for the sum of £55.00, and once again, I beg you to accept my deepest apologies for any inconvenience caused.
Yours faithfully
T. D Games
4. Other methods of communication
4.1. Competition
When you send a curriculum vitae and/or application form you should send a cover letter with it. The main point of the letter is to tell the reader about relevant parts of your experience.
Choose a company you would like to work for. Prepare your curriculum vitae and complete the cover letter below to send with it. Point out any relevant skills/knowledge/experience that might help to get you an interview.
______________
______________
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Date__________
______________
______________
______________
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Dear_____________________________
I am very interested in working for, _________________________, and would like to know if you have any openings for a hard-working, enterprising person with business knowledge and a desire to succeed.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I have enclosed a copy of my curriculum vitae and hope that you will contact me if you have any vacancies.
Thank you for your time
Yours___________________
________________________
Look at Melanie Henderson's CV. Following the guidelines, prepare your own CV.