Unit 4 Introducing the business letter

 Printed stationery  Presentation: fully blocked layout  Other parts of a business letter  Open punctuation  Continuation sheets  Categories of business letter  Other types of business letter  Structure  Presenting business letters – key points to remember

 Communication with people outside your organisation is vitally important  A high standard should be set and maintained in all your communications  Despite many modern communication methods available today, business letters are very often the main means of establishing business relations  Well presented business letter may lead to an important business contract

 Letterhead paper ◦ Good quality letterhead paper is generally used ◦ Attractive, well-balanced letterhead enhances prestige of an organisation

 Logos ◦ Graphic symbol on letterhead ◦ Often the same as trade mark used on packaging, delivery vehicles, etc. ◦ Often unusual or amusing so that customers remember them easily

 The fully-blocked layout is the most widely used method of display for all business documents

 Confidential/ airmail/ urgent ◦ If a letter is confidential, this should be indicated between the date and inside address, just as it would be shown on the envelope

 Attention line ◦ When the writer wanted to ensure the letter is directed to a specific person ◦ In today’s business communication when we usually know the name of the person to whom we are writing, unnecessary to use

 Copies ◦ When a copy of a letter is to be sent to another person this may be indicated by the following methods:  Blind copies ◦ If the sender does not wish the recipient to know that other people are receiving copies, a blind copy may be sent. Indication bcc is used on the copies only – not on original

 Signing on someone else’s behalf ◦ If you have to sign a letter on behalf of someone else, it can be done in following ways:

 Commonly used with the fully-blocked layout  Commas and full stops are omitted

 Many organisations have printed continuation sheets which are used for second and subsequent pages of business letters  May show simply the company’s name and logo  When using a continuation sheet, remember: ◦ Do not include ‘continued’ or ‘cont.’ at the foot of the 1 st page ◦ Try to start a new page with a new paragraph

To confirm arrangements made between sender and recipient Confirmation To acknowledge receipt of a letter, order or other item Acknowledgement To request information or prices Enquiry To respond to an enquiry Reply To criticise poor service or goods Complaint To respond to the complain and hopefully make amends Adjustment To obtain settlement of a debt Collection letters To sell goods or services Sales letters To reach a certain group of people Circular letters

 Letter of confirmation

 Acknowledgement

 Enquiry

 Complaint

 Collection letters

 There are many different types of business letters. In this unit, we have only looked at some of the more routine letters  There will be many occasions when you will need to write a letter that does not fall into any specific category  Just remember the general rules of good business writing and plan your letter carefully

1. Opening/ introduction2. Details 3. Action4. Close The four-point plan

1. Opening / introduction ◦ Could refer to a meeting or previous contact ◦ Should introduce the subject that you want to discuss 2. Details ◦ ‘Meat’ – all the facts and figures ◦ All key points in a logical order, separate paragraphs 3. Action ◦ Tells the reader what action you want reader to take ◦ Or it be action that you will take after all points mentioned ◦ E.g: “Please complete the enclosed reply form and return it to me by…” 4. Close ◦ Finish with one-line close. E.g: “I hope to hear from you soon.”

1. Use fully-blocked style with open punctuation consistently 2. Leave one blank line between each section of the letter and between each paragraph 3. The only big space on the letter should be for sender’s signature 4. Display subject heading in capitals and bold to make it stand out 5. Structure your message according to the four- point plan – with an introduction, details, action and close

6. Make sure information in central section flows logically from point to point 7. Take special care with opening and closing paragraphs 8. Include appropriate headings at the top of continuation pages 9. Proofread message carefully, and consider whether it is structured appropriately 10. Read through message as if you are the reader