1. Business Correspondence
Introduction to Letter Writing
- Letter Layout

2. Study this example of a business letter
1.letterhead
2.Date
3.recipient’s address
4.Salutation
5. Subject line
6.Body of the letter
Close
7. Signature

3. Layout (the structure of a letter)
The letter shows the basic features of a business letter. It is written in the blocked style/format. The format is commonly used for business letters and formal correspondence. The main features of the blocked style are:
All lines begin at the left-hand margin. The lines and parahraphs
are not indented.
No punctuation marks are necessary in the reference, date, address,
salutation and closing section. This is called ‘open punctuation’.
The essential parts of a business letter layout are presented below:

4. 1. Sender’s Address/Letterhead
Many companies use letterhead paper (headed paper)
which displays their address and the logo.
In correspondence that does not have a letterhead,
the sender’s address is placed in the top right-hand
corner. It is also acceptable to place it in the top
left-hand corner.

5. 2.Date The date should always be shown in full - the names of
months should not be abbreviated
The month in the date should not be written in figures to avoid
confusion between American English and British English:
the date means 12th June 2011 in BrE
the date means 6th December 2011 in AmE
It is acceptable to write the date with or without the abbreviations
-th or –nd, eg. 12th June 2011 or 12 June 2011 – whichever you
choose be consistent throughout your correspondence

6. 3. Recipient’s Name and Address
The recipient’s address is put on the left against the margin
The recommended order is as follows:
- name of the recipient followed by his/her job title (if known)
- name of the company
- name of house or building
- number of building and name of street or road
- name of town or city and postcode
- name of country
The name of the recipient should be preceded by an appropriate
courtesy title and include either the person’s initial/s or his/her
first name:
Mr John Smith or MR J.E. Smith NOT Mr Smith

7. 4. Salutation and the complimentary close
Salutation is a greeting which opens the letter and begins with Dear followed by
the courtesy title and the person’s surname (initials or first names not included)
If you do not know the name of the person you are writing to, begin your letter
with Dear Sir or Madam.
Complimentary close is a polite expression bringing a letter to a close. It must
match the salutation.
Salutation
status
complimentary close
Dear Mr
married or unmarried man
Yours sincerely
Dear Mrs
married female
Dear Miss
unmarried female
Dear Ms
married or unmarried female
Dear Sir
male – name not known
Yours faithfully
Dear Madame
female – name not known
Dear Sir/Madam
when not sure if the addressee is a male or female

8. 5. Subject line
The subject line is often included in business letters and it is typed
immediately below the salutation
The purpose of the subject line is to state the topic of the letter clearly.

9. 6.Body of the letter
The body of a letter should be divided into paragraphs to separate
the various points raised.
The body of the letter often requires careful planning. You might find it useful to
follow the framework below.
1. Introduction: refers to previous correspondence or
gives the reason for writing; introduces the subject.
2. Details: gives/asks for the information and details, states
facts; It might be necessary to divide this section into more
paragraphs as you give information about different issues.
3. Action: refers to what you will do (your response to the issues mentioned) or what you want the reader to do
Final paragraph: a conclusion to the points raised in the letter; may contain a standard expression, which should be relevant to the content of the message, e.g.
I look forward to hearing from you soon only if the response is
I look forward to receiving your reply expected

10. 7. Signature block and enclosure
The signature block should consist of your
handwritten signature and necessarily your
typed signature below.
If relevant, type your job title immediately below
your typed signature.
If there is anything you enclose to your letter,
remember to place ‘Enc.’ under your signature

11. Useful links
Different letter formats: