2. What is a Business Letter?
• A business letter is a letter written in
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.
3. The Components of a Business
Letter
• Business letters usually contain the following
information (in this order):
– Writer's address (street, city, country).
– Date of writing [Month Day, Year]
– Recipient's name, job title, company name,
address and city
– Salutation or Greeting (Dear Mr./ Mrs./ Ms…..)
– Message (body of the letter)
– Closing
– writer's signature
4. The Components of a Business
Letter
• In some situations, a business letter may
also include the following optional
information:
3. Writer's Initials: typist's initials ( if writer did not
type letter).
4. Enclosures (Encl:)
5. Carbon copy Recipients (cc:)
5. The Components of a Business
Letter
Heading
• Assuming you are using company letterhead, your full
address will already be on the page. Add the date two spaces
below the last line of printed copy.
• If you are using blank paper, add your full address and the
date in the heading. Align the heading with the right margin.
Inside Address
• Include the recipient's full name, title, company name and
address one spaces below the date (or more spaces if the
letter body is small). Align it with the left margin.
6. The Components of a Business
Letter
Salutation or greeting
• One/Two spaces below the inside address, and also aligned
with the left margin.
• Dear Sir or Madam: (use if you don't know who you are
writing to)
• Dear Dr, Mr, Mrs, Ms or Ms Smith (use if you know who you
are writing to, and have a formal relationship with)
7. The Components of a Business
Letter
The Message
• The body of the letter begin one space below the salutation.
• Leave one blank line between paragraphs and do not indent the
first line of each paragraph.
• State a reference reason for your letter (i.e. "With Reference to
your advertisement in…", "With reference to our telephone
conversation...")
• Give the reason for writing (i.e. "I am writing to you to confirm our
order…)
8. The Components of a Business
Letter
• Here are some guiding phrases for your message:
• Giving Bad News
• Unfortunately
I am afraid that
• Enclosing Documents
• I am enclosing
Please find enclosed
Enclosed you will find
• Concluding/ giving reference to future contact
• I look forward to hearing from you soon.
• I look forward to meeting you next Tuesday.
9. The Components of a Business
Letter
Closing
• Place the closing onetwo spaces below the last line of the
body.
• Yours faithfully, (If you don't know the name of the person
you're writing to)
• Yours sincerely, (If you know the name of the person you're
writing to)
• Best regards, (If the person is a close business contact)
10. The Components of a Business
Letter
Signature
• printed name, position of sender, Company name.
Additional Information
• Sometimes a letter requires you to add the typist's initials,
an enclosure notification, or a note that other people are
receiving the same letter. Any of this information goes two
spaces below the last line of the closing .
11. The Components of a Business
Letter
Writer's Initials: typist's initials
• Appear two lines below the last line of the signature block
and flush with the left margin.
• The typist's initials follow the writer's initials, separated by a
slash.
• The writer's initials go in capital letters, while the typist's are
lowercase.
Example: LEA/lak or LEA/ald
• If the writer and the typist are the same person, no initials
are needed.
12. The Components of a Business
Letter
Enclosure
• If you are sending material along with the letter, such as an
invoice or report, indicate this with an enclosure
notification.
• When you use this, you must refer to the enclosures in your
letter. Abbreviate or describe the enclosure(s).
Examples:
Enc.
Encs.
Enclosure: Report findings
13. The Components of a Business
Letter
Carbon copy Recipients (cc:)
• Lastly, if you are sending the same letter to more than one
person, notify your recipients with a copy notation.
This is abbreviated "cc:" and followed by the recipients'
names.
Example:
cc: Linda Alexander
Janna Bree Smith
Emily Lane
14. Guidelines when writing a
business letter
• Keep the letter brief and to the point .
• Do not use shortened verb forms - write
them out (i.e. "don't instead of do not")
• Signature shouldn’t be written by hand.
• No Passive we use active form.
17. What is Informal letter?
• It is a letter written between friends,
relatives or close people about anything
they want to talk about..
18. The Main Components of an
Informal Letter
1. Letter head or sender's address. (Then leave blank line)
optional
– Address of sender
– City of sender
• Date [Month Day, Year] (Then leave blank line)
• Salutation:
– Dear Ahmed, (followed by a comma ‘,’ )
– Hi Ahmed!!
• Greetings:
– How are you?
– How have you been?
19. The Main Components of an
Informal Letter
• The Message
– Write whatever you want.
• Closing
– Yours
– Sincerely
– Best Regards
– Thank you….
• Signature, Your handwritten or printed name
• P.S. [postscript] (any important note you want to add)
– Ex. Please Reply.
