Posting things for class assignments =3=
in this post i will try to describe what is a business letter and what made it. like normal letter, Business letter also separated into few parts.
LETTERHEAD
Now the very first part of letter is a "Letterhead"
Letterhead / Return address is the topmost part of a business letter which provide following information to the recipient of the letter
It consists of : 1. Legal name of the organization
2. Address of the organization (including street address)
3. Name and/or post office box number, suite
4. Area code and telephone number(s)
Note that some departments, branch offices and
company officers may have their own letterheads which contain
specific identifiers.
In addition, the letterhead may also include the company logo
and fax number(s).
When letterhead stationery is not available, a return address
with the same information that a letterhead contains is placed immediately
above the date line in the letter.
Date Line
Second part of the letter is a Date line.
The date line appears two or three lines below the letterhead
(or as many as six or seven lines below if the letter is short).
If no letterhead is used, the date line appears directly underneath
the return address.
The date line should never extend
into either margin.
The normal order of elements in the date line are month, day,
and year, e.g.,
July 15, 20--. However, in the U.S. Government
and many foreign countries, the preference is to present the day
before the month, e.g.,
15 July 20--. In either case,
abbreviations are not allowed.
Reference Line or Block
Next part of the letter is reference line. reference line or block is optional and should be used when
the letter refers to several invoices, letters, or telephone
conversations. With this there is no need to include reference information in the opening paragraph.
Reference lines or blocks appear immediately below or two
lines below the date line, depending upon company preference. They
can begin with
RE or
References
.
If several references are listed, each may be preceded by a
number or letter identifier to facilitate ease of referral (by
number or letter) within the body of the document. In documents
of multiple pages, reference lines may appear under the date in
the heading of all pages.
Attention Line
An attention line is used when the inside address does not
include either the name of an individual or the name of the department.
It appears two lines below the inside address.
The word attention may have an initial capital letter or
appear in all capitals. The use of a colon after the word is
optional.
If the word "ATTENTION" is
written in all capital letters, the name following should also
appear in all capitals.
Salutation
Next part is salutation. Salutation helps to establish
the tone of the correspondence.
The salutation appears two spaces beneath the inside address
and usually begins with the conventional greeting like "Dear" followed
by the title and name of the addressee. No punctuation follows
the salutation in open punctuation style. In standard punctuation
style, a colon (formal letters) or comma (informal letters)
follows the salutation.
When the addressee's name is unknown, several options are
available:
- Ladies and Gentlemen ( or reversed ) -Ladies (if all women)
- Dear Sir or Madam ( or reversed ) -Gentlemen (if all men)
- Dear Friends -Dear Colleagues
Sexist salutations, e.g., Dear Sirs, Gentlemen, etc., are not
used. When the gender of the addressee is known, then Dear Mr. or
Dear Ms. are acceptable.
When none of the non-gender
alternatives seems appropriate, a simplified letter format
(omitting the salutation) may be used. Another solution is to
omit the gender title, e.g., Dear Chris Smith.
Subject Line
Next part of the letter before the body is the Subject line
With a descriptive subject lines, it will instantly
inform a reader of the general content of the letter. They also
permit accurate filing and retrieval from files.
Subject lines specifically define the subject matter of the
letter. They appear two lines below the salutation and two lines above
the first line of the text, although the simplified letter format
may have different spacing. Subject lines are highlighted by boldface
type, underlining, or the use of all capital letters.
Text or Body
Text or Body is the next part and also the main part of a letter because everything that needs to be informed is described in this part.
The text or body begins two lines below the salutation or
subject line. (In the simplified letter format, the text begins
three lines below the subject line.) The text is single or double spaced,
depending on letter length.
Paragraphs are not indented in block, modified block, and
simplified format letters, but they are indented (usually five spaces)
in semiblock format letters. A blank line appears between
paragraphs.
Long quotations are indented five spaces from both the left
and right margins, with a blank line both before and after. A similar
indentation is used for lists in letters with the semiblock format.
Reverse or "hanging"
indentation is a format option, especially in advertising
letters:
The first line begins flush with the
left margin, with subsequent lines indented five spaces.
At least three lines of text must appear on any page following
the initial page. If necessary, margins and line spacing are adjusted
to meet this requirement.
Headings for Continuation Pages
if there's more than one page of letter. Heading is added again for continuation pages
Continuation pages begin with a heading which contains the
name of the addressee, the page number, and the date. The continuation
page can also repeat information given in the reference line.
Complimentary Closing
The complimentary closing should
convey the level of formality and degree of personal feeling that
the writer has for the reader.
The complimentary closing (omitted in the simplified letter
format) appears two lines below the last line of text. Its
alignment varies with the format of the letter:
In block letters, the complimentary closing appears flush with the left margin.
In modified and semiblock letters, the complimentary appears right of center or may be flush with the right margin.
Complimentary closings for business letters example :
Sincerely, Sincerely yours, Thank you,
Complimentary closings for informal letters example:
Best wishes, Kindest regards, Regards,
Best regards, Cordially,
Complimentary closings for very formal letters (those
addressed to dignitaries and high officials) include:
Yours sincerely, Respectfully yours, Respectfully,
The word "truly" has
become a cliche and should be avoided in letter closings.
Signature Block
The signature block appears four or five lines beneath the
complimentary closing (or at a like distance below the last line
of text of simplified format letters). In block and simplified letters,
the signature block is flush with the left margin, while in modified
and semiblock letters, the signature is usually right of center.
The signature block contains the handwritten signature of the
writer, the full typed name of the writer, and the title of the writer.
The company name is optional.
The company name is only needed in a
signature block when the letter represents a company policy,
position, or decision.
Secretaries who sign a letter for
the author should sign the author's name and then add their own
initials either in the middle or on the right side under the
signature.
Academic titles and professional titles, when used, follow the
typed name and replace Dr. or other courtesy titles preceding the
name.
Reference Initials
Reference initials (the writer's initials and the
secretary's/typist's initials) appear two lines below the last
line of the signature block and flush with the left margin.
If only the secretary's/typist's initials are used, they are
usually lowercase, e.g., rgn. If the writer's initials are
included, they are in all capitals, followed by a slash mark or
colon, and then followed by the secretary's /typist's initials in
lower case, e.g., TLM/rgn or TLM:rgn.
If the writer is different from the
person sending the letter, the signer's initials should appear
first, the writer's initials should appear next, and the
secretary's/typist's initials should appear last:
EBD/TLM/rgn
EBD:TLM:rgn
Enclosure Notation
An enclosure notation reminds readers of enclosures and
appears directly under reference initials. The following are examples
of enclosure notation forms:
Enclosure Enc. Enclosures (3)
3 Enclosures Enclosures 3
Types of enclosures may be indicated:
Enclosures
1. Invoice 6234-44
2. Graph of sales activity
3. Letter of authorization
Items "enclosed" but
separately sent should be indicated as follows:
Enclosures
1. Invoice 6234-44
Sent separately
2. Letter of authorization
3. Price list
Courtesy Copy Notation
A courtesy copy notation (showing the distribution of the
letter) appears two lines below the enclosure notation and flush with
the left margin:
cc cc:
Copy to Copies to
All people receiving the letter in addition to the addressee
are listed:
cc Edward Albers
G.C. Fischer
Merilee Tobias
Postscripts
Postscripts (additions to the letter after it has been typed
or items needing emphasis) appear two lines below the last line
of courtesy copy notation. The use of the initials PS or PPS is
optional.
