BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

UNIT 2
BUSINESS LETTER
Business letters are highly personalized messages which have more formal effect than face to face
communication. Every business big or small has to maintain contacts with suppliers, customers,
prospects, government departments etc.,
Business letter in organization can be taken place from one department to other department, among
businessman, to the customers and to the Government departments.
Business person, employees and everyone in the organization has to communicate with one other.
In organization communication takes place in the cases such as
 While making or soliciting enquiries.
 Placing orders for goods.
 Acknowledging and executing orders.
 Granting or applying for credit.
 Sending account statement to debtors.
 Requesting for settlement of accounts.
 Complaining about mistake in supply of goods.
 Regarding grievances.
 Advertising products.
PURPOSE OF BUSINESS LETTER
(Reasons)
 To provide a convenient and inexpensive means of communication without personal
contact.
 To furnish evidence of transactions entered into
 To provide and record for future reference.
 Letters are less costly than other means of communication.
 Letters can be sent to long distant places by post within a short time. Of course, letters
may be sent by messengers within neighboring areas.
 Letters are drafted after proper thinking and planning and so the subject matter can be
presented in a systematic and logical way.
  The ideas conveyed in letters are clear and free from ambiguity.
 The size of a letter may be big or small as required.
 Letters simultaneously provide evidence and exact copies can be retained.
 Same communication may-be made to a number of persons at a time, through duplicating
or printing.
 Many unpleasant and delicate matters which cannot be spoken face to face or through
mechanical devices can be written in letters in a discreet language.
 Letters are suitable for all types of communication.
 There is standardization in form and style readily acceptable by the business world. Even
internationally accepted code language is used
4 c’s OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
Correctness, Clarity, Conciseness, Courtesy
(Refer 7 c’s from chapter 1)
CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD 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 organizations and their
customers, clients and other external parties. A person should always maintain the
quality/characteristics of the business letter. The qualities/ characteristics of a business letter make
it presentable. It becomes easy for a person or an organization to imprint an impression onto the
others. The characteristics of a business letter can be classified as
1. Inner Quality
2. Outer Quality
Inner Quality:
It refers to the quality of language used and the presentation of a business letter. They are
i. Clear: The language used in the business letter must be clear. It helps the receiver to
understand the message immediately, easily, and clearly. Any ambiguity will lead to the
misinterpretation of the message stated.
ii. Simple: The language used in the business letter must be simple and easy. One must not
write a business letter in difficult and fancy words.
iii. Concise: The message written in the letter must be concise and to the point.
iv. Concrete: The message is written must be concrete and specific. By using concrete
 language, a reader will have a clear picture of the message.
v. Accuracy: One must always check for the accuracy of the business letter. Accuracy
generally means no error in grammar, spelling, punctuations etc. Correct personnel should
be targeted for communication.
vi. Coherent: The language used in the business letter must be coherent. The message must be
in a logical way for the clear understanding of the message. The flow of the message must
be consistent.
vii. Complete: One must write a complete message. It helps the reader to know about the issue
and the solution to be taken. It should provide all the necessary information. One must also
keep in mind that the message should be concise and short along with the complete details.
viii. Relevance: The letter should only contain important information. Irrelevant information
should not be included and avoided in any business communication.
ix. Courteous: The language used in the business letter must be courteous. A writer must
always use open, friendly, and honest wording in his letter. It does not mean that one must
use slang and abusive words. One must always add the words like please, thank you etc.
x. Neatness: A business letter must be neatly typed or handwritten. Proper spacing, indention,
and use of paragraph should be used.
2. Outer Quality
The outer quality of a business letter means the quality of its outer appearance. The outer look of
the letter must be catchy and impressive. Some of the outer qualities are
i. Size of the Paper: The standard size of paper should be used. An A4 paper is the most used
paper for writing a business letter.
ii. Quality of the Paper: The quality of the paper used must be good. It is not always possible
for a firm to use the costly paper. One must use good quality paper for original copy and
ordinary copy for the duplicate copy.
iii. The Color of the Paper: Sometimes it is very useful to use the different color of paper for
different types of letter. The receiver can clearly understand the intention and the purpose
of the letter by its color.
iv. Folding of Letter: One must fold the letter properly and uniformly. The folding must be
done to fit the letter in the envelope. It is noticeable that one must not over fold the letter.
It will have a bad impression on the reader’s mind.
 v. Envelope: The envelope used must be of good quality. Special attention must be given to
the size of the envelope for fitting the letter.

STAGES OF WRITING BUSINESS LETTERS

(Or) TECHNIQUES OF WRITING EFFECTIVE BUSINESS LETTER
An efficient document, or a letter, or a report is never just 'happens'  instead, the writer plans,
organises, revises to meet the purpose of the letter, document, and readers' needs and interest. Also
to make it an effective one, the writer connects its writing with the readers by recognising their
differences in background, their specific needs, temperaments, preferences, fears, attitude, etc.
Whenever you write a formal business letter make sure that you include the structure of all good
communications, and also the required general parts. Depending on the nature, and type of letters
that you will be writing, you might have to include the specialised parts essential for formal
business letters.
Introduction-Body-Conclusion Structure
All useful messages  whether in the form of a book, chapter, news article, report, or memo
typically follow a common organising pattern:
Introduction - Body - Conclusion
Introduction: Most letters include a brief introduction paragraph (having three to five lines, or
fewer) in which you identify yourself, and your purpose for writing the letter.
Body: There may be one or more paragraphs in your body section of the letter detailing the
messages you want to convey.
Conclusion: Then comes the conclusion section. Where you tie up your information and
courteously encourage your readers to act.
Standard Parts
Letters typically have six parts, in order from top to bottom:
 heading,
 inside address,
 salutation,
 the text (Introduction-body-conclusion),
 complimentary close and
 signature.
Heading

If your stationary is blank, include your address and the date (do not include your name). But, if
you have a stationary containing letter head of your company, then simply include the date two
lines below the letterhead. Depending on the length of the letter, place your heading at least one
inch below the top of your page and far enough to the right. Avoid abbreviations except the Postal
Services two-letter state abbreviations (foreign countries like UK USA) when addressing the
envelope and in the heading itself. Sample below.

Street Address ...................................... No 3, Mother Terasa Nagar

City, Post Code ................................... Chennai, 600043
Month, Day, Year ................................ August 01, 2022
Inside Address
Place your inside address using the reader's title (Director General) two to six spaces below your
heading and near the left margin. Include only the routinely abbreviated titles such as (Mr., Ms.,
Dr.). Titles such as major, captain are written out in full. Do not write "Dr. A. M. Safi Ph.D." only
write Dr. A. M. Safi.
Salutation
Place your salutation two spaces below your inside address. Begin your salutation with "Dear" and
end with a colon ("Dear Mr. Zafar"). Always include the person's full title. Use the attention line
if you do not
know the person's name or sender but only know the position title. Current trend is to address
reader by his or her first name if that is the way of addressing people in that country. For example,
the Germans get
annoyed if you address them by first name. Also people from China, Japan, Bangladesh, India,
Mexico do not appreciate the informal tone which is so common in British and American culture.
So to overcome
this difficulty you should be aware of the culture of that country before communicating in letter
form. Example:
Dear Ms. Jerina:
Dear Mr. Haroon:
Also people consider the greeting 'Dear Sir' or 'Madam' appropriate in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan,
but these type of greetings are too formal, and old-fashioned according to British and American
culture. So it is sometimes best to use the attention line.
Letter Text
Begin your introduction two spaces below your salutation. For letters that will fill most of the page,
use single-spacing within the paragraphs, and double-spacing between. For short letters double
space within
paragraphs, and triple-space between to balance the page.
Complimentary Close
Place your complementary close two spaces below the concluding paragraph, aligned with your
heading. Make sure the complimentary close parallel the level of formality in your salutation, and
reflects your relationship with the reader. Some conventional complimentary close are as follows:
Respectfully,
Sincerely,
Cordially,
Best wishes,
Warmest regards,
Regards,
Truly,
The complimentary close is followed by a comma.
Signature
Type your full name and title four spaces below your complimentary close. Sign in the space
between. Sincerely,

H. Revathi
HR Manager
Your signature indicates your approval of and responsibility for the letter (even if it is typed by a
secretary). If you are writing on behalf of the company, or group that bears legal responsibility for
the correspondence, type the company's name in full capital two spaces below the complimentary
close; place your typed name and title four spaces below the company name and sign in between.
Yours truly,
REGUS TECHNOLOGIES

H. Revathi
HR Manager

Other Specialised Parts of the letters

Attention Line
Use an attention line when writing to a firm, institution and when you want a particular person
(whose name you don't know) title, or department to receive the letter.
Eg:
ATTENTION : Research and Development Division
Usually drop two spaces below the inside address, and place the attention line either near the left
margin, or centred on the page.
Subject Line
In order to forecast and draw the attention of a busy reader a subject line is sometimes used as a
good device.
Eg:
SUBJECT: Application for the Post of the Marketing Executive
Place the subject line two spaces below the inside address. Write in caps or underline it.
Reference Initials
It is now customary to put the initials of the person dictating the letter and of the person typing it
towards the end of the letter near the left-hand margin.
These initials are helpful in fixing the responsibility for typing and dictating the letter. The initials
are put in any one of the following ways:
 HHS BV
 HHS:BV
 HHS/BV
 HHS-bv
(HHS are the initials of the person who has dictated the letter and BV is the initial of the person
who typed the letter.)
Enclosures

If you are giving other documents with your letter, then, add one of these notations one space
below the typist's initials.

Enclosure:

Enclosure 2

Encl. 3

In case of very important documents name them: Enclosures: 4 Certified Checks, 1 set of Master
Plan.

 Distribution Notation
If you are distributing copies of your letter to other readers, indicate so one space below any
enclosure notation.

CC: [Link]

Copies to Mr. Hari and Mrs. Karthi

The names can be arranged either alphabetically or in order of importance.

Post Script

A post script is usually given if the writer wants to draw the attention of the reader to a particular
point he wants to emphasise. Do also use Post Script to add a personal note:

P.S. You will appreciate the way he/she handles customers.

But do not use a Post Script for a point you have forgotten, in that case you better write a fresh
one. You can place the Post Script two spaces below any other notation. Use the Post Script
sparingly in professional communication.

(Summary:
The stages or techniques of writing effective business letters can be summarized as follows:
1. Planning and Organization:
o Effective business letters are not spontaneous; they require careful planning and
organization. Writers need to clarify their purpose and consider the needs and
interests of their audience.
2. Introduction-Body-Conclusion Structure:
 o Business letters typically follow a structured format of introduction, body, and
conclusion.
o Introduction: Briefly introduces the writer and states the purpose of the letter in a
concise manner.
o Body: Contains one or more paragraphs that provide the details or main message
of the letter.
o Conclusion: Summarizes the information presented and encourages the reader to
take action if necessary.
3. Standard Parts of a Business Letter:
o Heading: Includes the sender's address and the date of the letter. Positioned at the
top right if using letterhead, otherwise, it's placed at the top left.
o Inside Address: Includes the recipient's details (name, title, company name,
address) positioned below the heading.
o Salutation: Begins with "Dear" followed by the recipient's title and last name (or
first name, depending on cultural norms).
o Letter Text: Starts after the salutation and consists of the main content of the letter,
structured into paragraphs.
o Complimentary Close: A polite closing phrase such as "Sincerely" or "Best
regards", followed by a comma.
o Signature: Includes the sender's full name and title beneath the complimentary
close, followed by their handwritten signature if the letter is printed.
4. Additional Parts and Techniques:
o Attention Line: Used when addressing a specific person or department, placed
above the salutation.
o Subject Line: Highlights the subject of the letter, placed below the inside address.
o Reference Initials: Identifies the individuals responsible for dictating and typing
the letter, typically placed at the left-hand margin near the end of the letter.
o Enclosures: Notifies the recipient of additional documents included with the letter,
listed after the reference initials.
o Distribution Notation: Indicates if copies of the letter are being sent to others,
listed after enclosures.
o Post Script (P.S.): Optional addition to draw attention to an important point or
provide a personal note, placed below other notations.
These techniques ensure that business letters are structured, clear, and effective in conveying the
intended message to the recipient, while also maintaining professionalism and adherence to
cultural norms where applicable.)
A sample letter to show various parts of a letter
Format of Business Letter
LAYOUT

The general appearance of the letter will create a favorable impression in the minds of the reader.

1. FULL BLOCK FORM

2. Modified Form
3. SEMI BLOCK FORM
(Summary:
Layout:
Full Block form
 All elements (date, sender's address, recipient's address, salutation, body, closing,
signature) are aligned to the left.
 No indentation at the beginning of paragraphs.
Semi-Block Format
Layout:
 Similar to full block format, but the date, closing, and signature are aligned to the right
margin.
 The beginning of each paragraph is indented.
Modified Block Format
Layout:
 Similar to semi-block format, but the sender's address, date, closing, and signature are
aligned to the right margin.
 The beginning of each paragraph is indented.)

KINDS OF BUSINESS LETTERS

1) Sales Letter
This is the most common form of a business letter that is used in almost every field. The sales
letter serves as an introduction for the customer about the product and/or the company. A typical
Sales letter starts off with a line or statement which captures the interest of the reader who is more
often than not a target customer or a prospect.
The purpose of a sales letter is to ensure that the reader takes an action and that is why strong calls
to action are included in it. The call to action includes a website link, phone number, social media
handles, etc. which would connect the customer with the company for further info.
2) Acknowledgment letter
A letter sent for acknowledgment or recognition or receipt of material or letter from the other party
is called an acknowledgment letter. The acknowledgment can be of receipt of goods and services,
receipt of any other letter or of general inquiries. It is usually sent by post or by mail. The letter is
also used for replying to the queries and complaints sent by customers or clients to state and
acknowledge that we have received the communication.
3) Order Letters
As the name suggests, these are types of Business letters that are sent solely for the purpose of
placing orders and they may be sent to wholesalers, retailers, or a [Link] order letter
includes all the relevant details related to the order such as invoice or receipt number, product
details along with specifications, quantity of the order, Sales tax number and other details related
to the manufacturer and a figure indicating the total amount of the order. Depending on the agreed
payment terms the payment amount may or may not be included in with the Order letter.
4) Apology letter
An apology letter is written in order to express regret regarding a certain matter, which says the
acknowledgment of mistake or issue or error along with an apology. It is a way of showing sincere
regret towards the mistake along with the steps to rectify it or make necessary changes to try and
undo the damage. Apology letter may be issued by the company for the customer or to the
dealer or even to an internal stakeholder.
5) Complaint Letter
Complaint letters are the types of Business letters written by one party to another party or entity to
convey dismay about a certain issue. Complaints are indicators that something has went wrong
and that has been indicated by a formal business letter. A customer may issue a product complaint
letter to address something that is wrong with the product or to highlight a deficiency in services
leading to dissatisfaction. The complaint letters are short and usually direct in nature, addressed to
the company or person or department in charge. Sometimes complaint letters may also contain
steps to rectify the problem or expected compensation. A complaint letter is followed by an
acknowledgment letter and then an apology letter, if applicable.
6) Appreciation letters
These types of communication letters are written by senior management to the junior management
for the conveyance of gratitude in order to congratulate them on a job well done or in order to
motivate them.
7) Circular Letters
These types of business letters are sent to a closed group or selected people with the purpose of
being circulated widely. The purpose of circular letters is to either convey customers about the sale
or news or intimate about important information about newly launched or built facilities.
This can also be used to deliver news about new product launches. Circular letters are also used to
reach new and prospect customers to let them know about the new information and new
developments.
8) Inquiry Letters
These types of business letters are sent for inquiry about certain information. The primary purpose
is to know about something or if someone has any query which needs to be answered. The inquiry
letter is to be kept short and to the point with directly addressing the inquiry. The person who asks
query is called an inquirer and the inquirer should make sure to include his address and contact
details for the authorities to get back to them.
9) Confirmation letter
Whenever there is a discussion or mutual agreement between two parties, and the discussion leads
to an understanding or mutual agreement, that agreement is quoted in a confirmation letter.
10) Adjustment Letter
Adjustment letters are the ones that are sent to the customers as a response to their claim or
complaint. The adjustment can be either in customers’ favor in which case, the letter should begin
accordingly and if it is not in the favor of the customer, the tone should be kept factual with a
message that you understand the complaint.