BUSINESS LETTER
PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION
UNIT 3: WRITING SKILLS
Pallavi Kiran
Assistant Professor
School of Humanities
[email protected]
Facts about Business Letter
• Letter is as an indispensable tool of communication in
business.
• It is important (purpose) in:
• Exchanging business information
• Establishing business relationship
• Creation of markets
• Substitute to personal visit
• Saving cost and time
• Maintaining secrecy
• Increasing goodwill
• Formal agreement
• Settlement of transaction
• Use as reference
• Legal acceptance
• Assistance in local and international trade
Message
• Writing a clear and focused message in business is a time saver.
• All business messages fit across to four categories: General Message, Positive New,
Bad News and Negative Message.
• A general message have a direct approach of communicating the information (about
apology, congratulatory, greetings etc.) rather than using buffer statements or beating
around the bush.
• Positive news is mainly written to reassure or convey constructive information (like
transmittal, confirmation, summary, or clarification) and to play down the negative
elements.
• A bad news message delivers news that the audience does not want to hear, read or
receive; it may shock the reader or give a little stress. Indirect approach is always
preferred.
• Negative messages are rejections due to job applications, promotion requests, poor
evaluations, firings, layoffs or new policy changes that can create a hardship for the
employee. Most of the time, managers and human resource executives have to be the
bearers of negative news.
• (Read more on pages 350-351)
Business Letter Writing
• The best letters have a conversational tone and read as if the reader is
being spoken to.
• The conversational tone depends on Clarity, cordiality, conviction,
correctness, completeness, conciseness, courtesy.
• Significance:
• They are the appropriate forms of communication when the information to be
conveyed is complex.
• They serve as permanent records and are a valuable repository of information,
which can be referred to in future.
• They help reach out to a large and geographically diverse audience
economically.
Business Letter
Structure Layout
(Positing of Elements) (General Format)
Standard Elements Additional Elements Block Layout Modified Block Layout
The common The elements All The heading is
yet which are elements centre aligned
significant and optional and are except the whereas the
mandatory added letterhead dateline,
elements like depending upon heading are complimentary
date line, the purpose of aligned to close, and
salutation, the letter like the left signature block are
complimentary enclosure margin. right-aligned.
close etc. notation, mailing (sample on (sample on p.361)
(sample on notation etc. p.360)
p.359) (sample on
p.359)
Standard Elements
(p.353-356)
• Heading also known as the letterhead, the heading shows the organization’s name, full
address, and telephone numbers. It is left, right or centrally aligned depending upon the
design/logo of the company.
• Dateline refers to the date on which the letter was written. Example: 3 January 2015
(British style) or January 3, 2015 (American style). It is left or right aligned deping upon
the 'format.'
• Inside address identifies the recipient of the letter and is separated from the date by at
least one blank line.
• A salutation is a greeting in the letter. Standard salutations are 'Dear,' and 'Respected.'
• Message should be single-spaced, with a blank line separating it from the preceding and
the following parts of the letter.
• Complimentary close are customary expressions used to close a formal business letter
such as 'Thank you,' 'Sincerely,' 'Sincerely yours,' and 'Yours truly.'
• Signature block includes the writer’s signature, name, designation (at times affliation too
if the letter is not written with letterhead.)
*Sample on p.351
Additional Elements
(p.356-358)
• Addressee notation generally appears a double space above the inside address, in all
capital letters such as PERSONAL, CONFIDENTIAL, PLEASE FORWARD, and THROUGH
PROPER CHANNEL
• Attention line is used when the inside address does not include the name of an
individualand is used to draw the attention of a particular person or a particular
department in an organization so as to ensure a quick and prompt action in response
to the letter. The attention line may be placed two spaces below the inside address,
generally given in bold as well as capital letters, for example:
ATTENTION: DR SATISH YADAV, PRODUCTION UNIT
ATTENTION: PERSONNEL MANAGER
*Sample on p.351
• Subject line lets the recipient know at a glance what the letter is about. It usually
appears below the salutation and sometimes is placed above the salutation and
below the attention line.
• Reference initials are used to let the reader know about the writer as well as the
preparer of the letter. It appears two spaces below the last line of the signature
block. While the writer’s name appears in the signature block, only the initials of the
preparer are necessary. For example, Ksm/rk, Ksm:rk, KSM:RK. The first set of initials
is the writer’s and the second set is the helper’s.
• Reference line is used for sequential correspondence with the recipient that consists
of an alphanumeric reference number, which uniquely identifies the letter. the
several methods of inserting the reference numbers are (i) by serial number, (ii) by
department and serial number, (iii) by project ID and serial number.
• *Sample on p.351
• Copy notation indicates who is receiving a courtesy copy (cc). Recipients are listed in
the order of rank if they hold different ranks or in alphabetical order if they hold equal
ranks.
• Mailing notation is placed either at the bottom of the letter after reference initials or
enclosure notations, or at the top of the letter above the inside address on the left-hand
side such as BY REGISTERED POST, BY COURIER, BY SPEED POST, etc. It generally
appear in capital letters to catch the attention.
• Postscript are afterthoughts to the letter, to the messages that require emphasis, or
personal notes. A postscript is usually the last item on any letter and may be preceded
by P.S., PS, or nothing at all. It can also be shown as a second afterthought with the
notation P.P.S., meaning post postscript.
• Enclosure notation appears at the bottom of the letter, one or two lines below the
reference initials and are written as:
• Enclosure: Draft of proposal
• Encl.: Draft of proposal
• Enclosures: 1. Report (10 pages)
• 2. Photographs (2)
• 3. List of participant
Business letter types and their objectives
• Credit: To enquire or request for loan
• Collection: To collect past due accounts
• Enquiry: To enquire the status of something; price lists; catalogues
• Order placement: To place an order for products or services
• Claim: To lodge a complaint and ask for a remedy
• Adjustment:To inform how the complaint would be taken care of
• Sales: To sell a product or service
• Fund-raising: To request the readers to donate money or time
• Job Application: To apply for an employment
• Covering letter for job application: To introduce the applicant
• Thank you/follow-up: To express courtesy/get updated information
• Acceptance/rejection: To take up/refuse an offer or assignment
• Resignation: To give up a job without creating an unpleasant situation
• Persuasive: To convince someone
Letters of Enquiry
(p.375-377)
• An enquiry letter is useful when we need information, advice, names, or
directions. However, avoid asking for too much information or for
information that could easily be obtained in some other way.
• They are of two types : Solicited and Unsolicited enquiry letters
• Solicited letters of enquiry are written when a business or agency advertises
its products or services. (Sample on p.375)
• A letter of enquiry is unsolicited if the recipient has not prompted the
enquiry.
• (Sample on p.376)
Order Placement Letters
(p.377)
• An order letter, also known as a purchase order or PO, begins the paper trail of a
specific purchase to include the complete description of the goods required,
quantities, price, catalogue number, delivery requirements, and the terms of
payment as agreed by both the parties.
• The objective is to provide the vendor with detailed instructions for fulfilling an order.
• It serves as a legal record of the transaction and, consequently, should be written
with care.
• Some companies have their own printed forms for placing orders which have forms
with pre-numbered for easy reference. The printed details ensure that no important
information is missed out.
(Sample on p.380)
Claim Letters
(p.377 & 381)
• When affected buyer writes a letter to the seller raising complaints and
demanding compensation, it is known as claim letter.
• The objectives is to bring the mistake/fault to the notice of the supplying
company and rectify the mistake either by repair or replacement.
• It should be written as soon as the mistake is found, should be based only on
facts and should be thought patiently (to avoid being rude) without
assuming that the supplier has deliberately made the mistake.
• To write claim letter:
• Provide a reference point, namely, consignment number/invoice number, date, and
items ordered either in the beginning of the message or in the subject line.
• Explain the problem clearly and give specific details.
• Briefly explain the inconvenience/difficult situation being faced because of the
problem.
• Appeal to the supplier’s reputation and sense of responsibility and fairness.
• State clearly as to what action is required or what adjustment is expected from the
supplier.
• Mention the relevant documents being enclosed with the letter and also your
availability for receiving the corrected consignment.
Question (10 Marks)
As the Purchase Manager of Satyam Computers, 9 Naidu Road,
Hyderabad-500007, you had ordered two dozen Personal Computers
from Hindustan Computers Limited (HCL), 140 M.G. Road, Bangalore-
500001. When the consign-ment arrived, you found some of the pieces in
the damaged condition. Write a complaint letter to the Sales Manager of
the company asking for repair, replacement, or compensation.
