UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST „VASILE GOLDIS” ARAD

FACULTATEA DE STIINTE ECONOMICE

DEPARTAMENTUL INVATAMANT LA DISTANTA

1. Qualities of Business Letters

Letter writing is an essential part of business. It means the efficiency but also the nature of the business; it determines the standard and maintains the prestige of the house.

For writing good English letters, it is necessary to know how to write English clearly, correctly and in a business like manner. You should understand the sense of the words, master the business phrases. You have to have experience in commercial matters, to know the technical details, of the activities (manufacturing and trading).

Letter should be precise, concise, complete, and courteous. Knowledge of the requirements, methods and business outlook of the addressee is an advantage of the communication.

Because of lack of time, business mail is reader under unfavorable conditions, amidst phone calls, interruptions. To assure attention, a business letter should be direct, readable, logical, and concise. A brief concise letter does not mean to avoid courtesy, politeness, but all these words are avoided only in telegrams. The suitable methods of address and courteous endings to letters are not to be avoided.

Business letters require clearness of expression, use the words in their right relationship and place them in a certain order determined by grammatical principles and rules.

2. Parts of a letter

Any letter has some parts that are to be present no matter how long or short the letter is. They are the following:

-Heading-letter heading/ letter head

-Date

-Reference line

-Inside address (addressee’s address)

-Salutation

-Subject line

-Body of the letter

-Complimentary close

-Signature

-Enclosures

3. Special business letters

Circular Letters

Circular letters are frequently used to offer the same information to different people. These kinds of letters are used when sales campaigns are developing, when there are important developments in business such as extensions, reorganizations, changes of addresses etc. A circular letter is written once, and then it is duplicated in order to be distributed to the customers. It may get some more information such as names, addresses and individual salutations so it gets a more personal character. Circulars are sent to many people, it is important to suggest an interest in the recipient by giving a personal touch. The next rules are to be taken into consideration:

it must be brief- no one has time to read long stories, make the letters as personal as they can be (address each letter to a particular person, indicating the name if you know it)

create the impression of personal interest by using you never

our clients, customers, all customers, everyone. Address yourself directly to someone using formulas such as:

You will appreciate

We are pleased to inform you

You will be interested to learn

If you visit our new showroom you will see

If some changes take place in your business, you have to inform your customers about them. The content is already written but you have to introduce the name of your customer in order to give the personal touch to the letter.

Expansion of business takes place in your company, announce it to everybody, so write a circular.

Dear X,

To meet the growing demand for hardware and general store in this area we have decided to extend our business by opening a new department. Our new department will carry an extensive range of hardware and other domestic goods at prices, which compare very favorably with those charged by other suppliers.

We would like to demonstrate our new merchandise to you, and are therefore arranging a special window display during the week beginning 3 June. The official opening of our new department will take place on the following Monday, 10 June.

We hope you will visit our new department during opening week and give us the opportunity to show you that is maintains the reputation enjoyed by our other departments for giving sound value for money.

Yours sincerely,

Opening a new business, you have to let the others know about it:

We are pleased to announce the opening of our new retail store at the above mentioned address on Monday 1 September. Mrs. Victoria Chadwick has been appointed Manager, and with her experience of the trade we are sure that the goods supplied will be of sound quality and reasonably priced. Our new store will open at 8 am on Monday 1 September, and a special celebration offer a 10% discount will be allowed on all purchases made by the first 50 customers. We hope we may look forward to your being one of them.

You are to have a new branch in another town (or country). Inform everybody about it:

Owing to a large increase in the volume of our trade with the Kingdom of Jordan, we have decided to open a branch in Amman, with Mr. X. Although we hope we have provided you with an efficient service in the past, this new branch in your country will result in your orders and enquiries being dealt with more promptly.

This new branch will open on 1 May, and from that date all orders and enquiries should be sent to

Mr. X Manager Tyler & Co Ltd 18 Hussein Avenue Amman

We take the opportunity to express our thanks for your custom in the past, and hope these new arrangements will lead to even higher standards in the service we provide.

Because of different reasons you are supposed to change the address of your offices, write a circular indicating the new address, possibilities of arriving there.

The steady growth of our business has made necessary an early move 'to new and larger premises. We have been fortunate in acquiring a good site on the new industrial estate at Chorley, and from 1 March our new address will be the following:

Unit 15

Chorley Industrial State

Grange Road

Chorley

Lines CH 2 4 TH

Phone 3521689 Fax 3421768

This new site is served by excellent transport facilities both by road and rail, enabling deliveries to made promptly. It also provides scope for better methods of production which will increase out] nit and also improve even further the quality of our goods. We have much appreciated your custom in the past and confidently expect to be able to offer you improvements in service when the new factory moves into full production. We look forward to a continuing good business relationship with you.

You already know that circulars are used to announce the changes that take place in the membership of a partnership, suppliers and customers. For a retiring partner this is particularly important since they remain liable not only for debts contracted by the firm during membership, but also for debts contracted with old creditors in retirement. The correct signature on-such letters is that of the name of the firm, without the addition of any partner's name. Retirement of a partner is announced like this:

Dear X,

We regret to inform you that our senior partner, Mr. Harold West, has decided to retire on 31 May due to recent extended ill health. The withdrawer of Mare. West's capital will be made by contributions from the remaining partners and the amount of the firm’s capital will therefore remain unchanged. We will continue to trade under the name of West, Webb & Co, and there will be no change in policy. We trust that the confidence you have shown in our company in the past will continue and that we may rely on your continued custom. We shall certainly do everything possible to ensure that our present standards of service are maintained.

Yours sincerely

All the other changes are to be announced to the partners you have.

Memorandums

Memorandums are part of the correspondence; they are a kind of letters that are carrying messages inside an organization (from an office to another one). Their target is to confirm a conversation, to clarify a previous message, to request information or to supply it, to congratulate someone, to announce changes in a company's policy, to report meetings, to transmit documents. If they are in a printed form, they should have some paragraphs presented in a clear and well organized way, have small words, short sentences, they should maintain your attitude and avoid clichés. Often the person who gets a memo knows everything about a situation but the position the boss has adopted towards it for that moment. The memo does not give any explanation, comes directly to the point. A memo has an introductory part that is to be presented:

FROM:             Peter Hening (Manager, Hanover) Date: 2.11.90

TO: David Walsh (Warehouse Manager, Southolt)

SUBJECT:        Delayed deliveries Number of pages: 1

The memo has the paragraphs and has no salutation formulas; only the capital letters of the writer's name are added.

Having these general rules, let's see if we can write a memo on the following subject:

Europart Ltd., of Unit 26, Frilford Industrial Estate, Southold SJ4 7DB, distributes parts for motor vehicles from its branches through Europe. You work in the Hanover branch.

Your manager, Peter Henning, says to you: We’ we got problems with our delivery dates. You know we guarantee delivery of any vehicle part to the shop here within 48 hours of a customer placing an order - the customer gets 20% discount. That's one of our main selling points.

Well, we've had to offer a lot too many discounts on parts we have got from Southold - they often take 3 days, sometimes even a week to get here. It's not too good enough.

Could you find out what's going on? Write a memo under my name. Send it by fax to David Walls, the Warehouse Manager at Southold. Tell him what problem we have and ask him what he's going to do about it. But be tactful. He is usually very good - and I know it's not easy to handle about 50,000 different parts. See if there are any problems at his end that he's sorting out - or if there's anything we can do to help. Is our ordering clear enough? Or perhaps he should charge his express courier. But get him to say when we’re going to get a normal service. We’re not the only people distributing vehicle parts - there's a plenty of competition if our want to look elsewhere.

I'm off to a conference today, and I'll be away for a week. Tell David that if he wants to discuss anything, he can talk to you or he can wait until I get back.

So this is the text that is to be changed into a memo and sent to David. Before writing it,

1 .Read the questions twice at least: get the general idea what it is about; study it into details. What exactly are you asked to do?  WRITE A TACTFUL MEMO TO A MEMBER OF THE staff!

Layout correctly a memo. At the top, you are supposed to write:

FROM:             (sender's name and/or position in the company)

TO:                  (addressee's name and/or position in company)

DATE:              (the date the memo is written)

SUBJECT:       (very briefly, what the memo is about)

If you are sending the memo by fax, you should also indicate the number of pages. At the bottom, you may put the sender's initials but never a signature.

Decide on the correct tone of the memo. Peter Henning is not satisfied with David's work. He wants the problem solved but he does not want to hurt Peter. The sender is quite angry but a tactful memo will produce a better impression than an aggressive one.

Relevant material should be included in a memo. Decide what is relevant, leave out all the unnecessary elements!

Make a list of the points that are going to be present in the memo. Order the points logically in paragraphs. This order will not necessarily be the order in which the points appear in the question. If you use your answer book to make your list, neatly cross it out when you have finished referring to it.

Write your answer

Read your memo right through! Make sure that you have included all the problems

Check your work for accurate English! If you discover any errors, neatly cross them out and add the correction.

Obeying all these rules, we may have the memo:

FROM:             Peter Henning (Manager, Hanover) Date: 2.11.90

TO: David Walsh (Warehouse Manager, Southold)

SUBJECT:        Delayed deliveries Number of pages: 1

I am sending this by fax because I am off to a conference today and will not be able to call you before I go.

The problem is this: many of our orders from Southold are arriving late. In fact, some take a week to get here. That means we have to give our 20% discount to a large number of customers - and some of them may soon start looking elsewhere. I know it is not a simple thing to stock so many parts, and your warehouse usually performs very well indeed. However, we need to sort this out. Are there any problems at your end at present? Is your courier working normally?Or is there anything we can do to help?

Do please contact (write your own name here) if there are any points you wish to raise this week.

Otherwise, I will be happy to talk things after my return.

Reports

Writing reports is an important part of your work. Reports carry information to those who want it and need it, inform you what you have found out including little or no commentary and interpretation. A report informs and analyses, presents facts. It makes you think in terms of the purpose or function. It gets to know your audience and their needs. Keep all these in mind when you are planning to write a report.

How do we lay out such a report?

We must maintain one-inch margin all around when typing. If you put it in a binder, leave 2 inches of margins on the left hand side. Type single space but allow a double space between paragraphs, above and below. If it is typed double space, no double space is allowed between paragraphs, allow a triple space above headings, above, and below lists, long quotations, graphics. Use typographical elements to make words, phrases stand out. You may catch your reader's attention by using italics, underlining capital letters.

Enclose graphics in boxes. If the sequence of a list is random or arbitrary, use bullets (•) or dashes (-). If order is important, use Arabic numbers (1,

Do not write long paragraphs (about 100 words), they should be put vertically on the page. The subject should be readable, clear in meaning. Sentences must be short, simple ones, avoid all the unnecessary words. The language the report is written in, is the language accepted by a specific group.

There are periodic reports, which record the work over a specific period, giving the organization of the necessary information, which you base decisions on. Any report should tell how a project is going, how much has been completed and how much is left. The report has an introduction that explains the period of work covered by it, the work that had been planned, the authority to do the work; it assesses the progress to date. It has a body which provides a detailed account of what has been accomplished and how.

The conclusions explain what work is planned for the future, gives an overall appraisal of the progress to date.

The reports may have supplemental elements too, such as:

lists of references or bibliographies

appendices

The preparatory elements (which include: title page, letter of transmittal, preface, table of contents, list of figures, tables, abstracts) identify the report, its author, audience, date, subject, coverage etc. The pages are numbered in small roman numbers (I, II ). The title page shows the title of a report, name, position and the date you submitted the report.

Lucrare: Lucian Blaga si Sufletul satului - literatura Proiect: Publius terentius afer - opera

A report on /A study of

The preface is almost identical to the letter of transmittal and contains statement about purposes, scope, content, acknowledgement of assistance received. Use a letter of transmittal when your audience is a single person or a well defined group. The table of contents presents the whole content of the report while the list of figures and tables present the location of graphics and tables. The abstracts should be brief, condensed, should state the most important ideas of the report. It presents an overview of the report, and has no more than 150-200 words. The introduction of a report contains the general idea of the topic of the report in a few paragraphs explaining the subject, purpose scope, plan and an order of presentation. The body is the longest part of the report; it has a detailed message, arranged in a logical order, uses heads, subheads, graphics, quotations, footnotes. The final part, the conclusions, stresses the most important ideas, summarize the major points and state clearly the conclusions and recommendations.

Now let us see an example of report:

Mrs. Anne Woods, your Office Manager, asks you to write a Report for her, as soon as possible, on the increase in lateness of many office staff over the last two months. Write a correctly laid out report!

.Read the question several times, you will find out exactly what you are required to do. Write a report and as you are not given any background material which to base it on, use your imagination and invent information.

. Layout the report:

a.)   terms of reference: state what you are reporting on, who asked you to make the report and the date by which the report is required if you are given one.

b.)   proceedings: what action you took to correct the facts concerning the subject of the report

c.)   findings: the facts you discovered. You may number them though it is not necessary

.Conclusions:

a.)   what you think about the facts

b.) comments, which will be useful to the person who commissioned the report, should be made. You may find it helpful to number these.

.Recommendations: practical suggestions to what should be done. Sign the report, put your position you have in the company in brackets underneath the signature. Add the date.

Report on the increase in lateness of some office staff over the last two months

Terms of reference

Miss Ann Woods, Office Manager, has asked me to write this report on the increase in lateness of some workers over the last two months and to submit it to her as soon as possible.

Proceedings

I questioned all the office staff individually, asking why there was this sudden increase in punctuality, and then checked their replies.

Findings

The latecomers are those who travel to work by private transport and public road transport. Those who travel by train arrive on time.

The two main roads leading into town have had major road works done on them for the least eight weeks; this causes unavoidable traffic jams and long delays.

About two months ago our company opened its new mail order section. Approximately sixty new employees were recruited. As this new section starts work 45 minutes before the office staff each morning, the car park gets filled with vehicles belonging to workers in that section. The company has not enlarged the car park to accommodate the additional vehicles. ^Consequently, many office staff cannot find parking space and have to drive around surrounding roads looking for a parking area. 4.1 gathered the above information from my individual interviews with staff, and confirmed that it was true by observing the two main roads and the company's car park early every morning for a  week.

Conclusions

Obviously, nothing can be done about the road works. I understand that they will be finished in six weeks time. As people will insist on traveling to work in their own cars, I think the solution is for the company either to enlarge the existing car park or to obtain another one near the office.

Recommendations

As the road works will be finished in six weeks, I suggest that staff be asked to leave home for work a little earlier than usual for this period to enable them to arrive on time. I recommend that the company enlarge the existing car park as it is surrounded by company land which at present is fenced off from the car park.

(Write your own name here)       12 September 19

Deputy Office Manager

The report presents clearly all the sections and the document is signed. All the content is relevant for the purpose of the report. Nothing unessential has been included. It gives reasons why staff has been late. It offers a solution to the problem. It is easy readable.

The report gives two reasons for the lateness of staff (road works, recent expansion in demand for the car park). Two good substantial reasons are enough.

Leaflet

In the set of letters that are to be written the leaflet may be also included. It is a document that informs people about different important things. As the dictionary says, it is a piece of printed paper, folded and free of charge, advertising or providing information about something. There are no strict rules that are to be obeyed when writing a leaflet. You have enough freedom in laying out its structure. But it is very important that it should catch the reader's eye. You must read it easily and it must contain an address and date. So let us see if we can invent such a letter:

You work for a major department store - Babylon, at 40-60, rue Rune Coty, 75006 Paris. It is June, and you are planning the summer sale due to last from 2^nd to 20^th July. Your manager, Georges Herbert, says to you: We should have a Leaflet in English about the sale to distribute to tourist -they don't usually come in here much, but a bit of publicity would help. Tell them we have English speaking staff- well, not all of them, but most of the assistants can manage a few sentences. You know our main reductions 40% off furniture and leather goods, 25-30% off men's and women's summer fashions, 20% off bikes, sports and camping equipment, kitchen equipment, perfumes, oh, yes, and there's that special purchase of Beaujolais at 120 francs a case. We want to get rid of that quickly. Remember to put our opening hours in - 10 to 7, six days a week, except the 14^l. See what you can do.

Read the content several times to see exactly what is it about. It should inform people about the Babylon sales and persuade them to come and buy something. Your task is to give readers enough information to achieve this purpose.

Then list all the points you intend to make (either on the question paper or on another paper). Delete the problems when you have finished referring to them. The question always gives you some information about things you are supposed to do. You can also invent extra material. If you add something, it must be very relevant. No particular layout is requested, you have plenty of freedom. The leaflet must be presented in such a way that it should attract the reader's eye.

Don't forget to indicate the address, date, place where the event takes place.

Check your answer thoroughly for correct English!

The best of France is at Babylon

and now it's a price anyone can afford! Treat yourself to some Parisian style at our summer sale, 2^nd-20^th July inclusive

Our friendly, English-speaking staff will help you find the bargain you want, including

30% Off top brands of perfume

40% off leather goods                                                               up to 50% off men's and women's summer fashions

There are top-quality souvenirs for everyone at Babylon! For that extra item to take on holiday

20% off our sports and camping equipment, bicycles, and
kitchen equipment                   

And don't forget our special purchase - take home a

whole case of Beaujolais for fust 120 francs!

Babylon, 40-60, rue RUne Coty, 75006 Paris (tel. 42-50-50-60) open 10 – 7, six days a week closed for national holiday, 14 July.

The writer has taken a large place so that all the information is spread all over in order to catch the reader's eye. Babylon’s address and the date of the sales are presented. The answer contains relevant information and some additional points. It is persuasive and speaks about clothes and wine, English speaking staff though we are in Paris. It is clear, brief, and readable.

Article

This time we are beginning with the text, here it is:

You run a company group of the Sickness Savings Association and are approached by the Editor of your company's magazine to write an article about the benefits to be gained from joining the Association. All the workers will read the article as the magazine is distributed to them.

l.Read the text carefully so that you know what the requirements are. The titles of the group you run give you some ideas of what it is and does - it collects money from members and in return makes payment to them when they are ill. The people working for the same company (a restricted readership) will read the article. The article outlines the benefits the members gain from the association.

2.Before writing the article, just list all the benefits that come into your mind without worrying whether or not they are in logical order. Once you have done this, order them in a logical order.

3.Try to write an opening that will make them want to read on - an arresting opening, as it is called. Doing this, they will read the article. Deal then with your points one by one and conclude with the statement or question that 'rounds off' the article.

4. Check your grammar and your English. Having in mind all these points, try to write the article; it looks like this:

'I'm health”  'I am never off work.” How often do you hear remarks like these? Yet the fact is that sickness can strike anybody - even the most apparently healthy person.

People often tell you that when they are off sick, the company still pays their salaries. Yes, they do, but only for nine months; after that no more salary is paid, and sick benefit is the only money coming into the house. Even for short illnesses, when the salary is still being paid, all the usual living expenses still occur, and when you are ill, you often need little extras, such as special (and often expensive) foods, or a special piece of medical equipment. What can you do to make certain that if sickness strikes - either on a long-term or a short-term basis -you are free of all financial worries? The answer is to join our company group of the Sickness Savings Association. Many of your fellow-workers are already members and they will all agree that being members relieves them of all financial worries, should they unfortunately fall sick.

How does the scheme work? You complete an application form, which can be obtained from me, and pay two per cent of your weekly or monthly salary to the Association. Management are willing to deduct this from salaries to save you the bother of handling over a sum of money to me each pay day. To take an example, if your monthly income is L 1,000, you pay only L 20 from it.

What benefits do you receive? If you are off sick, you are paid daily the amount you pay monthly. Using the above example, if you pay L 20 a month, you receive L 20 a day. What a bargain!

In addition to this, financial help is given, you have to pay for dental treatment, if you require spectacles and (for ladies) during pregnancy. I shall be happy to give you full details of the scheme - without obligation - if you are interested. Just call me on extension 222 at any time during working hours.

Surely, for your financial peace of mind during sickness, it's worth making a phone call.

It is an article written not by a journalist but by a company worker. It fulfills the purpose, the reader would be aware of the benefits to be gained from joining the scheme. The opening paragraph should attract the attention of most readers. It has a logic structure and the last paragraph rounds off the article by giving the reader something to think about. The editor did not ask for a title and the author did not put a name on the article because the Editor, having asked for the article, would know the author and, when publishing the article, would attribute it to the author.

Notice

The notice is a simple letter that offers you information about something that happens and all customers should know. It tells you only very important things. It is formal and impersonal. Read what you are supposed to do, read it several times. You have all the details in the given indication, you are not asked to persuade the people to do something. The notice should be simple and easy to read. But it must be dated and include the name of the person who wrote it, generally at the bottom. You have to catch the people's attention.. So, write words like Urgent, or Important at the top in large letters. Say exactly what you have to say! Decide the tone; the notices are formal and impersonal. There may be some particular warning notices that are going to tell people what to do. The notice should apologize and suggest alternatives. Before writing it, just list all the points on a paper not to forget anything.

Moreover, after writing, just check your grammar!

Here is an example of text that is to be put in the form of a notice:

You are an assistant manager at the Hotel Buon Forchetta, Milan. Your manager, Mauro Cappelletti, says to you one morning: We '11 have to close the hotel restaurant for two days from tomorrow for repairs to the floor. We can serve a cold buffet lunch to guests in the bar area, but we won't be able to serve dinner. That shouldn't be a problem - there are plenty of restaurants on the Via Pomodoro outside. There are several English and American guests booked in this week. Of course, we '11 tell them about the restaurant when they check into the hotel, but I'd like you to write a notice for me to put up at the entrance and in the lifts. Otherwise somebody will complain. Apologize for the inconvenience to guests. Put it out over my name, will you? Oh, and remind people that we '11 serve breakfast in the bar area, as usual.

This notice has a clear answer in the following form:

HOTEL RESTAURANT

Closure, 23-24 April 1992

We regret that the hotel restaurant will be closed on 23 and 24 April repairs to the floor. A cold buffet lunch will be served in the bar area on these days, but dinner will not be served during this period. Guests will find a number of restaurants close to the hotel in the Via Pomodoro. Breakfast will be served as usual in the bar area. We apologize to guests for any inconvenience caused.

Mauro Cappelletti

Manager

22 April 1992

The notice has a clear heading at the top, the date, and the name and position of the person who wrote it. It contains all the necessary information, without wasting any words. The tone is correct, quite formal, and impersonal, with necessary apology for inconvenience to guests. It catches the eye and presents the message briefly.

Minute

The minutes are official records of the actions taken by the group. They are written, by the secretaries who are supposed to record the meetings as well as they can. Write out the minutes fully from your notes; give them to the chairperson for distribution. What you write should be written down objectively and factually without your opinions being reflected.

A minute is a record of what was done: It should contain the following ideas:

l. name of the group holding the meeting

kind of meeting (special, regular)

date and place of meeting

subject of the meeting

names of the persons attending the meeting (names of chairpersons, secretary etc.)

time the meeting was open

7. action of the group, stating exactly what motions were made and their disposition. The name of the persons making the motions, seconding the motions, the members and how each voted

time of adjournment and the time of the next meeting

signature of the secretary and the signature of the chairman

Here is an example:

H. Hilton & Associates - Hoteliers

Minute of regular meeting of the committee on new construction

June 18,19..

Subject: review of items of work on the Flowers Hotel
Attendees:         DickH, Chairman

W.J.

D.G.

S. L., Secretary

Agenda:

The meeting was opened by the chairman at 1:15 pm.

The minutes of the previous meeting were accepted as read

G. H. summarized the status of work

The project of schedule

Cooperation was good between contractor & subcontractor

adequate workforce maintained, no delays in work    

D. C. believes that the wood veneer to be applied is too thin. After some discussion it was moved by Y. S. seconded by W. Y. to include a heavier veneer if the costs were not more than $ 4 per panel.

G. C. reported that the lights were incorrectly connected to the circuit. It was moved by B. C. and seconded by S. Y. that Charles Mainer should check the electrical subcontractor to have the lights corrected.

C. Mainer moved and he was seconded by W. J. & L. S. that the chairman request procedure for closing the contract

There being no other business, the chairman closed the meeting at 3:00; the next regular meeting is scheduled for July 26 at 1:15.

D. H., Chairman

L. S., Secretary

Goodwill letters

A very important target of a business letter is to create good business relations. Business executives use to take the opportunity to send good wishes, congratulations or sympathy on such occasions as the award of an honor, a promotion, a wedding or a death. Such letters are very much appreciated by customers, colleagues and businesspersons. Goodwill can be build into everyday business letters in so many ways. The tone of the letter should be courteous and friendly, the added touches of personal interest are certain to make a good impression. A personal touch can take, the form of a short final paragraph conveying a personal greeting.

Dear Mr. Ellis,

I am sorry not to have replied sooner to your letter of 25 October regarding the book 'English and Commercial Correspondence'. My export Director is in Lebanon and Syria on business and as I am dealing with his work as well as my own, I am afraid my correspondence has fallen behind.

Whether this book should be published in hardback or paperback is a decision I must leave to my Editorial Director, to whom I have passed on your letter. No doubt, she will be writing to you very soon. i trust you are keeping well.

With best my wishes

Yours sincerely,

Sometimes you may write a whole paragraph showing your interest in the way the other person is.

I have now had an opportunity to review the book you sent to me. This book presents a concise and very clear account of the new import regulations with good example of how they are likely to be applied. More detailed comments are made on my written review which is attached. I remember that you will be spending your approaching summer holiday in the South of France and wish you good weather and enjoyable time.

Yours sincerely,

You create a very favorable impression if you answer the letter in the same day when you have received it. If this fact is not possible you are supposed to do it as soon as possible apologizing you for the delay.

Dear Mrs. Jones,

I am sorry we cannot send you immediately the catalogue and price list requested in your letter of 13 March, as we are presently out of stock. Supplies are expected from our printers in two weeks' time and as soon as they are received, we will send a copy to you.

Yours sincerely,

Persons always look for a spirit of friendliness in those with whom they seek to do business. The writer should be both helpful and friendly. The purpose is to interest the customer, to create a feeling of confidence and to win their consideration, friendship, their, custom.

Dear Mr. Kohl,

We are pleased to enclose our catalogue and price list as requested in your letter of 12 October. In the latest catalogue we have, taken trouble to ensure it is both attractive and informative, and particulars of our trade discounts are shown inside the front cover.

May we suggest that next time you are in Bristol you should allow us to show you our factory where you could see for yourself the high quality of materials and workmanship put into our products. This would also enable you to see at first hand the latest fancy leather goods, and to return with interesting and useful information for your customers. If we can be of service in anyway, please do not hesitate to let us know.

Yours sincerely,

If you have customers from abroad who are coming to visit you, it is sound business practice to extend hospitality and to give any help or advice. The tone of this type of letters must be sincere, friendly, give the impression that the writer is anxious to be on service.

Dear Mr. Brandon,

It was a pleasure to receive your letter of 14 April and to learn that your colleague, Mr. Peterson, is going to visit our country in July. We shall be very pleased to welcome him and to do all we can to make his visit enjoyable and successful.

I understand this will be Mr. Peterson's first visit in our country, and am sure he will wish to see some of our main areas of interest. A suitable program is something we can discuss when he arrives. I would also be pleased to introduce him to several firms with whom he may like to do business.

When the date of Mr. Peterson's visit is settled, please let me know his arrival details. I will arrange to met him at the airport and drive him to his hotel. He may be assured of a warm welcome.

Yours sincerely,

These are situations when you are supposed to refuse requests, increase prices, modify different lists of requests, apologize for mistakes etc. In these situations, the writer must be concerned by the tone he uses, offence may be easily created, and bad feeling in the same way and some time you may loose the business.

It is sometime necessary to refuse a request or to convey bad news. Put yourself in the position of the reader, try to prepare the way not to disappoint him too much and prepare a suitable paragraph by using an adequate tone.

Dear Mr. Foster,

It was good of you to let me see your manuscript on “English for Business Studies '. / read it with interest and was impressed by the care and thoroughness with which you have treated the subject. I particularly like the clear and concise style pf writing. Had we not quite recently published 'Practical English' by Freda Leonard, a book that covers very similar ground, I would have been very happy to accept your manuscript for publication. In the circumstances, however, I am unable to do so and am returning your manuscript with

this letter. I am sorry to have disappointed you.

Yours sincerely,

Sometimes you are supposed to begin the letter by writing an opening paragraph that must prepare the reader to receive bad news.

Dear Sir,

When we received your letter of 23 November, we sent a representative to inspect and report on the damage caused by the recent fire of the warehouse she has now submitted her report, which confirms your claim that the damage is extensive. However, she states that a large proportion of the stock damaged or destroyed was very old and some of it obsolete. We regret therefore that we cannot accept your figure of L 15.000 as a fair estimate of the loss, since it appears to be based on the originals cost of the goods.

Sometimes you cannot get the credit you need, and the bank or a certain customer has to write a letter announcing you this fact. It is not easy to write such a letter. Refusal will be prompted by doubts; but the reasons for the refusal it must be tactfully explained. This letter is a wholesaler's reply to a trader who has not been established long enough to inspire confidence in the owner's financial standing.

Dear Mr. Johnson,

We were glad you approached with a view to placing an order, and to learn of the good start of your business.

The question of granting a credit for newly established business is never an easy one. Not a few get into difficulties because they over commit themselves before they are thoroughly established. Although we believe that your own business promises very well, we feel it would be better for you to make your purchases on a cash basis at present. If this is not possible for the full amount, we suggest that you cut the size of your order, say by half Should you be willing to do this we will allow you a special cash discount of 4% in addition to our usual trade terms. If this suggestion is acceptable to you, the goods could be delivered to you within 3 days.

We hope you will not look upon this letter as a refusal, but rather as a mark of your genuine wish to enter into business with you on terms that will bring lasting satisfaction to us both. When your business is firmly established, we will be very happy to welcome you as one of our credit customers.

Yours sincerely,

You have made a mistake or a fault, it should be admitted freely and without create a good will and it will be difficult for the recipient to feel a grudge against you.

Dear Mr. Wright,

I was very concerned when I received your letter of yesterday stating that the central heating system in your new house has not been completed by the date promised. On referring to our earlier correspondence, I find that I had mistaken the date for completion. The fault is entirely mine and I deeply regret that it should have occurred. I realize the inconvenience, which my oversight must be causing you, and will do everything possible to avoid my further delay. I have already given instructions for this work to take first priority, and our engineers will be placed on overtime to complete the work. These arrangements should ensure that the work is completed by next weekend.

Once again, I apologize for the inconvenience caused.

Yours sincerely,

Because of different reasons, the prices of the products are to be increased. Customers will resent increases in price goods, especially if they feel the increases are not justified. Goodwill can be preserved by explaining clearly and convincingly the reasons for the increases.

Dear Mr. Ben,

Steadily rising prices over the past few years have been a matter of common experience and it will come as no surprise to you that our own costs have continued to rise with this general trend. Increasing world demand has been an important factor in raising the prices of our imported raw materials. A recent national wage award has added to our labor costs, which have been increased still further by constantly increasing overheads. Until now we have been able to absorb rising costs by economies in other areas. We now find that we can no longer do so, and therefore increases in our prices are unavoidable. The new prices will take effect from 1 October, and revised price lists are now being prepared. These should be ready within the next 2 weeks and copies will be sent to you. We are sorry that these increases have been made necessary but can assure you that they will not amount to an average of more than about 5%. As general prices have arisen by nearly 10% since our previous price list, we hope you will not feel that our own increases are unreasonable.

Yours sincerely,

Business executives have many opportunities for writing letters expressing appreciation and creation goodwill. Such thank you letters can be as brief and as simple as you like, but they express your appreciation with warmth and sincerity, making the reader feel that you really mean what you say and that you enjoy saying it.

Letters of appreciation do not include specific sales matters, or it may be thought that your thanks are merely an excuse for promoting business. Having started the business with someone and having already got the first order, you are supposed to thank him for that.

Dear Mr. Martin,

You will already have received our formal acknowledgement of your order number 564 dated 12 July. However, as is your first order with us, I felt I must write to say how pleased we were to receive it and to thank you for the opportunity given to us to supply the goods you need. I hope our handling of your order will lead to further business between us, and to a happy and mutually beneficial association.

Yours sincerely,

The thank you letters are for different reasons; here we are having some types that are to be taken into consideration.

1. Thank you letter for a large order

I understand that you placed an unusually large order with us yesterday, and I wanted to write personally to say how very much your continued confidence in us is appreciated.

The happy working relationship between us for many years has always been valued, and we shall do our best to maintain it.

2. Thank you letter for prompt settlement of accounts

I am writing to say how much we appreciate the promptness with which you have settled your accounts with us during the past year, especially as a number of them have been found very large amounts. This has been of great help to us at a time when we have been faced with heavy commitments connected with the expansion of our business. I hope our business relationship will continue in the future.

Thank you letter for a service performed

Thank you for your, letter of 30 March returning the draft of the catalogue we propose to send to our customers.

I am very grateful for all the trouble you have taken to examine the draft and comment on it in such detail. Your suggestions will prove to examine the draft/ most helpful. I realize the value of time to a busy person like you and this makes me all the more appreciative of the time you have so generously given me.

Thank you letter for information received

Thank you for your letter enclosing an account of the organization and work of your local trade association. I am very grateful for the interest you have shown in our proposal to include details of your association in the next issue of the TRADE ASSOCIATION YEAR BOOK, and for your trouble in providing such an interesting account of your activities. Your account is sure to insure and encourage associations in other areas.

Letters of congratulation

A way of promoting good will is to write a letter of congratulation. The occasion may be a promotion, a new appointment, the award of an honor, the establishment of a new business, success in an examination, a marriage, a birthday. The letter must be short and formal, or conversational and informal, depending on the circumstances and the relationship between you and the recipient.

Letters of congratulation sent to mark the award of a public honor need to be short and formal. To show a sign of personal interest, the salutation and complimentary close could be handwritten.

/ was delighted to learn that your work at the South Down College of Commerce has been recognized in the New Year Honor List. At a time when commercial education is so much in the public eye, it gives us all at the Ministry, great pleasure to learn your OBE.

When you find out that an acquaintance of yours has been awarded a public honor, you may write him a letter congratulating him for such a success:

On looking through the CAMFORD TIMES this morning, I came across your name in the NEW YEARS HONOURS LIST and I would like to add my congratulations to the many you will be receiving. The award will give much pleasure to a wide circle of people who know you and your work. Your services to local industry and commerce over many years have been quite outstanding, and it is very gratifying to know that they have now been so suitably rewarded.

With very best wishes

Some people are promoted and on such an occasion, you may write them congratulating them:

Dear Mr. Roberts,

I would like to convey my warm congratulations on your appointment to the Board of Electrical Industries Ltd. •

My fellow directors and I are delighted that the many years of service you have given to your company should at last have been rewarded in this way. We all join in sending you our best wishes for the future.

Courtesy requires that letters of congratulation should be acknowledged. In most of the cases, a formal acknowledgement is all that is necessary. This kind of letter is to be a suitable reply to the letter of congratulation. The writer takes the opportunity to acknowledge her debt to colleagues who have supported her in her work.

Dear Mrs. Fleming,

Thank you for your letter conveying congratulations on the award of my OBE.

lam very happy that anything I may have been able to do for commercial education in my limited field should have been rewarded by a public honor. At the same time 1 regard the award as being less of a tribute to me personally than to the work of my college as a whole work in which I have always enjoyed the willing help and support of my colleagues. Thank you again for your good wishes.

Yours sincerely,

Unpleasant events take also place in people's lives and writing letters on such occasions is not a pleasure. Letters of condolence are not easy to write. There is no pattern for such types of letters; a lot depends on what kind of relationship is there between you and the others. As a rule, such letters should be short and written with sincerity. To show special consideration, letters of this kind should be written by hand. It should be written as soon as you learn the news. Express your sympathy in simple words, which are warm and convincing and say what you really feel.

Letter of CONDOLENCE TO a neighbour:

Dear Mrs. McDermott,

It was not until late last night that my wife and I learned of your husband's tragic death. Coming as it did without warning, it must have been a great shock to you. I want you to know how very sorry we both are, and to send our sincere sympathy.

Yours sincerely,

Letter of CONDOLENCE TO a customer:

Dear Mr. Kerr,

I have just learned with deep regret of the death of your wife. There is no much one can say at the time like this, but all of us at Simpsons who have dealt with you would like to extend our sincere sympathy in your loss. Please count us among those who share your sorrow at this sad time.

Yours sincerely,

Letter of CONDOLENCE TO A BUSINESS associate

Dear Mrs. Anderson,

We were distressed to read in THE TIMES this morning that your Chairman had died and I am writing at once to express our deep sympathy. I had the privilege of knowing Sir James for many years and always

regarded him as a personal friend. By this untimely passing, our industry has lost one of the best leaders. We will be greatly missed by all who knew him and had dealings with him. Please convey our sympathy to Lady Langley and her family.

Yours sincerely,

Letter of condolence to an employee

Dear Maxim,

I was deeply sorry to learn of your father's death. I remember your father very well from the years he served in our Company's Accounts Department until his retirement 2 years ago. 1 well recall his love for his family and the great sense of pride with which he always spoke of his daughters.

He has been greatly missed at Wilson's since his retirement, and I know that we all Join in expressing our sympathy to you and your family at this very sad time.

Yours sincerely,

All this type of letters should get an acknowledgement. The reply letter needs to be short but it shows that you are moved by the warm expression of sympathy you have received.

To relatives and close friends, the acknowledgements should be made to each personally.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

My mother and family join me in thanking you for your very kind letter on my father's death.

We have all been greatly comforted by the kindness and sympathy of our relatives and friends. Both at home and in the hospital, where my father spent 2 weeks prior to his passing, the kindness and sympathy shown by everyone has been almost overwhelming.

Yours sincerely,

When many letters of condolence have been received, it will be enough to prepare a printed general acknowledgement such as:

Mr. and Mrs. Aston and family thank you most sincerely for your kind expression of sympathy in their sad loss. The kindness of so many friends and the many proofs of affection and esteem in which Margaret was held will always remain proud and cherished memory.

97 Lake Rise

Romford

Essex, RM1 4EF

Letters of application

A letter of application is in fact a letter that sales yourself. So you have to keep in mind that by applying for a job, you must arouse interest in your qualifications: then, by presenting your past records and testimonials, you must convince the employer about your capacity of doing the job; and finally, you must reach the target: get an interview and finally get the job. Job application letters can be difficult as it is not always known whom are you writing to some advertisements appear under the name of a consultancy, an employment agency, a box or telephone number. Some application letters are written as replies to advertisements. There is a method of writing a letter to a firm in the line of business, which the applicant wants to enter. In the case, he knows the person whom he is writing to he can formulate some idea of the type of letter likely to appeal. If the advertisement does not specify that you must apply in your own handwriting, your application should be typed. It is easier to read and attract attention at once and create a favorable first impression. First, write an application as short as possible and state that your curriculum vitae is enclosed. Your curriculum vitae must give all the details of your personal background, education, qualifications, experience. Do not duplicate this information in your letter.

Study the advertisement carefully. From it, you can get much information about the advertiser. For example:

The old-fashioned firm dealing with wine and seeking a representative for the Midlands, will be better approached by an impersonal letter, carefully phrased, giving all detailed information asked in the advertisement and lots of particulars about your career.

The applicant must read the requirements for the post closely and in his reply, he must state clearly which he is able to fulfill. He must answer the advertisement fully; no element should be omitted! You should remember that the purpose of your letter is to get the job, but first you should get the interview.

Ensure that your application is well typed, neatly presented; make your application stand out for the rest. The letter should be brief, give lot of information in as few words as possible. Write sincerely in a friendly tone but not familiar. Do not make exaggerated claims; show a proper appreciation of your abilities. Do not suggest that you are looking for a new job because you are bored of the one you already have. If you are asked to state the salary you expect to get, do so and do not evade the question. If your main interest is the salary, do not state the figures you expect, mention just what you are earning now.

The tone of the letter must show keenness for the post. Do not send original documents, send just copies with your application, but take the originals along to the interview. As the employers are busy and have little time for long correspondence, try to offer them the most concise form of what is important no matter how important that information seems to be for you. Avoid generalizing.

References

Testimonials are provided at the time of sending an application letter. It is usual to state on your curriculum vitae or on covering letter the names of one or two people who have consented to act as referees. Employers may contact such referees by either phone or letter to obtain further information about an applicant's work, performance and character. Such a letter may look like this:

Dear Mrs. Lambert

Mr. X, at present employed by you as Foreign Correspondent, has applied to us for a similar post and has given your name as reference. I should be grateful if you would state whether his services with you have been entirely satisfactory and whether you consider him qualified to accept fully responsibility for the French and German correspondence in a large and busy department.

I am aware that Mr. X speaks French and German fluently, but am particularly interested in his ability to produce accurate translations into these languages of letters that may be dictated to him in English. Any other information you can provide would be appreciated, and of course will be treated as strictly confidential.

Yours sincerely,

Such letters get answers, the writer recommends the employee very highly, and without hesitation, feeling confident that he can carry out the duties required in the post stated.

Dear Mr. X.,

I am pleased to be able to reply favorable to your enquiry of 6 April,
concerning Mr. .

Mr. is an excellent linguist and for the past 5 years has been in sole

charge of our foreign correspondence, most of which is with European companies, especially in France and Germany.

We have been extremely pleased with the services provided by Mr.

and should you engage him, you may rely upon him to produce well written and accurate transcriptions of letters into French and German. He is a very reliable and steady worker and bears an excellent character. We wish him success, but at the same time shall be very sorry to lose him.

If a reference is required about a person who lacks some qualities, the employer is a bit more cautious. The writer is very careful not to say this in so many words.

Dear Mr. X,

Thank you for your letter of. Mr. X is a competent linguist, and for the past 5 years has been employed as senior assistant in our foreign correspondence section. He has always been conscientious and hard working. Whether or not he would be capable of taking full responsibility for a large and busy department is difficult to say, since his work with us has always been carried out under supervision Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Applicants thank you letters

The persons who have given references would be very pleased to get information about the persons they gave reference for. Applicants-should inform and thank those who supported them. An example:

/ would like to thank you for supporting my application for the post as Manager of . . . . in . . . . .

/ know that the generous terms in which you wrote about me had much to do with my being offered the post, and I am deeply grateful to you for the reference you provided for me. Your help and encouragement has always been appreciated and remembered.

There are employers that are asking to get certain information; they enumerate them assuring the partner of strict confidence. The replies can be favorable or cautious. Sometimes, the replies can be negative:

We released Mr. X because his work fell below the standards, as we normally require. His punctuality also left a lot to be desired, and he had a disturbing influence on other members of our staff. Mr. X is an intelligent young man and with some exercise and self-discipline, he could do well. However, from my personal experience I am afraid that I cannot conscientiously recommend him.

An alternative unfavorable reference is this:

This young man was a member of our clerical staff from till

but I am sorry to say that we did not find him suitable. It is quite possible that he will do better in another office.

Giving reference to an employee of yours implies responsibility to a certain extend. Always remember that your comments, whether verbal or written, must be made in good faith. They should be protected by the words Private and confidential and are addressed to a senior official of the firm. The only reference where it has value is when the person from whom it is produced knows the writer personally. Most people like to give a good reference whenever they can.

Curriculum vitae

As you have already written your letter of application, you must not forget that is should be accompanied by some other documents such as: curriculum vitae, testimonials.

Your, curriculum vitae sometimes called resume, should present all your personal details, together with your education, qualifications and working experience. It should be presented in an attractive for so that all the information can be seen at a glance. All the details should be presented on two pages not more.