The Style Features of Business English Letters

The Style Features of Business English

Letters

Introduction

With

the

rapid

development

of

economy,

our

country

takes

part

in

the

international

trade

frequently.

When

doing

international

business,

although

the

telephone,

telegraph,

and

telex

are

very

useful,

business

letters

are

still

the

most

important communication tool in business. A polite letter with appropriate language

can bring business to a company. On the contrary, a poor letter with wrong tone may

bring the company negative impact. Therefore, it

’

s necessary for us to learn how to

write

business

letters

appropriately,

to

learn

their

language

and

its

style

features,

which will be introduced to you.

Analysis

①

The Structure of a Business English Letter

The first impression that a business letter makes depends on its appearance. Any

business

letter

should

be

clear,

brief

and

businesslike.

It

should

be

written

on

good

paper

of

the

right

size

and

kind,

often

on

white

paper

of

good

quality

in

standard size (usually A4). Don

’

t write confused, overlong or letters and try to be

polite, friendly and informal to write concise and purposeful letters

A

business

English

usually

consists

of

seven

principal

parts

：

letterhead,

date,

inside name

and

address, salutation, body of the text,

complimentary

close and

signature.

However,

depending

on

different

purpose

and

options,

a

business

English

letter

will

also

contain

some

other

elements,

such

as:

reference

No.,

subject line, identification marks, enclosure and carbon copy.

a)

Letterhead

When

writing

business

letters,

you

usually

use

the

company

’

s

stationery

with

artistically designed and printed letterhead which tells the reader where the letter

comes from and gives readers

’

impression of your company. A letterhead usually

contains the following information:

?

The icon of the company

?

The name of the company

?

The full address including postcode

?

Telephone number

?

Fax number

?

Email address and internet website

b)

Reference Number

The

reference

number

is

sometimes

used

in

a

business

letter

as

a

useful

indication for filing. It is often placed two lines below the letterhead at the left

margin.

It may include a file number, departmental code or the initials of the signer of the

letter to be followed by the typist

’

s initials in the following examples:

In an incoming letter: Our ref: 234 JS/mf

In the reply to the incoming letter: Your ref: 234 JS/mf

Our ref: 123 CT

c)

Dateline

The

dateline

is

used

to

indicate

the

date

when

the

letter

is

written.

Write

the

month in English instead of Arabic numbers to avoid possible misunderstanding

or

confusion

caused

by

different

British

and

American

conventions

in

date

writing.

May 25(

th

), 2010

—

American form

25(

th

) May, 2010

—

British form

The

dateline

is

typed

two

lines

below

the

letterhead

or

the

reference

number

either

at

the

left

or

across

the

center

slightly

to

the

right

depending

on

the

different letter styles.

d)

Inside Name and Address

The inside address is the recipient

’

s address. No matter which format is using, it

should be typed flush with

the left

margin

at

least

two lines below the date.

It

appears exactly the same way as on the envelope.

It is always best to write to a specific individual in the company to which you are

writing. The person

’

s name should be preceded by the courtesy title

—

Mr., Mrs.,

Miss or Ms.

e)

Salutation

The salutation is the polite greeting with which the writer begins his letter. The

particular form used depends upon the writer

’

s relationship with the receiver.

Whatever letter form is used, the salutation always appears on a line by itself at

left margin, conventionally three line-spacing below the inside name and address,

and two line-spacing ahead of the next element of a letter, either subject or body

of the text.

f)

Subject Line

A

subject

line

identifies

the

subject

of

the

letter

and

tells

the

reader

what

the

letter is about. It is also useful as a guide for filing. It comes two lines below the

salutation,

either

beginning

at

the

left

margin

or

in

the

centre,

depending

on

which

style

you

are

using.

The

subject

line

can

begin

with

or

without

the

introductory word, such as

“

Re

”

,

“

Subject

”

< br>, which is usually followed by a colon.

e.g.

Re: L/C MODIFICATION

Re: Our Contract No. 123

Subject: Order No. 678 of Shirts

Orientation Training Arrangement

g)

Body of the Text

This part is the core of a letter. It conveys the actual message of a letter. It should

begin two lines below the subject or two lines below the salutation if there is no

subject line. For full block and modified block formats, each paragraph begins at

the left margin and one blank line is left between paragraphs. For semi-block, the

first line of each paragraph is indented five spaces and one blank line between

paragraphs is optional.

h)

Complimentary Close

The complimentary close is

a polite way of ending a letter.

It

is

placed two to

four lines below the last line of the body of the text. No matter it is placed at the

left

or

at

the

right

depending

on

the

different

styles,

it

should

be

lined

up

vertically

with

the

dateline.

The

most

commonly

used

sets

of

salutation

and

complimentary close are show as follows:

Salutation

Complimentary Close

Comment

Dear Sir(s):

Yours faithfully,

Formal

Dear Madam:

Faithfully yours,

(British way)

Dear Mesdames:

Dear Sir(s):

Yours truly,

Formal

Dear Madam:

Truly yours,

(American way)

Dear Mesdames:

Dear Mr. Smith:

Yours sincerely,

Informal

Dear John:

Sincerely yours,

(Generally used when

Dear John Smith:

person

’

s name is used)

i)

Signature

The signature block contains handwritten name and typed name. All letters must

be

signed.

Unsigned

letters

have

no

authority.

It

is

customary

to

leave

enough

space-at least three blank lines- between the complimentary close and the typed

name for signing by hand and in ink after the letter printed out.

j)

Identification Marks

Identification marks are used for administrative purpose in the office where the

letter originated. They are made up of the initials of the signer and those of the

secretary or typist. They are typed two lines below the typed signature and flush

with the left margin. e.g.

JS/mf

JS: mf

Do not use the identification marks if the signer or the writer typed the letter by