Module OneBusiness Letter Writing






Pretext1Writing Principles and 
Language Features








Learning Objectives
●The students are expected to know about the preparation before writing.
●The students are expected to learn the writing principles and language features  of a business letter.

ⅠPreparation before Writing
A business letter is not for chitchat. Unlike business conversation in which a certain amount of small talks are used to break the ice, a business letter should be clear and concise. By taking time to plan your letter, you will save time at the writing and proofreading stages. During the planning stage, ask yourself a few simple questions and then jot down your answers to create an outline for the letter. The questions are as follows.





You should prepare to answer the following questions before writing.

1. Whom am I writing this letter to?4. What kind of layout, tone, and style should I adopt?
2. Why am I writing this letter?5. Do I require a response?
3. Are there specific details that I need to include?6. How can I organize my points logically?

1. Who am I writing this letter to?
Identify the readers first. Are you writing to more than one person, to someone you dont know, or to someone you have known for a long time? This will help you determine how formal this letter needs to be. You may need to introduce yourself briefly at the beginning of the letter if the recipient does not know you. You may also need to study your readers interest, that is, thinking of what your reader thinks.
2. Why am I writing this letter?
The main reason for writing this letter should be mentioned in the topic sentence or the first few sentences. You may cover a lot of content in one business letter, but there is always a general reason. Identify your main goal and what you hope to accomplish. 
3. Are there any specific details that I need to include?
Gather any dates, addresses, names, prices, or other information that you may need before you write your letter. That means you should draft an outline before writing so that you can write better  more effectively. Doublecheck details rather than rely on your memory.
4. What kind of layout, tone, and style should I adopt?
Different kinds of practical writings have different layouts, tones, and styles, which will be discussed in relevant chapters and sections. If you are a writer, it is very important for you to well know and properly adopt the relevant layout, tone, and style in your writing that you can express yourself appropriately.
5. Do I require a response?
Many types of business letters require a response. Others are written in response to a letter that has been received. Before you start writing, determine whether or not you require an action or response from the recipient. Your request or requirement should be very clear. In some cases, you may even need to provide a deadline for the response. If you do require a response, how should the recipient contact you? Indicate this information as well. You may provide some methods available, such as an email address and a phone number.
6. How can I organize my points logically?
Think about how to organize your thoughts if you were speaking rather than writing to the recipient. First, you should introduce yourself. Then state your concern or the reason for writing this letter. After the text is the contact information. Of course, some blessing words are necessary which is to express gratitude, wish goodluck, or offer sympathy.
ⅡWriting Principles and Language Features
A business letter is a method of communication. Its main function is to inform or remind the cooperative partner or the public of a certain thing and also ask them to act according to the rules written in the letters. Such practical writing has its specific language style and features, which is known as the seven “Cs”: courtesy, consideration, correctness, conciseness, clearness, concreteness, and completeness.


Diagrammatic Presentation 

1. Completeness 
Business writing is  very successful and highly effective  only when it contains all the necessary information  and answers all the questions  put forward by readers. 
In order to verify the completeness of the letter, five “Ws” (who, what, where, when, and why) and one “H” (how) should be used. 
2. Concreteness 
Business writing should be specific, definite, and persuasive instead of being vague, general, and abstract. Using specific facts, figures and time can help write concretely and vividly.
e.g.
 Thank you for your letter yesterday.
The word yesterday is a vague and general concept. It is not suitable to be used here. The sentence should be changed into:
Thank you for your letter of April 1st, 2019.
3. Clearness
As a writer of business letters, you must express your meaning clearly so that it cannot be misunderstood. To achieve this, you should first have a concrete idea of what you are going to write in your mind. 
e.g.
(1) We can supply 10 sets of the machine only.
(2) We can supply only 10 sets of the machine.
In the first sentence, “only” is used to modify “the machine”, meaning  only this kind of machine can be supplied, not the other one. But in the second sentence, “only” is used to modify “10 sets”, meaning the supply is only 10 sets. 
4. Conciseness
Conciseness means terseness and economy in writing achieved by expressing a great deal in just a few words without sacrificing completeness, concreteness, and courtesy. It saves both the writers and the recipients time. To do so, the following guidelines must be observed.
(1） Shorten a long story and avoid wordiness.





You shouldnt useYoud better use

acknowledge receipt of ...appreciate .../receive ...
enclosed herewith please find ...We enclose ...
due to the fact thatbecause
in due coursesoon/in time
at the present momentnow
in the account offor
in accordance with your requestas you request
in/with regard toregarding
with respect toon/about
under separate coverseparately
续表



You shouldnt useYoud better use

a draft in the amount of USD 1，000a draft for USD 1，000
Please dont hesitate to tell usPlease tell us
It should be pointed out thatPlease notice that

(2） Avoid using the general and outofdate commercial jargon and try to express your ideas in modern English.





Unusual wordsEveryday expressions

procureget
remunerationpayment
ultimo (ult.)last month
instant (inst.)this month
proximo (prox.)next month






Outofdate commercial jargonsModern English

as peras/according to ...
at an early datesoon (or to give a specific date)
at this time/at presentnow
Enclosed please find ...enclosed, here
This is to inform you of ...We are pleased to tell you ...

(3） Avoid unnecessary repetition.
e.g.
We have begun to export our machines to foreign countries.
(4） Control the number of words, and build effective sentences. The word “export” means “selling the machines to foreign countries”. And this can be put into: We have begun to export our machines to Japan/USA/Germany(some specific country).
Generally speaking, the average length for sentence should be 10 to 20 words, not over 30 ones. Usually, a paragraph consists of no more than 10 lines because short paragraphs encourage readers to finish reading over the passage.
5. Courtesy
Courtesy means politeness but humility. 
(1) Change the commanding tone into a requesting one—change the imperative sentence into general question with the word “will” or “would” at the beginning.
(2) Use the past subjective form—should, could, would, might.
(3) Avoid overemphasizing your own opinion or irritating your partner.
(4) Use passive voice.
(5) Avoid using the words with forcing tone or ones arousing unpleasantness.
(6) Use the words or expressions with the meaning of joy, thanks, and regret.
(7) Dont use the humble words.
e.g.
① Tell us more detailed information on your requirements. (commanding tone)
Will you please tell us more detailed information on your requirements? (requesting tone)
② We cannot deliver the goods all at one time. (overemphasis)
③ You made a very careless mistake during shipment. (active voice)
A very careless mistake was made during shipment. (passive voice)
④ We must refuse your offer. (minatory tone)
We regret that we are unable to accept your offer. (euphemistic tone)

6. Consideration 
A letter functions well if it can deeply impress  its recipient. When writing the letter, you should keep the readers request, hope, interest, as well as his or her feeling in mind. Thoughtful consideration enables you to better understand your recipient, so your requirement will be more practical and understandable. The following points are necessary for writing a letter.
(1) Take the recipients attitude, i.e. “your” attitude into consideration, and avoid Considering the writers attitude, i.e. “our” attitude only.





 “We” attitude    “You” attitude 


We give a 2% discount for cash payments.You get a 2% discount for cash payment.
We are pleased to announce that …     You will be pleased to know that …

(2) Focus on the positive approach.
e.g.
① We do not believe you will have any reason for dissatisfaction. (negative)
We feel sure that you will be entirely satisfied. (positive)
② We close at 5 p.m. (negative)
We are open till 5 p.m. (positive)

7. Correctness
Correctness refers not only to correct usage of grammar, punctuation, and spelling but also to the standard language, proper statement, accurate figures as well as the correct understanding of commercial jargon.Otherwise, what you have written may be misunderstood and even go astray. 
e.g.
 ① This product is absolutely the best one on the market. (overstate ment)
This product is the best one we can supply. (matteroffact attitude)
② It is the lowest price available to you. (understate ment)
It is the lowest price we can offer now. (matteroffact attitude)

ⅢExercises
1. Rewrite the following sentences and make them correct, more positive and polite.
（1) We cannot book the order at the prices we quoted six weeks ago.
（2) As we are in urgent need of the goods, you must send them out as early as possible.
（3) We request your immediate payment.
（4) We gave immediate attention to your order.
（5) We cant understand why you had trouble with this article.

2. Correct any mistakes in the following letter and separate the message into two paragraphs.
ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES CO.
P.O.Box 3259
XXXX, XXX
11th January 2019
The Manager
Messrs. Clarke & Smith Co. Ltd.
68 High Street
London EC 4
England


Dear Sir,
Thank you for your letter of 7th January, asking us details and prices of our electric heaters. We are pleased to enclose our latest price list and catalog, together with Model X4s details. Please do not hesitate to write us when you need any further information, which shall always have our best attention.        
Yours faithfully,
Manager
Electrical Appliances Co.Ltd.



Pretext2Structure and Formats








Learning Objectives

●The students are expected to grasp the structure of business letters.
●The students are expected to know about the letter styles and punctuations in  business English letter writing.
●The students are expected to master the methods of addressing the envelope.

ⅠThe Structure of Business Letters
We have known that business letters have their unique language style—formal, courtesy, and restrained.To show the typical style, certain parts and formats of business English letters are needed. There are fourteen parts and four formats in business English letters writing,which are as follows.
Necessary Parts
(1) Letterhead （信头）
(2) Date Line （发信日期）
(3) Inside Address （收信人地址）
(4) Salutation （称呼）
subject line
(5) Body of the Letter （信的正文）
(6) Complimentary Close （结尾敬语）
(7) Signature （签名）
Optional Parts

(if necessary)
(1) File Reference （参照号码； 案号）
(2) Special Address (Attention/ATTN.)（特定称呼）
(3) Subject Line (Re:/Subject/Sub.) （标题； 事由）
(4) Identification Mark/Reference Notation （经办人代号）
(5) Enclosure (Encl./Enc.) （附件）
(6) Carbon Copy (C.C.) （抄送）
(7) Postscript (P.S.) （附言）

ⅡThe Format of Business Letters



1. Necessary Parts 
1) Letterhead
Letterhead (or heading, which means the senders information), as the first and most obvious part of a companys business letter, has two functions: 
(1) to show who send this letter;
(2) to impress someone concerned with the writers company.
A printed letterhead is usually artistically designed and printed on the center or on the left margin at the top of the sheet, which contains all or some of the following elements: the writers name, address, postcode, telephone number, fax number, email address, the name of the officer or the director and the companys logo. 
e.g.
Wicked Wax Co. Ltd （公司名称）
22 Charlton Way（门牌与街名间不用逗号）
London E.C.4, England （E.C.4： 邮区号，E.C.： Eastern Central District）
Tel: 011377432Telex: 9876548
Cable Address: WICKED, London
When writing on blank paper, only the receivers address should be in the right margin. 
2) Date Line 
Every letter should be dated. Remember never send out a letter without a date.