1. Lesson 2: Business Letters: Parts and Formats
HR-TOD: English Business Writing Class

2. What is a Business Letter?
Business letter refers to any written communication whose contents are professional in nature.
Business letters usually have the same layout styles but differ in their specific purpose and focus.

3. Categories of Business Letters
Informal business letter is a letter written to a friend, a colleague, a member of the family, relatives, or acquaintances. It is meant to build bridges and grow relationship.
It includes an informal and personal statement immediately following the opening salutation.
It is less structured. It could be a congratulatory, complimentary, request for favor, thank you letter, or letter of encouragement.

4. Categories of Business Letters
Formal business letter is a form of formal communication written generally for business or academic purposes.
It uses a direct objective approach, targeting a specific individual or group.
It is structured, clear and concise, convincing and ends with a specific objective.

5. Purposes of a Formal Business Letter
To update customers of company products.
To appraise business associates of various company reports and activities.
To build rapport with customers, thanking them for their patronage.
To order a particular product.
To provide sales incentive to customers in form of rebates, coupons, discounts and other special deals
To acknowledge a complaint.

6. A. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Parts common to a business letter:
a heading
a date line
an inside address
a salutation
a body
a complimentary close
a signature line

7. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Some business letters may include any of the following:
an attention line
a subject line
an end notation line
a reference initial line
an enclosure line
copy line

8. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Heading is often composed of the company logo, company name, address, phone number(s) or trunkline. Other information may include fax number, address and website.
The heading may be centered or left justified. Other companies may have their company name printed at the bottom of the stationery.

9. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Centered heading:
(single spaced)
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila
Philippines 1000
T:(02)
Fax:
www:fireflyelectric.com

10. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Left justified heading:
(single spaced)
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila
Philippines 1000
T:(02)
Fax:

11. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Use a stationery with a letter head for the first page and blank paper for the subsequent pages.
Date line is located two lines below company heading. The date is written in this order:
month (fully spelled) day and year.
Ex. August 22, 2014

12. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Inside address located two lines below date line, consists of the recipient’s name , using his/ her professional title such as Professor (Prof.) ,Attorney (Atty.) Dr. and etc. Otherwise, use plain Mr. or Ms. unless the recipient prefers Mrs.

13. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Beneath the recipient’s name, write his position, name of company or organization and business address.
The position or title (e.g. Sales Supervisor/ Ph.D.) may be placed next to the name of the recipient, separated by a comma.

14. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
The business address should include complete
mailing address: floor or unit of the building,
name of the building, street number, street
name, city or province and zip code. The country
is included in international mails.

15. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
The attention line is optional. It is usually included when the letter sender does not know the name of the person who holds the position in the company or organization. It is placed two lines below the inside address.
Ex. Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila 1000
2 lines
Attention: The HR Manager

16. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
The subject line is optional. It is usually a summary or a brief description of the main content or idea of the subject of the letter.
Ex. Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila 1000
2 lines
Attention: The Logistics Manager
Subject: Impact of Projected Price Increase

17. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
The salutation is the opening phrase of a letter that expresses a polite greeting, an expression of good will, or other sign of recognition used to address the recipient.
In the absence of attention and subject lines, the salutation is placed two lines below the inside address.

18. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Salutation tips
The preferred options:
Dear Atty. Reyes: – if the name of the recipient is known.
Dear HR Manager: – if only the position is known. This can be avoided by placing a call to the company and asking for the name of the person occupying the position.

19. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
To whom it may concern: appears impersonal and use it only when absolutely necessary. The better option would be to use the attention line.
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen: using this greeting should be avoided. It has better application as an opening of a speech.
Dear Sir or Madam: should be avoided if possible. It sounds a bit old-fashioned.

20. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Body of the letter appears two lines below the salutation.
Contents:
first paragraph contains the introduction that identifies the writer, subject or the main point and the reason for writing. It is usually five lines or less.

21. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
following paragraphs explain the reason for writing, justifying the importance of the main point, providing details and other background information.
the last paragraph contains a summary of the reasons for writing, restating the purpose of the letter. In some cases, the author requests some type of action from the recipient.

22. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Complimentary Close is that part of a letter that by tacit agreement and acceptance between groups becomes the standard of usage.
The complimentary close precedes the signature of the writer. There are 3-4 lines that separates the two.
It is the manifestation of the writer’s respect and appreciation for the person to whom the letter is sent.

23. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Two most popular and safest choices for complimentary close are “Sincerely” and “Best regards”.
For a business letter, the closing, “Sincerely” stays the same but each person has his/her own signature block.

24. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
The signature blocks are either side by side or one above the other.
Each person signs above his/her name using first name only or full name depending on the formality of the letter and the degree of relationship between the sender and the recipient.

25. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
The complimentary close is aligned at the same vertical point as the date. With block format, the closing is left justified. With the modified block, the closing is tabbed to the center in line with the date.
Complimentary close consisting of two or more words will only have the first word capitalized. The punctuation mark after the close is a comma.
Ex. Sincerely yours,

26. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Sample complimentary closes
With gratitude,
Always,
Warm regards,
Respectfully yours,
Sincerely,
Truly yours,
With sincere thanks,
Faithfully yours,
Many thanks,
Best wishes,
Best regards,
With appreciation,
Type – Formal, Impersonal
Business
Personal

27. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Sample complimentary closes
Type - Middle of the Road
Business
Personal
Best regards,
Your friend,
Truly yours,
Affectionately,
Cordially,
Yours always,
Yours respectfully,
Fond regards,
Wishing you well,
Warm wishes,
With sincere gratitude,
Have a nice day,

28. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Sample complimentary closes
Type – Familiar, Intimate
Business
Personal
Thanks,
With love,
Regards,
Hugs and kisses,
Best wishes,
Lovingly yours,
Take care,
With love and care,
Until next time,
All my love,
See you soon,
God bless,

29. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Signature line is where the printed name of the letter writer appears. It appears three to four lines from the complimentary close. The writer should sign his/her name on the space above the signature line.

30. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Women may indicate how they wish to be addressed by placing Miss, Mrs. , or Ms. or another title in parenthesis, before their printed name.
Ex. (Mrs.) Anthea E. Divinagracia
Use black ink to sign your name.

31. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
End notation line/s- may include one or all of the following:
a reference line – which identifies the author of the letter by uppercase initials separated from the typist by a slash or colon. The typist’s initials are in lower case.
Ex. MBA/acy or MBA:acy
Reference line is also used as a system for tracking letters by chronological numbers, employee’s initial or department codes

32. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Reference line may also used to refer to an information that the recipient specifically requested, such as a job reference or an invoice number.
The enclosure line alerts the recipient that additional materials such as brochure, special or promotional offers, catalogues, advertisement of new products are included with the letter. Usually a mention of enclosure can be found in the letter.
Ex. Enclosure: 2 or enc.2
Enc. 2 concert tickets

33. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
Copy line indicates other possible recipients of the letter. It can either be indicated as CC, (carbon copy or courtesy copy) or BCC (blind courtesy copy) The name of the person or persons receiving the CC occupies one line each.
Ex. CC: Ms. Cynthia Garcia
Mr. Robert Dewara
In BCC the names of the third party can be found only in the letter for office files and in the letter for the third party.

34. Basic Parts of a Business Letter
If all of the end notations ( reference line, enclosure line, CC/BCC line appear in a letter, they are separated from each other by two lines.

35. B. Format of a Business Letter
A. Heading: Address of the sender and date, using a stationery with pre-printed letter head.
Example:
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St., Ermita
Manila, Philippines 1000
(2 lines)
B. Date line – left justified in block format
August 23, 2014

36. Format of a Business Letter
C. Inside Address: Name and address of the recipient Ex. Mr. Dario G. Mendoza General Manager Advance Technologies, Inc. 8/F Victoria Towers 1624 España St., Sampaloc Manila 1005

37. Format of a Business Letter
Another way of writing the inside address:
Ex.
Mr. Dario G. Mendoza, General Manager
Advance Technologies, Inc.
8/F Victoria Towers
1624 España St., Sampaloc
Manila 1005

38. Format of a Business Letter
D. Salutation – the greeting used in a letter or other written communication.
Examples:
Dear Patrick:
Dear Rudy and Ellen:
Dear Dean Carpio and Prof. Jimenez:
Dear Mr. and Atty Viñas:
Dear Drs. Ben and Cynthia Barca:
Dear J.M. Jalandoni:
Dear Mrs. Lopez and Ms. Estrella:
Dear Mmes. Go and Wong:
Dear Messrs. De Guzman, Escaño, and Padilla:
Dear The Habitat Volunteer Group:

39. Format of a Business Letter
Body of the letter- The text is written single space, left justified with a double space between paragraphs.
Concluding Remarks/ Complimentary Close/ Valediction - varies according to the degree of formality between the writer and recipient.
Signature line – where the printed name of the letter writer appears together with his/her position and other contact information. The writer signs above the printed name.

40. Format of a Business Letter
Three formats used:
Block Format – the most common layout of a business letter.
Ex # 1. With pre-printed letter head stationery.
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila
Philippines 1000
(see other info in Basic parts)
(name of country not necessary for local companies)

41. Format of a Business Letter
2 lines Current date Inside address Mr./Mrs./Ms. First Name / Last Name Professional Title Company Name Mailing address: Street # Name of Street City/ Province ZIP

42. Format of a Business Letter
2 lines Salutation: Body of the letter Complimentary close, 4 lines Writer’s First/Last Name (handwritten signature above the printed name)

43. Format of a Business Letter
Professional Title Ex. Sales Manager 2 lines Reference initials Ex. ACA/mba. Author/ typist Enc. (#) if any Ex. #2 Without pre-printed company letterhead
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila
Philippines 1000

44. Format of a Business Letter
Block letter format: (Con’t) The rest are identical to the format of Ex. # 1. B. Modified block – the sender’s and recipient’s addresses and body of the letter are left justified and single spaced. The date and complimentary close are tabbed to the center.

45. Format of a Business Letter
Modified block (Con’t)
Ex. # 1 With pre-printed letter head stationery.
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila
Philippines 1000
2 lines

46. Format of a Business Letter
Current date 2 lines Inside address Mr./Mrs./Ms. First Name / Last Name Professional Title Company Name Mailing address: Street # Name of Street City/ Province ZIP

47. Format of a Business Letter
2 lines Salutation: Body of the letter Complimentary close, 4 lines Writer’s First/Last Name (handwritten signature above the printed name. Professional Title Ex. Sales Manager

48. Format of a Business Letter
Reference initials Ex. ACA/mba. Author/ typist
Enc. (#) if any
Ex. #2 Without pre-printed company letterhead.
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila
Philippines 1000
2 lines

49. Format of a Business Letter
Current date 2 lines Inside address Mr./Mrs./Ms. First Name / Last Name Professional Title Company Name Mailing address: Street # Name of Street City/ Province ZIP

50. Format of a Business Letter
2 lines Salutation: Body of the letter Complimentary close, 4 lines Writer’s First/Last Name (handwritten signature above the printed name. Professional Title Ex. Sales Manager

51. Format of a Business Letter
2 lines Reference initials Ex. ACA/mba. Author/ typist Enc. (#) if any

52. Format of a Business Letter
C. Semi-block is a layout format that is not as commonly used as the block and the modified block. The layout is modified block style but each paragraph is indented.

53. Format of a Business Letter
Semi- block
Ex. # 1 With pre-printed letter head stationery.
Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp.
7/F Zen Offices Bldg.
1111 Natividad Lopez St.
Ermita, Manila
Philippines 1000
2 lines

54. Format of a Business Letter
Semi-block (Con’t) Current date 2 lines Inside address Mr./Mrs./Ms. First Name / Last Name Professional Title Company Name Mailing address: Street # Name of Street City/ Province ZIP

55. Format of a Business Letter
Salutation: 2 lines Body of the letter (indented paragraphs) For the first paragraph consider a friendly opening and then a statement of the main point. The second and succeeding paragraphs should begin justifying the importance of the main point, providing background information and supporting details.

56. Format of a Business Letter
The last paragraph should restate the purpose of the letter, and in some cases, request some type of action.
2 lines
Complimentary close,
4 lines
Writer’s First/Last Name (handwritten signature above the printed name.)
Professional Title Ex Sales Manager

57. Format of a Business Letter
Reference initials Ex. ACA/mba. Author/ typist Enc. (#) if any Ex. #2 Without pre-printed company letterhead. Firefly Electric & Lighting Corp. 7/F Zen Offices Bldg Natividad Lopez St. Ermita, Manila Philippines 1000

58. Format of a Business Letter
2 lines Current date Inside address Mr./Mrs./Ms. First Name / Last Name Professional Title Company Name Mailing address: Street # Name of Street City/ Province ZIP

59. Format of a Business Letter
2 lines
Salutation:
Body of the letter (indented paragraphs)
For the first paragraph consider a friendly opening and then a statement of the main point.

60. Format of a Business Letter
The second and succeeding paragraphs should
begin justifying the importance of the main point,
providing background information and supporting
details.
The last paragraph should restate the purpose of
the letter, and in some cases, request some type of
action.
2 lines
Complimentary close,

61. Format of a Business Letter
4 lines
Writer’s First/Last Name (handwritten signature above the printed name.)
Professional Title
Ex. Sales Manager lines
Reference initials Ex. ACA/mba.
Author/ typist
Enc. (#) if any

62. Format of a Business Letter
G. Signature line is where the printed name of the letter writer appears. It appears three to four spaces from the complimentary close. The writer should sign his/her name on the space above the signature line.
Women may indicate how they wish to be addressed by placing Miss, Mrs. , or Ms. or another title in parenthesis, before their printed name.
Use black ink to sign your name.

63. Business Letters: Its Parts and its Formats: Quizzes
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64. End of Lesson 2