Learn to Write Personal-Business Letters Tech & Career Apps - Errickson

Introduction  A letter written by an individual to deal with business of a personal nature is called a personal-business letter Examples include: Job Application Letters Thank You Letters Letters to Employers Requests for Information

Layout  Block format is commonly used for formatting personal-business letters  All parts of the letter begin at the left margin and paragraphs are not indented

Basic Parts - Margins 230 Glendale Ct. Brooklyn, NY February 15, 2011 Ms. Julie Hutchinson 1825 Melbourne Ave. Flushing, NY Dear Julie It seems like years since we were in Ms. Gerhig’s keyboarding class. Now I wish I would have paid more attention. As I indicated on the phone, I am applying for a position as box office coordinator for one of the theaters in Broadway. Of course, I know the importance of having my letter of application and resume formatted correctly, but I’m not sure that I remember how to do it. Since you just completed your business education degree, I knew where to get the help I needed. Thanks for agreeing to look over my application documents; they are enclosed. Also, if you have any suggestions for changes to the content, please share those with me too. This job is so important to me; it’s the one I really want. Thanks again for agreeing to help. If I get this job, I’ll take you out to one of New York’s finest restaurants. Sincerely Rebecca Dunworthy Enclosures 2’’ Top Margin 1’’ Side Margin 1’’ Bottom Margin

Basic Parts 230 Glendale Ct. Brooklyn, NY February 15, 2011 Ms. Julie Hutchinson 1825 Melbourne Ave. Flushing, NY Dear Julie It seems like years since we were in Ms. Gerhig’s keyboarding class. Now I wish I would have paid more attention. As I indicated on the phone, I am applying for a position as box office coordinator for one of the theaters in Broadway. Of course, I know the importance of having my letter of application and resume formatted correctly, but I’m not sure that I remember how to do it. Since you just completed your business education degree, I knew where to get the help I needed. Thanks for agreeing to look over my application documents; they are enclosed. Also, if you have any suggestions for changes to the content, please share those with me too. This job is so important to me; it’s the one I really want. Thanks again for agreeing to help. If I get this job, I’ll take you out to one of New York’s finest restaurants. Sincerely Rebecca Dunworthy Enclosures Return Address: Consists of a line for the street, city, state, and zip code of the sender Date: Month, day, and year directly below the return address Delivery Address: Includes a personal title (Ms., Mr., Mrs.) or professional title (Dr., Lt.)

Basic Parts 230 Glendale Ct. Brooklyn, NY February 15, 2011 Ms. Julie Hutchinson 1825 Melbourne Ave. Flushing, NY Dear Julie It seems like years since we were in Ms. Gerhig’s keyboarding class. Now I wish I would have paid more attention. As I indicated on the phone, I am applying for a position as box office coordinator for one of the theaters in Broadway. Of course, I know the importance of having my letter of application and resume formatted correctly, but I’m not sure that I remember how to do it. Since you just completed your business education degree, I knew where to get the help I needed. Thanks for agreeing to look over my application documents; they are enclosed. Also, if you have any suggestions for changes to the content, please share those with me too. This job is so important to me; it’s the one I really want. Thanks again for agreeing to help. If I get this job, I’ll take you out to one of New York’s finest restaurants. Sincerely Rebecca Dunworthy Enclosures Salutation: Note there is no comma after the name Body: Paragraphs are not indented. Double space between paragraphs.

Basic Parts 230 Glendale Ct. Brooklyn, NY February 15, 2011 Ms. Julie Hutchinson 1825 Melbourne Ave. Flushing, NY Dear Julie It seems like years since we were in Ms. Gerhig’s keyboarding class. Now I wish I would have paid more attention. As I indicated on the phone, I am applying for a position as box office coordinator for one of the theaters in Broadway. Of course, I know the importance of having my letter of application and resume formatted correctly, but I’m not sure that I remember how to do it. Since you just completed your business education degree, I knew where to get the help I needed. Thanks for agreeing to look over my application documents; they are enclosed. Also, if you have any suggestions for changes to the content, please share those with me too. This job is so important to me; it’s the one I really want. Thanks again for agreeing to help. If I get this job, I’ll take you out to one of New York’s finest restaurants. Sincerely Rebecca Dunworthy Enclosures Complimentary Close: Should remain professional (Sincerely, Respectfully, Best regards, With many thanks, Respectfully yours) Name of the writer: The name may be preceded by a personal title Enclosure/Attachment Notation: Used when providing document(s)

Block Format – Spacing 230 Glendale Ct. Brooklyn, NY February 15, 2011 Ms. Julie Hutchinson 1825 Melbourne Ave. Flushing, NY Dear Julie It seems like years since we were in Ms. Gerhig’s keyboarding class. Now I wish I would have paid more attention. As I indicated on the phone, I am applying for a position as box office coordinator for one of the theaters in Broadway. Of course, I know the importance of having my letter of application and resume formatted correctly, but I’m not sure that I remember how to do it. Since you just completed your business education degree, I knew where to get the help I needed. Thanks for agreeing to look over my application documents; they are enclosed. Also, if you have any suggestions for changes to the content, please share those with me too. This job is so important to me; it’s the one I really want. Thanks again for agreeing to help. If I get this job, I’ll take you out to one of New York’s finest restaurants. Sincerely Rebecca Dunworthy Enclosures 1 blank line 3 blank lines 1 blank line 3 blank lines Paragraphs are single spaced except for double spacing between paragraphs

Reference Initial 230 Glendale Ct. Brooklyn, NY February 15, 2011 Ms. Julie Hutchinson 1825 Melbourne Ave. Flushing, NY Dear Julie It seems like years since we were in Ms. Gerhig’s keyboarding class. Now I wish I would have paid more attention. As I indicated on the phone, I am applying for a position as box office coordinator for one of the theaters in Broadway. Of course, I know the importance of having my letter of application and resume formatted correctly, but I’m not sure that I remember how to do it. Since you just completed your business education degree, I knew where to get the help I needed. Thanks for agreeing to look over my application documents; they are enclosed. Also, if you have any suggestions for changes to the content, please share those with me too. This job is so important to me; it’s the one I really want. Thanks again for agreeing to help. If I get this job, I’ll take you out to one of New York’s finest restaurants. Sincerely Rebecca Dunworthy Enclosures brs When someone other than the originator of the letter keys it, key the keyboard operator’s initials in lowercase letters at the left margin, a double space below the writer’s name.

Text Style  Select a font that can be easily read.  Traditional Fonts should be used for more serious subject matters, such as applying for a job Suggestions: Times New Roman or Garamond  Casual fonts are acceptable when writing to someone you know well Suggestions: Arial or Trebuchet  Text size should be easily readable without unnecessarily taking up too much space, usually between points.  Make sure the font you choose compliments your subject matter and does not detract from it.

Punctuation  Personal-business letters use open punctuation  For this style, punctuation is excluded after the salutation and the closing

Final Thoughts  In most cases, the personal-business letter will be the first impression that you make on someone. Take great care that your letter's content is clear and that you have proofread it carefully.  Try to keep the letter to one page. Generally, a short letter will get a quicker response than a long, rambling composition that takes several pages to come to the point.

Learn to Write Personal-Business Letters Tech & Career Apps - Errickson