Structure of a business letter

Лекция 10 Structure of a business letter Изучив материал, студент должен знать: • Принципы построения и написания делового письма; • Порядок оформления различных видов деловых писем; • Содержание и стилистику делового письма. Изучив материал, студент должен владеть: • Способностью оформления делового письма. План лекции: 1. Structure of a business letter (2) 2. Structure of a business letter (3) 3. Content and style 1 STUCTUE OF A BUSINESS LETTER (2) MARLBOROUGH HOTEL Letterhead 34 Linden Avenue Newtown-on-Sea Devon CN31 4DX Telephone (081) 566 1861 Fax: (081)5061385 References Telex: 610539 www.Sunsethot.eng Your ref: PG/AL Our ref: Inq. K346 Ms B. Kaasen, 11 May 200… 16 Bellview Road, West Yorkshire JX2 6HG, England Dear Ms Kaasen, Thank you for your letter requesting further information about our hotel and room rates for July. I am enclosing a brochure in which you can find full details about the hotel including our summer rates. I hope that on reading about the facilities we offer you will wish to make a reservation with us. If you should require any further information, please do not hesitate to write again. Per pro Yours sincerely, Company p.p. D. Sampson position General Manager Enclosure Enc. Brochure (1) Letterheads The printed letterhead of a company gives a great deal of information about it. 2 1 Type of company The abbreviation Ltd. after the company's name tells you that the company has limited liability, which means that the individuals who own the company, or part of it, i.e. the shareholders, are only responsible for their holding (the capital they have contributed) and no more than that if the company goes bankrupt. It is a warning to people giving the company credit that in bankruptcy they can only get what the company owns, not the personal possessions of its shareholders. The abbreviation PLC (Public Limited Company) is used to show that the company's shares can be bought by the public; Ltd. continues to be used for private limited companies whose shares are not available. In the USA the term Incorporated (Inc.) is used. SOUNDSONIC Ltd. SP Wholesalers PLC Hartley-Mason Inc. The abbreviation & Co. tells you that the company is a partnership between two or more people. If it is a family concern, the word Son, Sons, Bros (Brothers) or, very occasionally, Daughter(s) may be added. Partnerships may have limited liability or unlimited liability. F. Lynch & Co. Ltd R. Hughes & Son Ltd. If neither Ltd. nor & Co. appear after the company's name, then it may be a sole trader, a single person doing business in his own name and on his own account. If the company is a joint stock company, the names of the directors will appear on the letterhead. 2 Boards of Directors The name of the Chairman (or, in the USA, the President), who runs the concern, may be given, as well as the names of the Directors, who decide the overall policy of the firm. The Managing Director (in the USA, Chief Executive), who takes an active role in the day-to-day running of the company, may be mentioned if he is different from the Chairman. 3 Addresses In addition to the address of the office from which the letter is being sent, the letterhead may also give the address of the head office or registered office if different and the address of any branches or other offices the company owns. Telephone, telex, fax numbers, and a cable (telegram) address may also be given. 4 Registered number This usually appears in small print, sometimes with the country or city in which the company was registered. The VAT number (Value Added Tax) may also be given. References References are quoted to indicate what the letter refers to (Your Ref) and the correspondence to refer to when replying (Our Ref.). References may either appear in figures, e.g. 661/17 in which case 661 may refer to the chronological number of the letter and 17 to the number of the department, or in letters, DS/MR, in which case DS stands for Donald Sampson, the writer, and MR for his secretary, Mary Raynor. Note that the 'Your Ref.' given in the letter at Layout 2 is a date. 3 Per pro The term per pro (p.p.) is sometimes used in signatures and means for and on behalf of. Secretaries sometimes use p.p. when signing letters on behalf of their bosses. Yours faithfully, p.p. J. Mane Managing Director Company position When signing on behalf of your company, it is useful to indicate your position in the firm in the signature. Yours faithfully, (Ms.) T. Lovette Chief Accountant 4 Enclosures If there are any enclosures, e.g. leaflets, prospectuses, etc., with the letter, these may be mentioned in the body of the letter. But many firms in any case write Enc. or Encl. at the bottom of the letter, and if there are a number of documents, these are listed. Enc. Bill of lading (5 copies) Insurance certificate (1 copy) Certificate of origin (1 copy) Bill of exchange (1 copy) ‘Private and confidential’ This phrase may be written at the head of a letter, and more importantly on the envelope, in cases where the letter is intended only for the eyes of the named recipient. There are many variations of the phrase – ‘Confiden tial’, ’Stricly Confidential’ – but little difference in meaning between them. Subject titles Some firms open their letters with a subject title. This provides a further reference, saves introducing the subject in the first paragraph, immediately draws attention to the topic of the letter, and allows the writer to refer to it throughout the letter. 5 STRUCTURE OF A BUSINESS LETTER (3) Private and confidential Subject title Copies Goethe Hotel 197, Goethestrabe Berlin 107136 Telephone (030) 875 97 19 Fax: (030) 875 01 36 Your ref: DK/LD Our ref: Conf. A204 Ms S. Adams 11 May 200… Ledbrand 71 Vienna N1 1ST AUSTRIA Private and confidential Dear Ms Adams, Notification in the fulfillment of the order 117/3 I am glad to inform you that everything is ready for your coming. All your requests are acquitted. We will be happy to welcoming you in our hotel Yours sincerely, p.p. M. Althaus Sales manager c.c. Messrs. Hetfield & McMilan Ltd., Security agents 6 It is not necessary to begin the subject title with Re: Copies c.c. (= carbon copies) is written, usually at the end of the letter, when copies are sent to people other than the named recipient. Sometimes you will not want the named recipient to know that other people have received copies. In this case, b.c.c. (= blind carbon copies) is written on the copies themselves, though not, of course, on the top copy Addressing envelopes Envelope addresses are written in a similar way to inside addresses but, for letters in or going to the UK, the postcode is usually written on a line by itself at the end of the address, and the name of both the town and the country are written in capital letters. Mr G. Penter 49 Memorial Road ORPINGTON Kent Messrs W. Brownlow & Co BR6 9UA 600 Grand Street London WIN 9UZ UNITED KINGDOM 7 1 The layout and presentation of your letter are important as they give the reader the first impression of the firm's efficiency. 2 There are two styles of letter, blocked and indented. Both are acceptable, but the blocked style will probably save time. 3 Write both addresses in as much detail as possible and in the correct order. 4 Make sure you use the recipient's correct title in the address and salutation. If in doubt as to whether a woman is single or married, use Ms. 5 Do not abbreviate dates. 6 Choose the correct salutation and complimentary close. When you begin with Dear Sir or Dear Sirs or Dear Madam or Dear Sir or Madam, end with Yours faithfully. But if you use a personal name in the salutation, then close with Yours sincerely. 7 Make sure your references are correct. 8 Make sure your signature tells your reader what he/she needs to know about you. 8 Content and style When writing for a business audience, you have one chance to reach your readers. They are busy people who won't bother spending time decoding your communications. That is why it is imperative that you say exactly what you mean as clearly and as quickly as you can. Remember that your goal is to convey information. That goal won't be achieved if your readers don't understand your first few sentences or paragraphs, and slop reading, or if they finish reading but fail to grasp your message. This unit gives you some general ideas on how to write business letters: how much information to give, how to plan your letter, what sort of style to use, how to make your letters as clear, informative and accurate as possible. They are, however, only general ideas, your real appreciation of what to do and what not to do in commercial correspondence will only come as you read through and study the following units. Length Students often ask how long their letter should be. The answer is, as long as necessary, and this will depend on the subject of the letter; it may be a simple subject, e.g. thanking a customer for a cheque, or quite complicated, e.g. explaining how a group insurance policy works. It is a question of how much information you put in the letter: you may give too little (even for a brief subject), in which case your letter will be too short, or too much (even for a complicated subject), in which case it will be too long. Your style and the kind of language you use can also affect the length. The right length includes the right amount of information. Too long or too short? The letter should be neither too long nor too short. It is better to include too much information than too little. The reader cannot read your mind. If you leave out vital information, he won't know what he wants to know, unless he writes back again and he may not bother to do that. If you include extra information, at least he'll have what he wants, even though he may be irritated by having to read the unnecessary parts. Provided, of course, that you include the vital information as well as the extras: the worst letter of all is the one that gives every piece of information about a product - except the price. Order and sequence As well as containing the right amount of information, the letter should also make all the necessary points in a logical sequence, with each idea or piece of information linking up with the previous one in a pattern that can be followed. Do 10 not jump around making a statement, switching to other subjects, then referring back to the point you made a few sentences or paragraphs before. Planning your letter The way to get the right amount of information in your letter, and to get it in the right order, is by planning your letter in advance. Ask yourself: what do you want your letter to achieve and what response do you want? Note down everything you want to include in it before you start writing; then read your notes again to see (a) that you have included all the necessary information, (b) that you haven't included any unnecessary information, and (c) that you have put the information in the right order. First paragraph The first sentence or paragraph of a letter is an important one since it sets the tone of the letter and gives your reader his first impression of you and your company. Generally speaking, in the first paragraph you will thank your correspondent for his letter (if replying to an inquiry), introduce yourself and your company if necessary, state the subject of the letter, and set out the purpose of the letter. Middle paragraphs This is the main part of your letter and will concern the points that need to be made, answers you wish to give, or questions you want to ask. As this can vary widely with the type of letter that you are writing, it will be dealt with in the relevant units. It is in the middle paragraphs of a letter that planning is most important, to make sure that your most important, to make sure that your points are made clearly, fully and in a logical sequence. Final paragraph When closing the letter, you should thank the person for writing, if your letter is a reply and if you have not done so at the beginning. Encourage further enquiries or correspondence, and mention that you look forward to hearing from your correspondent soon. You may also wish to restate, very briefly, one or two of the most important of the points you have made in the main part of your letter. 11 Style and language Simplicity Commercial correspondence often suffers from an old-fashioned, pompous style of English, which complicates the message and gives the reader the feeling that he is reading a language he does not understand. Dear Sir, I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter of the 15th inst. in connection with our not clearing our account which was outstanding as at the end of June. Please accept our profuse apologies. We were unable to settle this matter due to the sudden demise of Mr. Noel, our accountant, and as a result were unaware of those accounts which were to be cleared. We now, however, have managed to trace all our commitments and take pleasure in enclosing our remittance for £620 which we trust will settle our indebtedness. We hope that this unforeseen incident did not in any way inconvenience you, nor lead you to believe that our not clearing our balance on the due date was an intention on our part to delay payment We remain, yours, etc.... In the letter, mentioned above all the writer is trying to do is explain why he delayed paying his account, but, because of the style, the letter is too long, and is difficult to write and read. Courtesy Your style should not, however, be so simple that it becomes discourteous. Here is an example of a letter that is so short and simple that it sounds rude. 12 Dear Mr Rohn, I have already written to you concerning your outstanding debt of £591. This should have been cleared three months ago. You don't seem to want to co-operate in paying us, and therefore we will sue you if your debt is not cleared within the next ten days. Idioms and colloquial language It is important to try to get the right 'tone' in your letter. This means that, generally speaking, you should aim for a neutral tone, avoiding pompous language on the one hand (as in the first letter) and informal or colloquial language on the other hand. A letter may be given the wrong tone by the use of inappropriate vocabulary, idioms, phrasal verbs, and short forms, among other things. Here are a few examples of each, together with a preferred alternative: you've probably guessed = you probably know you'll get your money back = the loan will be repaid to go into property = to invest in property a couple of hundred quid = two hundred pounds prices are at rock bottom = prices are very low prices have gone through the roof = prices have increased rapidly These are perhaps extreme examples, but the general point is that you should be very wary of using idiomatic or colloquial language in your letters. Apart from the danger of being misunderstood if your correspondent is a non-native speaker of English, you may also give an impression of over-familiarity. Clarity Your correspondent must be able to understand what you have written. Confusion in correspondence often arises through a lack of thought and care, and there are a number of ways in which it can happen. 13 Abbreviations Abbreviations can be useful because they are quick to write and easy to read. But both parties need to know what the abbreviations stand for. The abbreviations c.i.f. and f.o.b., for example, are recognized internationally as meaning cost, insurance, and freight and free on board. But can you be sure that your correspondent would know that o.n.o. means or nearest offer? Some international organizations, e.g. NATO, are known in all countries by the same set of initials, but many are not, e.g. EEC (European Economic Community) and UNO (United Nations Organization). National organizations, e.g. CBI (Confederation of British Industry) and TUC (Trades Union Congress), are even less likely to be known by their initials in other countries. Note, for telephone purposes, that with a few exceptions (NATO is one of them) these abbreviations are not usually pronounced as a word, but as separate letters:/ti:ju:si:/not/tʌk/ (TUC). If you are not absolutely certain that an abbreviation will be easily recognized, do not use it. Redundant or deadwood words Some word combinations might contain words that are redundant or deadwood in business letters. These are the ways of reducing them: • 8:00 a.m. in the morning = 8:00 a.m. • at this point of time = now • both together = both • bring to an end = end • during the time that = while • enclosed herein = enclosed • for the month of July = for July • for the purpose of = to • for the sum of = for • give an answer = to answer • have an ability to = can • hold a meeting = meet • inform of the reason = tell why • in spite of the fact that = although • in the event that = if • just exactly = exactly • letter under date of = letter of • make a decision = decide • make a speech = speak • make a recommendation = recommend • make changes in = change on • the occasion of = on send 14 • an answer = reply • take action = act • take into consideration = consider • write your name = sign Figures We saw, that the use of figures instead of words for dates can create problems. Numerical expressions can also cause confusion. For example, the decimal point in British and US usage is a full point rather than a comma as used in most continental European countries, so that an English or American person would write 4.255 where a French person would write 4,255 (which to an English person would mean four thousand two hundred and fifty-five). If there is a possibility of confusion, therefore, write out the expression in both figures and words, e.g. £10,575.90 (ten thousand five hundred and seventy-five pounds, ninety pence). (Conversely, be wary of the words billion and trillion which mean different things in the UK and USA. For a full treatment of numerical expressions, see Appendix 4 in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.) Prepositions Special care should be taken when using prepositions. There is a big difference between The price has been increased to £15.00, The price has been increased by £15.00, and The price has been increased from £15.00. Accuracy Careless mistakes in a letter can create a bad impression on your reader. Spelling, punctuation, and grammar should all be checked carefully, but there are some other ways in which inaccuracy may spoil your letter. Titles, names, and addresses Make quite sure that you use the correct title in the address and salutation, that you spell your correspondent's name correctly (nothing creates a worse impression than a mis-spelled name), and that you write his/her address accurately. Do not make assumptions about your correspondent's sex if you do not know it. If you are writing, for example, to a Chief Buyer who you do not know, do not assume that he/she must be one sex or the other: use Dear Sir or Madam rather than Dear Sir or Dear Madam. If you know the person's name but not his/her sex (either because he/she only signs with an initial, or because his/her given name is new to you), then use Mr/ Mrs..., e.g. Dear Mr/Mrs Barron. References 15 When replying to a letter, make sure you quote all references accurately. Your correspondent will not be pleased if it is not immediately clear which letter you are replying to. Prices, measurements, etc. Special care must be taken when quoting prices or giving specifications such as measurements, weights, etc. A wrongly quoted price in a letter can cause complications. Enclosures Always check that you have actually enclosed the documents you have mentioned in your letter. And check that you have enclosed the right documents: if, for example, you say in the body of the letter, that you are enclosing 'our leaflet PB/14', do not then enclose leaflet PB/15. Or, when sending a covering letter with an order, make sure you have quoted the order number accurately in your letter. Литература: 1. English for International Tourism, Miriam Jacob&Peter Strutt, Longman, 2006. 2. High Season. English for the hotel and tourist business. Keith Harding&Paul Henderson, Oxford University Press, 2006. 3. Carpenter E. Confusable Words. - HapperCollinsPablishers. GB, 1993. 4. Ermilova D. V. Tourist Economy a Dynamic Branch of Economic Activity / RIAT. -M.: Typncx, 2000. 5. Hornby A.S. Oxford Advanced Dictionary of Current English. - Oxford University Press, 1980. 6. Hornby A.S. Oxford Advanced Dictionary of Current English. - Oxford University Press, 2000. 7. NTC's American Idioms Dictionary. - М.: Русский язык, 1991. 8. The BBI Combinatory Dictionary of English.-M.: Русский язык, 1990. 9. Tourism Manager. Specialization Course, Officers Retraining Programme, ED/062 Project. -Infogroup, Athens, 1995. 10. Going International. English for tourism. Keith Harding. Oxford University Press, 2009. 16