TUTORIAL FI-5
BUSINESS LETTER Writing
REFERENCING
Style
Styles
There are two main styles of business letters:
Full block style:
Align all elements on the left margin
Styles
There are two main styles of business letters:
Modified block style:
Down the middle of the page, align the return address, date, closing,
signature, and typed name;
align other elements on the left page margin
Layout
Components
Business Letter Parts
Sender’s address
Date
Receiver’s address
Salutation
Subject
1 paragraph - the Introduction
st
2 paragraph – details
nd
3 paragraph - you request a response
rd
4 paragraph – a one-line close
th
Complimentary close – match the salutation
Sender’s signature
Sender’s name
Exercise 1
Work in the groups of 3. Analyse the sample and
identify its key components as shown in the
previous slide.
TM/ST
07 June 2017
Ms Delia Kwik
Kwik Vision Pte Ltd.
10 Kalang Way
Singapore
156879
Dear Delia
CORPORATE VIDEO
I am writing with reference to our meeting last week. We met last Thursday in your company’s new office building.
Thank you for the impressive tour around your company’s new premises.
I would like to remind you of our arrangements regarding ST Electronics 25 th anniversary celebration in October. This
event is an important milestone in the life of our company and we would appreciate your help in designing our special
video which will portray the past up to present development of our company. It should also give some insight into our
future goals.
Please, send your ideas regarding the draft version of the video to my corporate email address [email protected] by the
end of the month.
Should you need any further information on our company’s profile and history for the video outline, I will be happy to
assist you.
Yours sincerely
Dave Tan
Marketing Manager
By Elena Khanzadyan
Break this
email into
paragraphs.
Correct the
mistakes.
By Elena Khanzadyan
Common Types
of
Business Letters
Business Letter Types
Letter of Inquiry (Request for information)
Letter of complaint
Confirmation Letter Sales Letters. ...
Letter of Response Order Letters. ...
Complaint Letters. ...
Adjustment Letters. ...
Inquiry Letters. ...
Follow-Up Letters. ...
Letters of Recommendation. ...
Acknowledgment Letters…
Cover Letters
Letters of Resignation
Useful
Vocabulary
10 good opening lines
We need an opening line in a business letter or professional email to:
give reference to previous correspondence;
say how we found the recipient’s name/address;
say why we are writing to the recipient.
10 good opening lines
With reference to your letter of 8 June, I … .
I am writing to enquire/complain/express our gratitude/express
my apologies about …/invite/confirm our meeting, arrangements
…. B to B (Business to Business)
After having seen your advertisement in … , IBwould liketo …
to C (Business .
Customer)
After having received your address from … , I … .
I received your address from … and would like … .
We/I recently wrote to you about … .
Thank you for your letter of 8 May.
Thank you for your letter regarding … .
Thank you for your letter/e-mail about … .
In reply to your letter of 8 May, … .
10 good closing lines
We need a closing line in a business letter or email to:
make a reference to a future event;
repeat an apology; - A letter of Apology, Reply to Complaint
offer help.
10 good closing lines
If you require any further information, feel free to contact me.
I look forward to your reply.
I look forward to hearing from you.
I look forward to seeing you.
Please advise as necessary.
We look forward to a successful working relationship in the future.
Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Once again, I apologise for any inconvenience.
We hope that we may continue to rely on your valued custom/service.
I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.
Yours faithfully’ or ‘Yours sincerely’?
When the recipient’s name is unknown to you:
Dear Sir … Yours faithfully
Dear Madam … Yours faithfully
Dear Sir or Madam … Yours faithfully
Yours faithfully’ or ‘Yours sincerely’?
When you know the recipient’s name:
Dear Mr Hanson … Yours sincerely
Dear Mrs Hanson … Yours sincerely
Dear Miss Hanson … Yours sincerely
Dear Ms Hanson … Yours sincerely
Yours faithfully’ or ‘Yours sincerely’?
When addressing a good friend or colleague:
Dear Jack … Best wishes/Best regards
Yours faithfully’ or ‘Yours sincerely’?
Addressing whole departments:
Dear Sirs … Yours faithfully
Exercise 2
Work in the groups of 3. Analyse letter samples and identify what types of letters
are those?
Discuss the function of the opening and closing phrases used in these samples.
Exercise 3
Gap-filling.
Read the letter. Finish the letter by filling the gaps
with an appropriate opening and closing phrase.
Dear Mr. Jones,
Stock Control Software System
_______________________ 1st September and the information you sent regarding the stock control system offered by your
company. I certainly feel the system will meet our requirements. However, there are some points which I would like clarified
before we go ahead and order the system.
Firstly, although you mentioned that the system has recently been updated, I wondered whether we might be eligible for a
discount on any future upgrades.
Secondly, the installation and implementation period of three weeks, to which you refer in your letter, seems rather long. Is there
any possibility of getting the system up and running on a shorter timescale?
________________________________, in order that we can begin the process as soon as possible.
________________________________________________.
Yours _________________,
J. Brown (Ms)
Purchasing Manager
Dear Mr. Jones,
Stock Control Software System
Thank you for your letter of 1st September and the information you sent regarding the stock control system offered by your
company. I certainly feel the system will meet our requirements. However, there are some points which I would like clarified
before we go ahead and order the system.
Firstly, although you mentioned that the system has recently been updated, I wondered whether we might be eligible for a
discount on any future upgrades.
Secondly, the installation and implementation period of three weeks, to which you refer in your letter, seems rather long. Is
there any possibility of getting the system up and running on a shorter timescale?
I would be very grateful for a swift response to these queries, in order that we can begin the process as soon as possible.
Thank you in advance for your assistance. I look forward to your reply.
Yours sincerely,
J. Brown (Ms)
Purchasing Manager
Mr Leonard Sox
Sales Manager
Zoo Shelf Ltd
Nathan Road
Kowloon Hong Kong
Dear Mr Sox,
_____________________________________ at 10.30 on Tuesday 30 October 20--- at our head office in Nielmark.
________________________ I am very interested in your innovative vision related to the use of Internet technologies in
customer service and will appreciate it if you share some of the ideas we can apply in our sphere of dairy products for allergy-
prone customers.
___________________________.
Yours sincerely,
Noiz Ratwington
General Manager
Self-Study and Practice
1. Communication for Business, Shirley Taylor - Unit 4-5: Business Letters
Harvard Referencing
Reading Notes
Author: Cheryl Hamilton
Title: Communicating for Results: A
Guide for Business and the Professions
Year of Publication: 2011
Publisher: Wadsworth: Cengage Learning
Edition: 9th
2 Harvard Referencing Basics: In
-Text
In-text references must be included following the use of a
quote or paraphrase taken from another piece of work.
In-text references are references written within the main body
of text and refer to a quote or paraphrase. They are much
shorter than full references. The full reference of in-text
citations appears in the reference list. In Harvard referencing,
in-text citations contain the author(s)’s or editor(s)’s surname,
year of publication and page number(s). Using an example
author James Mitchell, this takes the form:
Mitchell (2017, p. 189) states.. Or (Mitchell, 2017, p. 189)
(Note: p. refers to a single page, pp. refers to a range of
pages)
,
In-text citations are used when directly quoting or paraphrasing a source.
They are located in the body of the work and contain a fragment of the full
citation.
Depending on the source type, some Harvard Reference in-text citations may
look something like this:
The Iceberg Theory suggests that just like an iceberg, culture is made of a visible
and an invisible part.
The visible manifestations of culture are just the tip of the iceberg.
(Edward T. Hall - 1973, 1976).
It’s not just people aged 18 to 24 years old who
use Facebook either; they make up only one
forth of the new users and 70 % of new users
are from outside the United States (Hempel,
2009). Still, it is a social networking site and
communicating relationships are all important.
To meet the needs of so many people using the
site for many purposes, Facebook continues to
experiment with new polices and features.
Original version: Paraphrase:
Still, it is a social networking Hamilton (2011, p.1) states that
site and communicating social media and
relationships are all communication play an
important. To meet the needs essential role in the life of many
of so many people using the people. Facebook is testing new
site for so many purposes, rules and functions in order to
Facebook continues to satisfy the demands of
experiment with new policies audience who use the site for
and features. various reasons (Hamilton,
2011, p.1).
Citing a Secondary Source
In this case, state the reference you
used first followed by ‘cited in’ and the
original author:
Smith 2000 (cited in Mitchell, 2017, p.
189) or (Smith, 2000, cited in Mitchell,
2017, p. 189)
Original Version: Paraphrase:
It’s not just people aged Facebook is not only used by
18 to 24 years old who young people (18-24 years
old). They average only 25 %
use Facebook either; they
of new Facebook members in
make up only one forth the USA, and 70% of new
of the new users and 70 audience are represented by
% of new users are from members from other
outside the United States countries (Hempel, 2009, cited
(Hempel, 2009) in Hamilton, 2011, pp.1-2)
Citing a Secondary Source
In this case, state the reference you used first
followed by ‘cited in’ and the original author:
Smith 2000 (cited in Mitchell, 2017, p. 189) or
(Smith, 2000, cited in Mitchell, 2017, p. 189)
Quote
Original version Paraphrase
Decoding is the process Hamilton (2011, p. 5)
the receiver goes defines decoding as
through in trying to “the process the receiver
interpret the exact goes through in trying to
meaning of a message interpret the exact
meaning of a message”
,
•In-text citations including the author’s surname and the year of
publication should be shown in brackets wherever another source has
contributed to your work.
•A reference list outlining all of the sources directly cited in your work
appears at the end of your paper.
Books & eBooks
Material Type In-Text Reference List
Holt, D.H. 1997. Management
Book: single (Holt, 1997) or Holt (1997)
principles and practices. Sydney:
author wrote that...
Prentice-Hall.
https://www.citethisforme.com/harvard/source-
type
