LETTER WRITING

STRUCTURE/ PARTS/LAYOUT OF A COMMERCIAL LETTER

The structure is one of the most important aspects of a business letter. It means the proper arrangement of the various parts of the letter. A business letter has several parts. They are: i. Heading ii. Date iii. Reference iv. Inside address v. Salutation vi. Body of the letter vii. Complementary close viii. Signature ix. Identification mark x. Enclosure xi. Copy Distribution xii. Post Script

i. Heading
The heading is the most important part of the business letter. It contains of the name of the concern, nature, address, telephone no, fax no, logo, e-mail address., etc. of the firm. Most of the business firm use printed letter heads for correspondence. Unless it is clear from the name of the firm, the nature of its business should also be indicated. The heading must be printed in capital or block letters. Generally the name and address are printed on the top-middle of the page and other informations are given in the margin. Telephone no. Fax Telegram E- Mail Super Fine Textiles Ltd., Nariman Point, Mumbai 400001 In this heading the firms name indicates its business and therefore the nature of the business is not to be mentioned separately.

Telephone no. Fax Telegram E-Mail Messers. Patiram Aggarwal & Sons Wholesale Grain Merchants Naya Bazaar New Delhi 110006 In the above heading the nature of the business is mentioned separately because it is not clear from the firms name. ii. Date Every business letter must carry the date which enables quick reference in future and helps in prompt action and orderly filing. The date consists of the day/month/year. The date should be typed two spaces below the last line of the heading and in the right hand corner. Names of the month and the year should be written in full and no suffix such as st or th should be added to the day. Use: 31 March 2008 March 31, 2008 Avoid: 31-3-2008 31st March 2008 31st Mar. 2008 iii. Reference: The reference helps to link correspondence for prompt reply and quick action. It serves to identify the department or section from which the letter is being send or the particular file in which copy of the letter is to be found. Generally, reference is typed on the left margin. E.g.: Reference 7/MA/08 Here 7 denotes the number of the letter, MA denoted the letter has originated from the Marketing Department and 08 stands for the year 2008. Some firms indicate the reference number and the date of the letter in the main body. E.g.: Thank you for your letter no. 7/MA/08 of March 31, 2008.

iv. Inside Address: It contains the name and full address of the firm or the individual to whom the letter is written. It facilitates filing and helps the clerk to write the same address on the envelope while despatching.Inside address should be written two spaces below the reference. E.g.: The Manager, The Oceanic Products, Importers of Marine Products, Kollam-3. Note: When addressing individuals Mr. / Mrs. / Ms or other appropriate prefix should be used. Mr. / Shri is used for both married and unmarried men. Mrs. / Shrimati is used for a married woman. While Ms can be used both for married and unmarried women. Titles of rank such as Prof., Dr., etc should be used where ever appropriate .Where a firms name contain a personal name, Messers should be used. E.g.: Messers Patiram Aggarwal & Sons Naya Bazaar, New Delhi 110006
v. Salutation :

The salutation is the greeting of the address. It should be written two spaces below the inside address. While addressing an individual Dear Sir, Dear Madam is desirable. When the letter writer enjoys a close relation with the addressee, My dear/ Dear Mr. /Dear etc may be used before the surname. When the addressee is a plural or a firm, Dear Sirs / Dear Mesdames is used. In official correspondence Sir / Madam should be used. E.g.: Sir/ Madam For official correspondence Dear Sir/ Dear Madam For business correspondence Dear Sirs / Dear Mesdames For saluting firms My dear Mr. For informal letters In some cases the subject of the letter is also mentioned with salutation. E.g.: Dear Sirs, Subject: Payment of Bill no. M/107 of 5 July 2007.

Special salutations are used when addressing various officials and dignitaries like the President of India, the Prime Minister, the Governor, the Mayor, the Chief Justices, the Judge, the Cardinal, the Arch Bishop, the Bishop etc. Status of the person The President of India The Prime Minister The Governor Ambassadors Justice Judge Member of Parliament Member of Legislative Assembly Member of the Royal family A Govt Officer Cardinal Arch Bishop Bishop Editor of the Newspaper Mayor
vi. Body of the Letter :

Salutation used His Excellency,Sir / Dear Mr. President Sir/Madam/Dear Sir/DearMadam Your Excellency Your Excellency My Lord/Sir/My Chief Justice Sir/My Lord Dear Sir/DearMadam Dear Sir/DearMadam Sir/ Prince/Your Royal Highness Your Eminence/My Lord My Lord Arch Bishop My Lord Bishop Your Lord Bishop Sir Dear MrMayor/MyLord/YourLordship

This part contains the message which the letter is to convey so as to produce a suitable response. The material in this part should be arranged and organized carefully. The body consists of the following: a) Subject and reference: First of all a brief mention of the main theme of he letter is given. Subject and reference need not be given in the body of the letter if the same has already been given before salutation. b) Opening Paragraph: This paragraph is designed to attract the readers attention and make him go through the whole letter with interest and concentration.The you approach should be adopted to make a good impressions. c) Main Paragraph : This paragraph contains the subject matter of the letter.It should contain all the relevant details but should be brief and precise.It should be written in simple and clear words,so that the reader can understand them easily without any ambiguity in mind.

d) Closing Paragraph :

In this paragraph the letter writer should atate the action expected of the reader. An office or a request may be used in the closing paragraph. A positive approach and a friendly attitude should be used throughout the body of the letter. vii. Complementary Close : The complementary close is a polite way of ending a letter like a courteous leave taking or good bye. Complementary close should correspond with the salutation. Salutation Complementary Remarks close Sir/Madam Yours faithfully/Yours Should be used for respectfully addressing superiors Dear Sir/ Sirs Yours faithfully/ Yours Appropriate for business Dear Madam/Mesdames truly letters Dear Mr.Ghosh Yours Sincerely Used for correspondence My dear Ghosh between persons having Dear Madhuri informal relations. My dear Madhuri The complementary close is usually given below the closing paragraph of the body of the letter at the right corner (only the first letter is capitalized). viii. Signature: Signature lends authenticity to the letter has no value at all. Signature is placed below the complementary close. The name of the person signing the letter is typed below the signature. Sole proprietorship 1) Trading under personal name : Ram Das 2) Trading under firm name : For Ram Das enterprises, Ram Das Partnership Firm 3) Ram Das & Bros : For Ram Das & Bros, Ram Das partner 4) Per pro (suggest legal authority) : P.P Ram Das & Bros,RamDas 5) When a subordinate signs the routine letter : For Ram Das & Bros , Ram Das Limited company:

6) Managing Director : Super India Limited,

Ram Das Managing director 7) Director : Super India Limited, Ram Das Director 8) Secretary : Per pro Super India Limited, Ram Das Secretary 9) Others : On behalf of Super India Limited, Ram Das Sales Manger Women should indicate their marital status. Thus it will ensure correct salutation in reply to their letter.

Yours faithfully Miss.Shilpa Menon Sales Manager Or Yours faithfully Mrs.Shilpa Gupta Accounts Manger
ix. Identification Marks :

In this part initials of the person dictating the letter and of the person typing are given on the left hand margin. The initials may be put in anyone of the following ways: CBG OPA CBG/OPA CBG:OPA CBG-OPA x. Enclosures : In some cases, important documents such as invoice, railway receipt, cheque/draft, prospectus, catalogue, price list etc are attached with the letter. Generally, the abbreviation Encl is typed after the signature and on the left margin against which the number of enclosures is mentioned. Encl: Two copies of certificates Or Encl: 1. Cheque No. dated 2. Railway receipt no .. dated

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3. Agreement dated .. Copy distribution : The copies of the letter are to be sent to persons other than the addressee, names of these persons are typed below the enclosures notation as shown below: C C: 1. Mr.R.B.Chatterjee 2. Miss. Latha Varma Post Script : When the writer forgets to include something important in the body of the letter he can add the message in this part as follows: P.S: Please remember the special low price offer is valid till December 31. Writing post script is not a good practice and should preferably be avoided in a good business letter.

LAYOUT AND DESIGN OF A LETTER OR FORMS OF LETTER

The total out line of the letter is referred to as the layout and design of the letter. There are different kinds of layouts. They are: 1) Full block style or form : It is a form of style adopted for arranging letters. In this case right from the inside addresses up to the signatures are lines begin close to the left margin. Another peculiarity is that double line spacing is used between paragraphs. 2) Indented style: In this case each line of the inside address and the paragraph are shifted away or indented from the margin so also in the case with complementary close and signature. This form is regarded as an attractive style of arranging letters. 3) Semi Block style : This form of layout is a combination of the block and intendedstyle.In this case the inside address is typed in the block form while the paragraphs are typed in the indented form.This is the most commonly used style in commercial correspondence. 4) Hanging Indented style :

This is another form of arrangement of the letter. Here the inside addresses and salutation is in the block form. But the specialty of this style is that the first line of each paragraph begins near the margin as in the block form. But subsequent lines of the paragraph are typed away from the margin. 5) Block form : In this style date line, complementary close, signature and designation are written at the right hand side of the letter.It is the most popular and widely used by many concern. Every line of inside address each paragraph commences from the left hand side of the letter. 6) Modified block form: This form of the letter writing is more popular. It appears like the full block form with mixed punctuations. Block form is used for writing the senders address, date, complementary close and signature at the right hand corner. The body begins from the left-hand margin and is fully in block form. 7) Noma Form : National Office Management Association are popularly called as NOMA form of letterwritting.This form avoids many formation involved in other forms of letter styles.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF LETTERS

1) LETTER OF ENQUIRY:

In most cases business transactions begin with letters of enquiry. A letter of enquiry can be defined as a letter written by a person or a concern to another for the purpose of seeking information about business matters. The one who writes the letter of enquiry is called the enquirer. Purpose A letter of enquiry may be written for the purpose of obtaining information regarding the following: a) The price of goods b) The quality of goods c) The quantity of goods required or that can be supplied. d) The terms of payment e) The mode of transport or delivery f) The time and place of delivery Thus a letter of enquiry should indicate exactly what is wanted when and where. They must be stated clearly and concisely.

KINDS OF ENQIURY LETTERS

Letters of enquiry are of two kinds: 1. Solicited letter of enquiry

2. Unsolicited letter of enquiry

1. Solicited letter of enquiry :

Solicited letter of enquiry is one which is written to get further information on a mater in response to an advertisement. It is also known as specific enquiry. 2. Unsolicited letter of enquiry Unsolicited letter of enquiry is a letter pf enquiry written by a person on his own initiatively asking for an information.Un solicited letter of enquiry is also known as general enquiry. In this case the letter will contain more details than the unsolicited letter of enquiry. a) Examples of the unsolicited letter of enquiry: Telegram E-Mail Messers. Patiram Aggarwal & Sons Dealers in steel furniture Naya Bazaar New Delhi 110006 Ref No STC/4/89 15 march 1989 M/S Mohammed steel commpany Ltd., Netaji Road Calcutta Dear Sir, Please send us a copy of your latest catalogue and price list for the supply of steel furniture. We shall appreciate an early reply. Yours faithfully For Messers. Patiram Aggarwal & Sons Dealers in steel furniture Ramesan Nair Sd/Manager b) Examples of solicited letter of enquiry :

Telegram Radios E-Mail Southern National Radios Distributors of Radio & Accessories Station Road Trivandrum Ref No R/89 January 1989 The Philips road Ltd., Sastri Nagar, Madras. 25

Dear Sirs, Sub: Supply of portable transistor sets Having seen your advertisement in the Hindu dated 25January 1989, we understand that you are the makers pf Philips portable transistor sets AC/DC. Please send the descrptive leaflets for distribution among the prospective customers. We shall be glad to receive samples and lowest quotations for wholesale buyers. Yours faithfully For Southern National Radios Sd/Proprietor