LAYOUTS OF BUSINESS LETTER

BASIC ELEMENTS • A business letter is composed of basic and miscellaneous parts. Its

basic elements (Menoy, 2009) are the following:

1. Heading—consists of the sender’s address and the date line (month, day, and

year);

2. Inside address—consists of the name of the addressee (recipient), his

designation, his company and its business address;

3. Salutation—serves as the welcome part of the letter;

4. Body of the letter—gives the details of the communication and consists of

the introduction (purpose), the body (discussion/elaboration), and the conclusion

(token of appreciation/call for action/building of goodwill);

5. Complimentary close/ending—serves as the farewell part of the letter.

6. Salutation

7. Signature—consists of the name of the signatory (sender) and his

designation.

Types of Business letters:

1. Inquiry Letters :the purpose of this letter is :Ask for information which includes : State clearly what information you are requesting and why Write specific, concise, to the point questions that are both easy to understand and easy to

answer Specify when you need the answers by Thank the reader

2. Special Request Letters : the purpose of this letter is : Make a special demand which includes State clearly who you are and why you are writing Convince the reader to help Show you are hard working Discuss your reason for the request Show you understand the situation and have done research Discuss why the person you are writing to is the best person to help Specify when you need the answers by

3. Sales Letters the purpose of this letter is purpose: to persuade the

readers to “buy” a product, service, idea, or point of view which includes

• Grab the reader’s attention

• Highlight the product’s appeal

• Show the product's use

• Conclude with a request for action (buy it!)

• Appeal to the reader with reader-centered issues (health, convenience,

service, saving money…)

4. Customer Relations Letters : the purpose of this letter is purpose :

establish and maintain good relationships with the customers

5. Claim Letters: the purpose of this letter is : Express a complaint and

request specific action

• Clearly describe product or service with necessary details

• Explain the problem with details

• Propose a fair, precise, and appropriate request/adjustment

• Present an explicit deadline

•

• Adjustment Letters: the purpose of this letter is : Respond

to claim letter with solution

• Work to reconcile the situation and restore the customer's trust

in your company

• “Be prompt, courteous, and decisive”

• Use a positive or neutral tone without being begrudging or

taking full blame

• Start with an apology and admit claim is justified

• Quickly present favorable news

Planning business letter

Successful or effective business letters are always planed. The

actual purpose (s) cannot be fulfilled without proper planning.

Efficient writers give emphasis on the planning of business

letters, because each business letter has a long term effect. The

steps in planning business letters are as follows:

1. Determination of objectives:

Business letters are written to serve specific objectives. Thus

before writing the letter the writer should determine-

i. What is the primary or basic reason for writing the letter and

ii. What are the secondary reasons (if any)

• A business letter without an objective is like ‘a ship without a compass.’

2. Evaluation of the reader’s position: One thing must be realized by the letter writer that he/she is not writing the letter for himself /herself. That is in writing letters the writer always need to be careful about the point: “This letter will be read by another person and his/her attitude and level of understanding are different from the writer”.

Communication experts termed this point as a ‘psychological technique’.

• To evaluate the reader’s position following points need to be considered: i. Collection of information from previous contacts with the reader ii. Cultural background of the reader iii. Religious background of the reader iv. Educational background of the reader v. Understanding level of the reader vi. Need of the reader vii. In case of reply to a letter the ‘tone’ of that letter must be considered.

• 3. Outline the contents:

It is the rough drafting of the letter. Before

writing the actual letter an outline enables a

writer to revise the whole thing and to check

the order of the letter.

These are the major steps of planning of

a business letter which need to be followed to

ensure effective writing.

Layouts of Business Letters

Lay-out

Meaning

It includes:-

1. Physical form of the letter.

2. Arrangement of the parts of letter.

3. Display of the various items of information in the letter.

Lay-outs of the Business letter

• Fully Indented Style

• Semi-Indented Style

• Full Block Style

• Modified Block Style

• The Noma Simplified Style

Fully Indented style

• Oldest Style and Outdated.

• Addresses are in indented style

• Every paragraph begins with three to five spaces

away from left margin.

• Indention causes the letter to look uneven.

• Takes more time to type due to indenting.

Company’s Address Phone No.

Date

Heading-Name of the Company

Inside Name

Address

Salutation

Subject

Body of the Letter

Complimentary Close

Signature & Designation

Semi-Indented Style

• Also called semi block form.

• Inside address in block form

• Beginning of every paragraph is indented

• Date and complimentary close are on right side

• Salutation and complimentary close are followed by comma in traditional style

Heading-Name & Address of the Company

Date

Inside Name

Salutation

Subject

Body of the Letter

Complimentary Close

Signature & Designation

Address

Full Block Style

• Modern Style.

• No indention from the left margin.

• Address has no punctuation at the end of the line.

• Salutation and complimentary close do not have comma at the end.

• Every line begins at the left margin

• Style looks heavy on the left and blank on right.

• Increases the speed of the typist.

Heading-Name of the Company

Company’s Address Phone No.

Date

Inside Name & Address

Salutation

Subject

Body of the Letter

Complimentary Close

Signature & Designation

Modified Block Style

• Modification of fully-blocked style.

• Date and complimentary close on the right

side.

• The subject of the letter is at centre.

• Gives the letter a balanced appearance.

Heading-Name & Address of the Company

Date

Inside Name & Address

Salutation

Subject

Body of the Letter

Complimentary Close

Signature & Designation

The Noma-Simplified Style

• Recommended by the National office Management

Association(NOMA) of America for business letters.

• Modification of the fully-blocked style.

• Professional and focused without unnecessary

formality.

• Salutation and the complimentary closing are not

used in this style.

Heading-Name & Address of the Company Tel No.

Date

Inside Name & Address

Subject

Body of the Letter

Signature & Designation