Samples for Business Email Writing

The examples in the left column are more formal. The right-hand column shows the less

formalequivalent.

When we make a request:

[more formal] [less formal]

I would be grateful if you could … . Could you possibly … ?

I would appreciate (it) if you could … . Could you please … ?

When we agree to a request someone has made:


I would be delighted to … . I will be happy to … .

(delighted means very happy)

When apologising:


I apologise for the delay in replying. Sorry for the delay in replying.

I/We apologise for the inconvenience. Sorry for the inconvenience.

I/We apologise for any inconvenience caused. Sorry for any trouble caused.

Please accept our/my sincere apologies. I/We are very sorry … .

When giving bad news:


I/We regret that … . Unfortunately … .

I/We regret to inform you that … . I am sorry to have to tell you that … .

I am afraid that I must inform you of/that … . I am sorry to have to tell you that … .

When complaining:

(The following phrases may be used as the opening line of the letter or email.)


I/We wish to draw your attention to … . I wanted to inform you about … .

I am writing to complain about … . I would like to complain about … .

I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with … . [none]

(The following phrase may be used as the closing line of the letter or email.)


I would appreciate your immediate attention to

the matter.

I would appreciate if you could sort it out as soon as

possible.Expressions for thanking

1. Thank you for your help. / time / assistance / support

2. I really appreciate the help. / time / assistance / support you’ve given me.

3. Thank you once more for your help in this matter.Expressions with a future focus

1. I look forward to hearing from you soon / meeting you next Tuesday.

2. I look forward to seeing you soon.

3. I’m looking forward to your reply.

4. We hope that we may continue to rely on your valued custom.

5. We look forward to a successful working relationship in the future.

6. Please advise as necessary.

7. I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.Expressions for showing them you want to help

1. If I can be of assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me.

2. If you require any further information, feel free to contact me.

3. If you require any further information, let me know.

4. Please feel free to contact me if you need any further information.

5. Please let me know if you have any questions.

6. I hope the above is useful to you.

7. Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

8. Please contact me if there are any problems.

9. Let me know if you need anything else

10. Drop me a line if I can do anything else for you.

I am writing in reference to the current situation with the Skipton Airport Project. We have a number of questions which we hope you could answer.

First of all, could you please provide us with an update on where you are on the Skipton Airport Project. We would also appreciate it if you could clarify what the current issues with the delivery system are? And confirm when you expect them to be resolved.

In addition, at the end of our last meeting, we requested a copy of the latest Project Report. Unfortunately, we have still not received it. We would appreciate it if you could forward this to us.

Could you also please confirm whether the post-installation support covers the equipment 24 hours a day? And what is actually included in the support? In particular, we would like to have confirmation if the cost of parts and labour are included in the package? We require this information as soon as possible.

And lastly, we are considering extending the period of the post-installation support from your company from 6 months to 12 months. We would be very grateful if you could provide us with a quote for this extension.

I would really appreciate it if you could deal with these matters urgently.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Documents

Samples for Business Email Writing