Components of a business letter

Answer 1

Explanation of Numbered Components

(1) Letterhead

· this is provided by your company. It contains the name of the company, address, phone and fax numbers, web site address and e-mail address. It may or may not bear the company's logo and motto.

· the letterhead serves as the first page of a letter. If a letter has more than a page, second sheets are used. These second sheets are usually blank sheets or pre-printed with just the company's name and logo.

(2) Dateline

· this is the date that the letter is written. It usually appears underneath the letterhead.

(3) Recipient's name and address

· also known as the inside address

· ensure that you have the correct address and zip code. Remember that if you have a post office box address instead of a civic address and the letter is being delivered via messenger service, the messenger will not be able to deliver it.

(4) Attention Line

· the attention line is not obligatory. It is only used when the letter is addressed to a company or organisation but is for the attention and handling of a specific individual who is familiar or is responsible for the letter's subject matter.

· it is a good idea to have the correct name of the individual, his title and the department he works for (especially if it is a large organisation with over a thousand employees). This makes it easier for the mail room to deliver the letter without delay.

(5) Salutation

· where strict formality is observed, the use of "Dear Sir", "Dear Madam", "Gentlemen" is acceptable. It is, however, more personal when an individual's name is used.

· in some companies, executives who send out letters to people they know well will usually cross out the typewritten "Dear Mr. Jones" and will handwrite "Dear John" instead to indicate that the letter writer is a close business associate.

(6) Subject Line

· some letters - especially the very brief ones - don't have to include a subject line. The subject line is used only as a matter of courtesy so that the recipient, upon receiving the letter, will immediately know the purpose of the letter.

· the subject is usually underlined and must contain essential details. Some people capitalise the subject, others don't. Go with your company's practice. An example of a subject is: "Your letter dated the 23rd of September 2007 re XYZ Co. Initial Public Offering."

(7) Body

· the body of the letter constitutes the message of your letter. Note that there is no set number of paragraphs for a business letter. It could be only one paragraph or 25 paragraphs, depending on the complexity of the subject.

· a business letter is supposed to sound respectful and professional at all times. Be careful about the tone of your letter. If it is too negative, you may turn off the recipient who will not bother to reply. If you're not sure, you may want your colleague or supervisor to read your draft.

(8) Closing

· the closing is a formal and polite way to end your letter. In our example, we used "Yours sincerely", but other acceptable forms are: "Yours truly", "Respectfully", "Sincerely yours", "Truly yours."

· avoid exaggerated closings or flattery. Terms of endearment like "love", "fondly" and other such closings have no place in a business letter and are reserved for personal correspondence.

(9) Company Signature

· this is usually not necessary, especially in less formal business letters. It is used when the person who is signing the letter is serving in a capacity as representative or spokesperson of the company and not as an individual.

· when the letter is on the company's letterhead, there is no need for the company signature.

(10) Identification of the Signatory

· the name and title of the person who is signing on behalf of the company is placed here.

(11) Reference Initials

· reference initials indicate the signatory of the letter (usually in capital letters) followed by a slash and then the typist's initials (usually in small letters).

· it is usually a good idea NOT to omit these initials because should a copy be required, people will know which typist or secretary would have a copy.

(12) Enclosure

· the enclosure (sometimes written in full or abbreviated - "encl.") is a reminder to the recipient that the letter is accompanied by documents. When there are several enclosures, these are usually listed so that the recipient will know if he has received all enclosures or not.

(13) CC Notation

· "CC" used to stand for "carbon copy" but no one uses the typewriter anymore these days. This particular notation tells the recipient that another person has been copied on the letter.

· an alternative notation is "bc" which means "blind copy." This means that the letter sender writes to the addressee but does not want the addressee to know that another person was sent a copy of the same letter.

These are the standard components of a business letter. Today's business letters may have one or two components missing - or even more. There are some companies that prefer to preserve traditional practices in their business correspondence while other companies will be less stringent on how a letter should be written and presented.

Resources: http://thebusinessletters.blogspot.com/2014/07/standard-components-of-business-letter.html