1. what is business letter ? and what is the
component of business letter ?
A business letter is
usually a letter from one company to another, or between such organizations and
their customers, clients and other external parties. The overall style of
letter depends on the relationship between the parties concerned. Business
letters can have many types of contents, for example to request direct
information or action from another party, to order supplies from a supplier, to
point out a mistake by the letter's recipient, to reply directly to a request,
to apologize for a wrong, or to convey goodwill. A business letter is sometimes
useful because it produces a permanent written record, and may be taken more
seriously by the recipient than other forms of communication
components
business letter consist
of letter head on which are printed a dateline, an inside address, a
salutation, a subject line, the body of the letter, a complimentary closing, a
signature block, an ID line and notation.
- dateline
usually keyed 2.5
inches/15 lines below the top edge or .5 inch/3 lines below the letterhead.
should be written out December 15, 2011
- inside
address
states the title and
address of the person for whom the letter is intended. for a physician- Dr.____
or ____M.D. ___M.D. is preferred
- salutation
Keyed flush with the
left margin on the second line below the inside address. should refer to the
receiver on the letter,using a title and surname (last name) Dear Mrs Brown. If
the receiver and sender know each other well, first name may be used. in formal
correspondence, is followed by a colon, a comma should be used in informal.
- subject
used to bring the subject of the letter to the
readers attention. should be typed 2 lines below the salutation and two lines
above the body of the letter
- body
begins two lines below the salutation or subject
line. is single spaced with a blank line between paragraphs. leave a blank line
above and below a list, and indent each item on the list .5 inch from the left
margin.
- complimentary
closing
placed two lines below the last line of the body and
consisting of one of the following- Sincerely, Yours truly, Best regards.
followed by a coma. one the first letter of the first word is capitalized.
- signature
block
contains the senders name on the first line and
title on the second. should be typed four lines below to allow the signature.
*signed by the MA- routine business nature/supply orders
*signed by the doctor- medical reports, letters by the insurance company,
consultation or referral letters and letters clinical in nature.
- ID
line
typist initials are
sometimes included two lines below the signature block. the traditional full
form includes the initials of the person responsible for creating the letter
followed by a colon or a slash and then the typist;s initials
- notation
includes information
such as the number and type of enclosure and the names of other people who
receive copies of the letter. typed two lines below the signature block or ID
line.
- full
block
typed with all lines in
standard letter format, flush left. quick and easy to write. one of the most
common formats used in medical practice
- modified
block
all lines begin at the
left margin, with the exception of the date line, complimentary closing and
keyed signature, which usually begins at the center position
- simplified
all lines are keyed
flush with the left margin. most modern letter style. in most situations in a
medical office, style may be to informal.
- envelopes
three common used
sizes-6 3/4, 7 and 10 (also called business size). most common in the medical
office are 6 3/4 and 10. 6 3/4 with a window is often used for mailing
statements
- return
address
for the sender should be placed in the upper left
corner
2. explain the differences between of full block
style and semi block style letter
Semi-Block Format
The semi-block format business letter is a little less formal
than the block format letter and slightly more formal than the modified block
format letter. It works well in almost all situations and is a good choice if
you find yourself on the fence about which format to use.
Semi-block business letters differ from most others in that the first line of
each paragraph is indented. Look at the modified semi-block business letter
template if you’d like to try another format with indentations. It is the least
formal of all the formats shown on this page
Full Block Format
Full
block style business letters have a formal appearance, however they can
be used in informal business situations as well as formal ones. If you
are looking for a single format that will work well in every situation,
this is a good one to use. Notice that the following business letter
format is laid out so that it is easy to read. It is also a template
that is very easy to type, as there are no indents to worry about.
3. give example full
block style business letter and semi block
Full Block Format Business Letter
Template
Your
Name
Address
Address
Phone
Today’s Date
Recipient’s Name
Company
Address
Address
Address
Dear (Recipient’s Name),
This block format business letter template illustrates
how quick and easy communications can be to type. Notice that it looks very
much like the semi-block letter format, except the paragraphs are not indented.
This is a format you can use for all business occasions.
Notice that all elements in this letter are left justified. This formatting
provides a crisp, modern look that many people prefer. If you have any
enclosures to include in this letter, make a note at the bottom left, a few
spaces below the signature block. Just write “enclosures:” and follow up with
the names of any items inside the envelope. A brochure, an application, or a
copy of an invoice are some of the things you might think about including.
Sincerely,
Your
First name, Last name, and Title
Semi-Block Format Business Letter
Template
Your
Name
Address
Address
Phone
Today’s Date
Recipient’s
Name
Company
Address
Address
Address
Dear
(Recipient’s Name),
This semi-block business letter format looks very much like
the block letter format, except the
paragraphs have been indented. Semi-block format letters are
just a little more formal than modified semi-block business letters.
Notice that the sender’s address, the closing, the signature,
and the signature block are left justified.
The only elements of this business letter format that are not
left justified are the first lines of each of the paragraphs.
If you have any enclosures to include in this letter, make a
note at the bottom left, a few spaces below
the signature block. Just write “enclosures:” and follow up
with the names of any items inside the envelope. A brochure, an application, or
a copy of an invoice are some of the things you might think about including.
Sincerely,
Your
First name, Last name, and Title
Writing a Business Letter
In this lesson, you will learn how to write a formal business letter. A
business letter
is a formal letter used to communicate with a specific individual or
group. It is called a business letter because most of these specific
individuals and groups usually belong to a business.
Why should
you learn how to write a business letter? Writing business letters is a
very important skill to have because business letters are also used to
communicate your desire for a job. When you send your resume to
businesses, you will usually also include a cover letter that needs to
be typed up as a business letter.
So, let's begin.
Here is an example of a business letter.
As you can see, everything is written so that it is
aligned to the left. The paragraphs are not indented. All the margins
should be set at one inch. And yes, the business letter is almost always
typed up. The font size should be set at 12 pt, and the font type
should be a formal one, such as Times New Roman or Arial.
There
are six parts to the business letter: the heading, the recipient's
address, the salutation, the message, the closing, and the signature. We
will discuss the heading, recipient's address, and the salutation in
the opening section. We will discuss the message in the body section and
finish with the closing and signature in the ending section.
The Opening
The
opening of your business letter is made up of three parts. It includes
the heading, which includes the writer's address and the date, the
recipient's address, and the salutation.
For the heading, you
include your own address in the U.S. Post Office format with your street
name on one line and your city, state, and zip code on the next line.
Then, skip a line between your address and the date. Next, write the
date formally with the month written out followed by the day, a comma,
and then the year in four digits. Skip another line after the heading.
Next,
include the recipient's address. Use a proper salutation of the person
if at all possible, whether it is Dr., Mr., Ms., Mrs., or Miss. If you
are not sure of the salutation, you can use the person's full name along
with his or her official title. Include the street address, city, and
state in the U.S. Post Office format. If the address is an international
one, write the country in all capital letters on the line directly
underneath the address. Skip another line after the recipient's address.
Now, include the salutation. The salutation begins with 'Dear'
along with the recipient's name. Include the same Dr., Mr., Ms., Mrs.,
or Miss that you used in the recipient's address. Unless you're on a
first name basis with this person, use their last name only. If you
don't know how to address them, then include their first and last name.
End the salutation with a colon and then skip another line between this
salutation and your message.
The Body
The body is written as text. A business letter is never hand
written. Depending on the letter style you choose, paragraphs may be
indented. Regardless of format, skip a line between paragraphs. Skip a line between the greeting and the body. Skip a line between the body and the close.
