Business Letters Business letters are formal letters used for business-to-business, business-to-client, or client-tobusiness correspondence. Even though email is commonly used to communicate with a business, organization, or school, business letters are necessary for more formal situations: Finalizing contracts Job applications Applying for admission to a college, a scholarship, etc. Thank you Making a formal recommendation Following up on other communication (phone call, email, etc.) There are several forms of business letters modified block, full block, etc. We will be learning full block format, which I feel is the easiest to type. Full Block format a business letter format in which all parts of the letter begin at the left margin. NO lines in the letter are indented. Margins Always use Times New Roman font and 12 point size for a business letter. Keep the font color black. Remember, a business letter is a more formal form of communication keep your letter looking professional. Margins are the white space around all four sides of a page. Most business letters will need a margin of 1 on both the left and right sides. If your letter will be a full page or longer, set the top and bottom margins to 1 also.
If your letter is shorter than a full page, center all of the text in the letter vertically on the page. Page Layout tab Margins button Custom margins (at bottom of menu) Click on the Layout tab Page Vertical alignment choose Center Parts of a Personal Business Letter You can wait and do this after your letter is completely typed and you know how much of the page it takes up. Return Address is the address of the person who is sending the letter. It is necessary to include this information in case the recipient of your letter needs to write back to you. Start with your street address on one line. Type one Enter. Type your city, state, and ZIP code on the second line. City, comma, two letter state abbreviation (WI), one space after the state abbreviation, and zip code. Type two Enters after the ZIP code. 311 W. North Water St. Neenah, WI 54956 Date is the date the letter was finished or sent out. You need a date for legal reasons you have thirty days to reply, Please send payment in the next ten business days Type out the complete name of the month (no abbreviations), one space, the one or two digit date, comma, one space, and the four-digit year Type two Enters after the date -OR- Insert the Date o Insert tab o Date and Time button o Choose the third format from the top o Type two Enters after the date. 311 W. North Water St. Neenah, WI 54956 November 17, 2011
Letter address is the complete address of the person you are writing to. It is the same as the address on the outside of the envelope. Three or four lines First line is for the receiver s personal title (Mr., Ms., Dr., etc.) and the receiver s first and last names. BE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN THAT ALL TITLES AND NAMES ARE CORRECT. If you are writing to a male, use Mr. or a professional title, if it applies (Dr. or Rev.) If you are writing to a female, use the title that you see from other correspondence Mrs. if you know she is married Ms. if you are not sure whether she is married or not Use a professional title if it applies (Dr. or Rev.) If you have four lines, the second line is for the name of the company or business. The third line is one for the receiver s street address, The fourth line is for the receiver s city, comma, space, two letter state abbreviation, one space, and ZIP code. Press two enters after the last address line. 311 W. North Water St. Neenah, WI 54956 November 17, 2011 Ms. Sara Naide Tempo Music Supplies 1234 Meter Drive Nashville, TN 37201 Salutation is a polite way to greet your reader and open the letter. Type a greeting (Dear), a title (Mr., Ms., Dr., etc.), and the receiver s last name. Do not use a first name in a salutation unless you are not sure of the reader s gender. Be absolutely certain all names are spelled correctly. If you do not know if the receiver is male or female (Pat, Chris, Jordan, etc.), type the receiver s first and last name (Dear Pat Smith).
If you do not have the name of a person to write to, type Ladies or Gentlemen: or Dear Sir or Madam: Do not use To Whom It May Concern: This is too impersonal. Type a colon after the salutation use open punctuation Press two Enters after the salutation. 311 W. North Water St. Neenah, WI 54956 November 17, 2011 Ms. Sara Naide Tempo Music Supplies 1234 Meter Drive Nashville, TN 37201 Dear Ms. Naide: Body most business letters have three paragraphs: First paragraph briefly state who you are and the reason why you are writing the letter. Second paragraph give additional information (details). Third paragraph sum up the letter, ask for some sort of response (if necessary), and politely close. All body paragraphs are single-spaced with two Enters between. Type two Enters after the end of the last paragraph of the letter. Complimentary close a polite way to close the letter or a farewell line. Yours truly, Sincerely, or Thank you,. Type a comma after the complimentary close. Type four Enters after the complimentary close. This will give you a place to sign your name in black ink after the letter is printed. Signature line again, needed for legal reasons. Type your full first and last names. You will sign your name in black ink in the space between the complimentary close and your typed name. Sign your name exactly the same as your typed name. Yours truly, All on one line. Beginning at the left margin. Daniel Taycher
A one-page business letter is best. If your letter continues onto a second page, you will need to type the name of the receiver (the person who the letter is sent to), the page number, and the date 1 inch from the top of the second page. All three of these lines are full block (they begin at the left margin). Leave a double space after the date, and continue the second page of your letter. There is a sample personal business letter on the next page. Be sure to notice the margins and spacing between sections.
Return Address 1 top margin 1 left and right margins 230 Glendale Ct. Brooklyn, NY 11234-3721 November 17, 2011 Ms. Julie Hutchinson New Amsterdam Theater 1825 Melbourne Ave. Flushing, NY 11367-2351 Dear Ms. Hutchinson: Date Salutation Letter Address Body I am writing to request your assistance in obtaining a job in a theater related career. As I indicated in our previous phone conversation, I am applying for a position as box office coordinator for one of the theaters on Broadway. Since we had several business classes together in college, I would like to have you review my application documents to be sure everything is in order. I am enclosing a copy of my letter of application, my resume, and my letters of recommendation from my references. Please look these documents over carefully. If you see any errors or any items that you feel should be changed or omitted, don t hesitate to let me know. I will make the changes that you suggest before I submit any of the documents to my prospective employer. You can return the documents to me in the enclosed, self-addressed envelope. Since the deadline for applying for the box office job is one month away, I would appreciate it if you could have the documents returned to me by the end of next week. That way, I will still have time to make changes and submit all paperwork before the deadline. Thank you again for agreeing to help me in this manner. I expect to receive the edited documents back sometime next week. I will be sure to let you know how the job application process turns out. If I get the job, I will treat you to a dinner at Spago s. Four Enters Sincerely Daniel Taycher Daniel Taycher Complimentary Close Signature Line signed in black ink and typed Name signed in black ink Exactly the same as the typed name All on one line Start at the left margin
Envelope Wizard The Envelope Wizard will help you create and print an envelope to mail out your business letter. Click on the Mailings tab. Click on the Envelopes button. You will get the window shown where you can type in both the address of the person you are writing to and your own return address. USE ALL CAPITAL LETTERS AND NO PUNCTUATION MARKS FOR THESE ADDRESSES (according to US Postal Service Regulations). U.S. Postal Regulations The following information is taken from the U.S. Post Office s Publication 28, Postal Addressing Standards. Format Use uppercase letters Omit punctuation Use common abbreviations (see Abbreviations) Use the ZIP+4 code