With advent of emails, mobile telephony and
our willing inclination towards practicality and speed, the occasions for
writing a formal letter is declining and with that the skill of letter writing
is also dwindling.
This is the very reason why in offices a
person with a letter writing skill is considered an asset, particularly in
business world. Though sending functional communications is gaining popularity,
the overall numbers of Formal Letters written are increasing as written
communication between businesses, between Government Departments and
businesses/individuals is increasing day by day. Sometimes, variant of such
communications are called application, complaint, representation, etc but in essence
they are based on the principles of writing Formal Letters. Hence,
skill of writing a Formal Letter is very important for an office-worker or an
entrepreneur and also for an individual.
The key aspects of writing an effective
Business / Formal Letter:
1. Address of the sender: Generally, it is
pre-printed on a letterhead with other contact details, website, if
any. Pre-printed letterhead follows the overall “Branding Policy” of the
organisation in the matter of font type, colour, style, etc. If the letter is
sent in individual capacity, the address, contact number and date is written at
the top right hand corner or left corner as per the modern practice in vogue.
2. Letter No. (also called outward number or
Reference Number): Each business have their own style of numbering (which
include one or more of : initials of the company name, code for center name,
department code, Nos of years how old is the Company, File No., Financial Year,
Letter Number, etc – may not be in the said order).
3. Date of the letter: Date is positioned with
alignment of the line of the Letter No. Putting the date just below the letter
No. is also in vogue if the space permits. Format of the date can be 14th April,
2018 or April 14th, 2018. DD/MM/YYYY is now also gaining popularity.
However, this may create confusion as it may be taken as MM/DD/YYYY in certain
countries.
3.1 For the purpose of instruction for mode of
dispatch, the words like By Air, By Regd Post, Speed Post, By Courier, etc is
also mentioned somewhere near/below the date leaving some space.
4. Inside Address: Address of the recipient.
The recipient may be addressed by official designation (in Govt Deptts /
Organisations) or by personal name and Designation (in private
sector) followed by full address. When personal name is used, ensure
that the name is correctly spelled. The address must be in full as
letters are sent in “Window Cover” or noted down on the envelop by the Dispatch
Deptt. When the letter is sent in a large office, it is advisable to mark
Attention: XYZ Deptt. You can also mark Kind Attention : Mr/Ms XYZ (it should
be noted that some persons may be averse to marking a letter in their personal
name by the sender).
5. Salutation: The addressee is addressed with
honourific words, appropriately selected depending upon the status/relations of
the Recipient and the Sender.
6. Subject Line (Written as Sub: or Reg: (i.e.
Regarding): It states, in one to two lines, the matter of the letter to which
the letter relates. It should not be a in the format of a complete
sentence.
7. Reference No. : No. of the Letter or such
other communication (and also its date) is stated. If there is exchange of
letters, quote latest letter sent by the writer and the latest letter received
from the addressee. This is useful for the recipient to link the letter with
previous correspondence already available with him/her.
8. Body of the letter: This is the most
important part of a business letter. It presents the subject matter in details
and the actions requested to be taken by the recipient. Generally, it
contains multiple paragraphs depending upon the subject matter. The first
paragraph introduces the subject matter and seeks to build relationship with
the recipient or linking the present letter with the correspondence, if any,
resting with the addressee. This part of the letter calls for high level
of linguistic capabilities of the writer. Do not use flowery language. The
general tenor of the letter should be polite, even in the letters involving
contentious matters: Courtesy begets courtesy. When you have a reason to
contradict the addressee, tread cautiously, particularly when the addressee is
at higher rung of hierarchy. Sequencing
the developments in the subject matter in a chronological flow, proper use of
linking words and sign-post words facilitate the reader to comprehend what the
letter is all about. The penultimate (the last but one) paragraph should focus
on what actions you expect the addressee to take.
9. Subscription: Depending upon the relation
between the recipient and the sender and corresponding to the words used in
salutation, appropriate words are used to conclude the letter as under:
· Yours faithfully…in formal letters
· Your sincerely…for friends and relatives
· Yours truly…very close relatives
· Your obedient…in a letter written by a student
to the teacher and similar situation of showing reverence
· Your affectionate or Your loving… in letter
written by father to his son/daughter and similar familial/social
situations
10. Signature Part:
This part contains the signature of the person/authority who issues the letter.
The designation of the signatory is always mentioned and the name of the
signatory is also some time written in bracket immediately below the signature
and above the designation. Now a days, in private sector, the signatory’s
Mobile Number is also mentioned below the designation. Signature Part is
important as it legally binds the sender as to what is stated in the letter.
11. Encls (Enclosures): If any other papers
are attached with the letter, the same are listed in this part.
12. Sometimes, a copy (Carbon Copy –
CC) of the letter is also sent to one or more recipients in addition
to the addressee. The address/es of the recipient/s of the CC is mentioned
below the signature portion in all the copies of the letter. To facilitate the
proper dispatch of the CC, a tick mark is put before the respective recipient
in each CC copy. Suitable remark, as applicable, may also be added (e.g. for
information, for doing the needful, for records, etc).
12.1 The recipient name/ address of the BCC
(Blind Carbon Copy), if sent, is not written on the copy of the
Addressee or CC, thereby, the addressee and the recipients of CC
will be unaware (blind) to the fact that a copy is sent to the recipient of BCC.
13. In addition to the Addressee Copy and CC
copies, one more copy is also printed and retained as Office Copy marked O/C.
In certain offices instead of one, two more copies are printed, one
for O/C and another one (marked P/C) for Master File (also called
“Pink Copy File” in olden days) , in which a copy of all the letter sent is
filed, seriatim.
14. Considering our concern for “Save Tree”
and availability of softcopy, printing O/C and P/C can be avoided by obtaining
approval of the signatory by email. One has to judiciously weigh the need for
hard copy of O/C and P/C before pressing Ctrl+P.
15. Spell Check and proofread before printing.
If required, revise.
16. Format the letter before printing. Use
Block Style as now days it is the standard practice.
17. Keep proper margin on both sides (3 to 4
cm on right and 1 to 2 cm on left). Font type: Calibri, Verdana, Arial and
alike. Do not use calligraphy / cursive fonts. Font size : 12 to 14.
Use Make Bold, underline and Italics sparingly.
18. DO (Demi Official) letter is a special
form of formal letter used in case of extreme secrecy, urgency, personal
attention, etc.
Do you find the recipe of writing an effective
formal letter ticklish? It is not so if you have basic knowledge of the
language and its grammar. Practice makes a man perfect. Now onwards, draft the
letters yourself rather than requesting the colleagues to do for you. Seek help
only for correcting your draft. Make conscious and continuous efforts to
improve your letter writing skills. The sooner, the better. A day will come
when your colleagues will seek your help to correct their drafts.
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