OTÁZKA Č. 19 -BUSINESS LETTER

THE FORM OF THE BUSINESS LETTER

Private letters and business letters are different not only in their form but also in their general tone.

The tone of private letters is informal.We send them to close friends and relatives who know us very well.We want to tell them our news,we askabout their health and feelings,we make the letter interesting or funny.We use informal language (idioms and slang,incomplete sentences,contracted forms,fewpassive verb forms etc.) The salutations and theendingsare informal (Dear Jane,Hi,....Love,Yours,Take care,...).The layout is also very simple –we put our address in the top right-hand corner and the date below it.

Business letters,on the other hand,are usually sent to unknownpeopleand are therefore more formal.They should be simple,clear,accurate and very polite.We follow a common layout,use polite phrases and formal language with no contractions.

All business letters have the followingessential parts:

1.Letterhead

The letterhead is printed at the top of the letter sheet.It contains at least the firm's name,logo,and postal address.It may also include other details,such as telephone and fax number,e-mail etc.

2.Inside address

The inside address consists of the addressee's name and postal address.Mr,Mrs,Miss or Ms,and the plural forms Messrs and Mmes are common titles of courtesy.

The postal address consists of

-house number,followed by street,

-name of town or city and postcode (UK),name of state and zipcode(USA),

-name of country.

3.References

References help the reader tofind out what the letter refers to-the dictator's initials,followed by those of the typist,letters and numbers indicating the writer's department or section.

4.Date

5.Salutation

In letters to individuals the following salutations are used:

Dear Sir,Dear Madam,Dear Sir or Madam,Dear Mr Baker,Dear Ms Smith

6.Body of the letter

The body of the letter contains the message.Most letters do not exceed one page.The body always starts with the capital letter.We leave a line space between paragraphs if the blocked style is used.

7.Complimentary close

If the letter begins with Dear Sir,Dear Madam etc.,it will close with Yours faithfully.If the letter begins with a personal name (Dear Mr Cook),it will close with Yours sincerely.

8.Signature

The name of the writer and his/her position in the firm are typed below the handwritten signature.The name of the firm is written above the signature.