business letter writing Flashcards by Dianne Kyle

_____ is a letter from one company to another, or between such organizations and their customers, clients, or other external parties.

business letter

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____ is type of letter which serves as a means of communication written for various commercial purposes.

business letter

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_____ are the most popular and the most widely written type of letters.

letters of business

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_____ are also the oldest form of official correspondence (as early as 1420).

business letter

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What are other terms for business letters? ____

professional business letter, business correspondence letter,
official letter

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Who writes a business letter?

business people
employees
managers/heads/supervisors
clients
prospective customers
ordinary individuals

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Why write business letters?

to persuade
to inform
to request
to express thanks
to remind
to recommend
to apologize
to congratulate
to reject a proposal or offer
to introduce a person or policy
to invite or welcome
to follow up
to formalize decisions

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What are the two types of business letters?

formal business letter, informal business letter

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_____ are the typical or standard business letters meant for legal or official correspondence.

formal business letter

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These include letters regarding business deals, order, claim, dispute, settlement, agreements, information request, sales report, and other official matters.

formal business letter

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_____ has a laid back approach. It is used for casual correspondence but doesn’t necessarily has to have a casual tone of language.

informal business letter

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These letters include memorandums, appraisals, interview thanks, reference letters, cover letter, customer complaint letters, e-mails and others which are less important or regular.

informal business letter

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Depending upon the client, content, motive and other factors, letters of business can be further subdivided into: ____

application letter
acceptance letter
claim letter
response to a claim letter
demand letter
information request letter
information response letter
letter of intent
notification of error letter
order request letter
resignation letter
resume cover letter
reception of gift letter
recommendation letter
sales letter
sales letter
thanks for job

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What are the twelve types of business letter?

sales letters
order letters
complaint letters
adjustment letters
inquiry letters
follow-up letters
letters of recommendation
acknowledgment letter
cover letter
letters of resignation
quotation
job appointment letter

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Typically, a ____ serves the purpose of convincing a buyer or a customer to purchase a product or service.

sales letters

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Written in an attractive manner that strikes the interest of the potential customer, a ____ has details of the company and the service they are offering, along with advantageous points on how their product should be chosen over others.

sales letter

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Sales letters are usually written for any of the following reasons: ____

to introduce new products
to announce new services
to announce new or limited offers
to inform customers with accountancy or business changes

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An appealing product description including features, cost, consumer benefits shall be added to the sales letter.

to introduce new products

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A complete explanation of service ordered, how it will work and how it will be useful for the consumers shall be added.

to announce new services

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Sales letter should clearly explain what the offer includes, for whom it is valid and till when it can be activated.

to announce new or limited offers

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The sales letter shall include a thorough introduction of new employers and shall be sent by employer himself to develop solid nexus.

to inform consumers with accountancy or business changes

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An ____ or a purchase letter carries information about an order for a product or a service.

order letters

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A detailed informative structure containing exact dimensions and quantities of the desired products, ____ can also be sent along with the due payment.

order letters

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A tricky on within the scope of business letters, a ____ is sent with the objective to convey dissatisfaction or a grievance.

complaint letter

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The trick lies in the tone of the letter; the overall tone should be ____ but should also not offend the opposite party. A polite ring along the length of the letter does pay off in the business circle.

professional and stern

It is a letter of response sent by or to the customer with the business side on the other end that acknowledges a claim.

adjustment letters

Any kind of inquiry can be written out in the form of an ____.

inquiry letter

An information deficit, a missed out point or for any possible questions, _____ are sent to businesses to sort out the gaps.

inquiry letters

The contact information of the ____ is crucial so that the response letter has a legit address.

sender

A letter that aims at increasing the effectiveness of a previously implemented action is known as a ______.

follow-up letter

It can be referred to as a subsequent letter that can cover a lot of topics from a general thank you to an intention to speed up a procfess.

follow-up letters

General applications for follow-up letters are: _____

- job interviews - business meetings - sales - networking - supervisor/co-worker dialogue

A letter written by a person to effectively increase the value of a second person to a third one in the course of a new job prospect or admission among other things is known as a ________.

letter of recommendation

A letter sent to acknowledge the delivery of another letter or information is an _____.

acknowledgement letter

A letter that accompanies curriculum vitae and is a precise and attractive documentation of the person and his personal and professional achievements that eventually creates an interest in the reader to go for the resume is known as a _______.

cover letter

A ________ is written to convey the news of leaving a job to their immediate superior giving him notice and the reason for leaving.

letter of resignation

It is a formal statement sent by a vendor agreeing to the request for purchasing by the business at a specific price.

quotation

A letter that confirms the job for an applicant along with other information like salary, date of joining, a short welcome note, etc. is known as a _____.

job appointment letter

It is basically a written document that confirms that an organization has agreed to offer a job to a selected candidate. The letter is typically straightforward, but if not writing appropriately it count generate problems later on.

job appointment letter

What are the four physical characteristics of a business letter? _____

good quality stationary, continuation sheets, use the picture frame guide, envelopes

It is advisable to use the best quality paper. Single sheet of plain paper with the letterhead printed on top is the best.

good quality stationery

The convenient size of the paper is _____ or also known as short bond paper. Recently, A4 is used.

8-1/2 by 11 inches

Continuation sheet carrying on the top only the form's name and the ______ are used if the letters are too long.

word continuation

On each additional sheet the number of page should be typed but the __________________ are not necessary.

date and the addresses of the firm

The side the bottom margins should be the same so that your message resembles a picture placed in an attractive frame. Use 1 inch margin in all sides.

use the picture frame guide

The envelopes should match the quality and the size of the paper used. The standard sized enveloped are _______, but the large sized are _____ inches.

6-1/2 x 3-1/2, 10 x 4-1/2

What are the three punctuation styles? ______

open punctuation, mixed/standard punctuation, closed punctuation

No line of letter part, except the body, has any punctuation at the end unless an abbreviation requires a period.

open punctuation

In ______ a colon follows the salutation; a commas follows the complimentary close.

mixed/standard punctuation

In _____ a comma follows the salutation; a commas follows the complimentary close. British and Asian writers use closed punctuation.

closed punctuation

What are the four business letter styles? ____

full block style, semi-block style, modified block style, simplified letter style

_____ is commonly used to correspond between businesses and between individuals and businesses.

block letter

Its main purposes are to inform, request or register a complaint.

block letter

What are the characteristics of full block letter style?

- all the text is aligned to the left margin - all lines are left aligned - paragraphs are not indented - paragraphs are separated by double or triple spacing - everything is followed by a single blank space in most case but there are exceptions - there is no punctuation in the addresses - there is a comma after the greeting, although some in the U.S. prefer a colon - the closing is also followed by a comma

Full block style Everything is followed by a single blank space in most case but there are exceptions: _____ spaces follow the date; ____ spaces follow the body; _____ spaces after the closing (enough room for a signature); ____ blank lines after the sender's title

three or four, two, three or four, two

______ letter format is as mentioned, has partial formatting of a full block style.

semi-block

In semi-block format letter: _____

- paragraphs are indented five spaces - it places the date line in alignment with the complimentary close in flush right - similar to full block, it places the inside address and salutation flush in the left margin

_____ is a conventional way of writing format business letters. Its format is applicable to both print and email correspondence.

modified block style

In modified block format letter: _____

- all text is aligned to the left margin, except for the author's address, date, and closing - paragraphs are not indented - the author's address, date, and closing are usually indented three inches from the left margin, but can be set anywhere to the right of the middle of the page, as long as all three elements are indented to the same position

______ has fewer internal part.

simplified letter styles

What are the characteristics of simplified letter styles? ____

- it places all internal parts in left alignment; however the traditional salutation is replaced with an all caps subject line that is also placed flush with left margin - body paragraphs are left aligned and single spaced within and double spaced between - the writer's name and title are aligned with the left margin and typed in all caps at least five spaces below the last line of the body or message of the letter

What are the characteristics of simplified style? ____

- the top margin is set for 2 or 2.5 inches - all text is to the left margin - no salutation, instead the "subject" of the letter is all caps - no signature block, type the sender's name in all caps

What are the seven basic parts of a business letter? ____

1. heading or letterhead 2. dateline 3. inside address 4. salutation 5. message 6. complimentary close 7. signature line

_____ consists of the logo, full legal name of the firm or company or the individual and address.

heading or letterhead

____ specifies the day when the letter was written. It consists of the month, the day of the months and the year. This may be typed two to four spaces below the last line of the letterhead.

dateline

_____ consists of the name and address of the person or the firm to whom the letter is written. It is typed three lines below the date. It is single spaced internally.

inside address

_____ is the greetings of the letter that provides the courteous opening. It is typed two lines beneath the inside address.

salutation

____ embodies the text of the message and usually the longest part of the letter.

message

A business letter is never handwritten. It begins two lines after the salutation.

message

____ is a short, polite closing and ends with a comma. It is typed two lines below the message.

complimentary close

Two signature are needed -- the printed and the penned signature. It is types four spaces below the complimentary close.

signature line