Commercial
Correspondence
COURS E INTRODUCTION
Instructor: Nguyễn Mai Hương, M.A.
Faculty of English for Specific Purposes, FTU
Handphone: 0912 726 217
Email:
Duration: 13 Jan – 14 March 2012
Workload: 3 classes/week
Exam date: 16 March 2012
Co URS E INTRODUCTION
Materials
The Language of Business
Correspondence in English
Nguyễn Trọng Đàn
Oxford Handbook of Commercial
Correspondence – A. Ashley
COURS E INTRODUCTION
Areas covered
Letter layout, content and style
Enquiries and replies to enquiries
Quotations /Offers
Orders
Complaints and adjustments
Commercial Correspondence
Unit 1
Letter Layout, Content and
Style
Letter Layout
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Sender’s address
References
Date
Inside address
Attention line
Salutation
Subject title
8. Body of the letter
9. Complimentary close
10. Sender’s
identification
11. Enclosures
12. Copies
7.
6
1 Sender’s
address
Bredgade 51
DK 1260
Copenhagen K
DENMARK
Usually: top right
hand corner
Less common : top
lefthand corner
No punctuation
7
1 Sender’s
Compuvision Ltd Warwick House
Warwick Street
Forest Hill
address
London SE23 1JF
Telephone +44 (0) 20 8566 1861
In company’s
letterhead
Facsimile +44 (0) 20 8566 1385
Email
www.comvis.co.uk
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2 References
At least one blank
line below the
sender’s address
or letterhead
Righthand side or
lefthand side of
the page
Bredgade 51
DK 1260
Copenhagen K
DENMARK
Your ref. 6 May 20__
Our ref. DS/MR
9
2 References
Can show:
• Initials of writer and
PA/secretary
DS/MR or DS/mr
• Number of the
letter or dept.
134/17 or DR 306
• The date or the
order number
ELECTRICAL SUPPLIES LTD
2931 Broad Street
Birmingham B1 2HE
Tel. 0121542 6614
DS/MR
10
3 Date
At least one blank
line below the
sender’s address or
reference
Bredgade 51
DK 1260
Copenhagen K
DENMARK
Your ref. 6 May 20__
Our ref. DS/MR
Date 11 May 20__
11
3 Date
Righthand side or
lefthand side
Always be shown
in full:
14 August 20__; or
August 14, 20__
ELECTRICAL SUPPLIES LTD
2931 Broad Street
Birmingham B1 2HE
Tel. 0121542 6614
DS/MR
12 November 20__
12
4 Inside
address
One to ten blank
lines below the
date and always
on the lefthand
side
Should be on
separate lines as it
would appear on
the envelope
ELECTRICAL SUPPLIES LTD
2931 Broad Street
Birmingham B1 2HE
Tel. 0121542 6614
DS/MR
12 November 20__
Mr Gordon Wood
G Wood & Sons
36 Castle Street
Bristol BS1 2BQ
13
4 Inside address
Surname known
Write it as first line of the inside address
Include:
Courtesy title: Mr, Mrs, Miss, Ms, Dr, Prof.
• The person’s full name (or with initials for
given names):
Mr John Smith or Mr J.E. Smith
NOT: Mr Smith (without initials or first name)
•
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4 Inside address
Name not known
If you only know the person’s job title, you
can use that in the inside address, e.g.
The Sales Manager, or The Finance Director
Alternatively, you can address to a particular
department: The Accounts Department
Or you can address to the company itself:
Compuvision Ltd, or Messrs Collier
15
5 Attention line
Alternative to the recipient’s name or job title in
the inside address.
Should be underlined or printed in bold or
CAPITALS, e.g.
For the attention of the Sales Manager
ATTENTION: MS TERRY ROBERTS
A blank line below the inside address.
Lefthand side or in the middle of the page.
16
6 Salutation
Addressing people you do not know their names:
Dear Sir
Dear Madam
Dear Sir or Madam (or Dear Sir / Madam)
Dear Sirs
(to address a company, not a specific person)
17
6 Salutation
Addressing people you know their names:
but do not know them well, use title & surname,
do not include initials or first names:
Dear Mr Smith / Dear Miss Brown
NOT Dear Mr J. Smith or Dear Mr John Smith
and you know them well, use just first name:
Dear John / Dear Mary
Note: A comma after the salutation is optional.
In American English, a colon is used
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instead.
7 Subject title
A blank line below the salutation.
Lefthand side or in the middle
Can begin with or without “Re:” or “Subject:”
Should be underlined or printed in bold or
CAPITALS
Dear Mrs Marshall
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE – 24 AUGUST 2011
or Re: ORDER NO. 8901/6
19
8 Body of the Letter
The actual message of your letter
Leave a line space between paragraphs
20
9 Complimentary close
Two most common closes:
Yours faithfully
Yours sincerely
Note: A comma after the
complimentary close is
optional.
when letter begins:
Dear Sir
Dear Sirs
Dear Madam
Dear Sir or Madam
Dear Mr Smith
Dear Mrs Bolan
Dear Caroline
Dear Sam
21
10 Sender’s identification
Type name and job title below handwritten
signature.
Can give either your initials or full name
DAVID JENKINS
Chairman
D. Jenkins
General Manager
Add a title for a female in brackets before
or after her name
Lesley Bolan (Mrs) (Ms) B. Kaasen
Sales Manager
Director
22
10 Sender’s identification
Job title or department directly beneath name
When signing a letter on behalf of the sender,
write “pp” or “p.p.” or “for” in front of the
sender’s printed name, e.g.
Yours faithfully
Shirley Johnson
pp Edward Nathan
Chairman
23
11 Enclosures
A line space below the sender’s identification
Consisting of the word: “Enc.” or “Encl.”
followed by a list of the enclosed items, e.g.
Enc. Bill of Lading (3 copies)
Insurance certificate (1 copy)
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12 Copies
At least a blank line below the sender’s
identification or the Enclosures
Consisting of the word: “C.C.” or “Copy”
followed by the name/s and designation/s of
the copy recipient/s, e.g.
C.C. Ravi Gopal, General Manager
Candice Reeves, Accountant
25