Week 7
• Writing Personal Business Letters
• Personal business letters are an important type of business
correspondence.
• These letters and notes express:
– Thanks
– Congratulations
– Condolences
• They show concern and establish a social link between the
writer and the recipient.
• For some occasions, such as birthdays and holidays, most
business people do not write letters. They send greeting cards
and add a short, personal note.
• Before you write the letter, make sure you have all the right
information. These letters are very important to the
relationship between the writer and the recipient.
Week 7
– A. Getting Started
• 1. Read the e-mails between an executive and her
assistant. They discuss several personal business
letters.
• 2. Complete the December calendar.
Week 7
– B. Model Letter: Expressing Thanks
• Look at the different elements of a letter expressing thanks.
– Useful language
• Thank you for ______ .
• I hope to see you soon.
• Again, thank you for ______ .
Week 7
– C. Composing Your Message
– The body of a letter expressing thanks generally has
four parts.
• Part 1, Opening
– Content: Tell why you are writing.
» Ex: Thank you for referring us to Xenest Industries.
• Part 2, Focus
– Content: Give specific information.
» Ex: I met with Tae Yun last week in Beijing.
…………………………………………………..
Week 7
– C. Composing Your Message
• Part 3, Action
– Content: Show appreciation.
» Ex: I hope to see you soon in Beijing so I can thank you
personally for your introduction.
• Part 4, Closing
– Content: Restate the main idea.
» Ex: Again, thank you for putting me in touch with your
contacts in Beijing.
» Practice 2
» Write O for Opening, F for Focus, A for Action, or C for
Closing.
Week 7
– That’s Good Business
• Keep a list of major holidays in the countries where
you have clients.
• When you mention the holiday or send an
appropriate card, you show your clients that you
care about them.
Week 7
– D. Model Letter: Expressing Congratulations
• Look at the different elements of a letter expressing
congratulations.
– Useful language
• Congratulations on ______ .
• All of us are pleased that ______ .
• We look forward to continuing our working relationship with
you.
• Again, congratulations ______ .
Week 7
– E. Composing Your Message
– The body of a letter expressing congratulations generally has four
parts.
• Part 1, Opening
– Content: Tell why you are writing.
» Ex: Congratulations on your promotion to Vice President.
……………………………………..
• Part 2, Focus
– Content: Personalize the information and be positive.
» Ex: When we first heard that Abbas Zaki resigned, we
immediately thought of you for the position.
………………………..
Week 7
– E. Composing Your Message
• Part 3, Action
– Content: Refer to the future.
» Ex: We look forward to continuing our working
relationship with you and your bank.
• Part 4, Closing
– Content: Restate the main idea..
» Ex: Again, congratulations from all of us here at
SecurityNow.com
…………………………………………………..
Week 7
» Practice 4
» Read these opening sentences for letters of
congratulation. Then circle the letter of the closing
sentence that best restates the main idea of the letter.
– Well Said
• The salutation and signature for a personal note
should be more personalized and less businesslike
than a standard business letter.
• In the salutation, address the person as if you were
speaking to him or her directly.
Week 7
– Writing you Message
• Giving Praise
– When you praise someone in a letter of congratulations, be
specific. Avoid less specific words like really, good, great, very,
and a lot.
» Practice 5
» Choose the sentence that is more specific.
– Well Said
• A personal note may be handwritten or typed, but it should
always be signed by hand.
• A name stamp, computer-generated signature, or general
signing, such as “From All of Us” may seem impersonal.
Week 7
– F. Model Letter: Expressing Condolences
• Look at the different elements of a letter expressing
condolences.
– Useful language
• I’m sorry to hear ______ .
• Please accept my condolences.
• Please know that I’ll also be keeping you in my thoughts.
Week 7
– G. Composing Your Message
– The body of a letter expressing condolences generally
has four parts.
• Part 1, Opening
– Content: Tell why you are writing.
» Ex: I’m sorry to hear of your father’s death. …..
• Part 2, Focus
– Content: Share you thoughts.
» Ex: I know that it is impossible to prepare for the loss
of a parent.
Week 7
– G. Composing Your Message
• Part 3, Action
– Content: Offer a suggestion.
» Ex: I’m sure you have many good memories of your
father, and when you think of him, you can take
comfort in these memories.
• Part 4, Closing
– Content: Restate the main idea.
» Ex: Please accept my condolences. ………………
……………………….……………………………
Week 7
– Personal versus Professional
• When sending a letter of condolence to a business associate,
you can make the letter personal by using I or professional by
using we. We includes you associates at work.
» Practice 7
» Rewrite the sentences. Change the focus of the sentences
from professional to personal.
– That’s Good Business
• In a personal business letter, a writer who knows the recipient
well may use an informal style.
• For example, you can use a first name followed by a comma in
the salutation (Dear Jeong-tae,) and you can use contractions
(I’m),
Week 4
– Writing Your Message
• Prepositions
– Be careful bit to use the preposition to where you should use at
or of.
» Practice 8
» Circle the prepositions in the sentences. If the preposition is
wrong, correct it using at or of. Not all the prepositions are
wrong.
– Well Said
• Words are often abbreviated in short, informal messages
especially between friends and co-workers
–
–
–
–
you can become u
with can become w/
by the way can become BTW
congratulations can become congrats
Week 7
– Homework Assignment
» Write a personal business letter for one of the
following situations.
» 1. Write a letter of condolences to wife of Peter
Kovalenko.
» 2. Write a letter of congratulation to Pressman
company for their 50th anniversary
» 3. Please look definitions of these words in the
glossary at the end of the book: a). Boxing Day , b).
Christmas, c). Hanukkah, d). Kwanzaa, e). New
Year’s Eve, f). Ramadhan, g). commitment, h). drop
by, h). mention, i). resignation, j). sponsor, k).
strengthen, l). ties.