NEU
School of Business & Administration 2/Chapter 2
NEU
School of Business & Administration 3/Chapter 2
• Objectives be able to organise your writing.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 4/Chapter 2
Q1: Why do you organise
1) Easy to read and understand . (to receiver)
2) M ore likely to get the results you want . (to sender)
So, organising is as important as planning .
NEU
School of Business & Administration 5/Chapter 2
• Q2: How do you organise what you have planned?
preparing a clear outline arranging the contents to fit the outline .
NEU
School of Business & Administration 6/Chapter 2
• Main types of Correspondence internal correspondence (the messages you write to colleagues )
external correspondence (the messages you write to customers ).
NEU
School of Business & Administration 7/Chapter 2
NEU
School of Business & Administration 8/Chapter 2
• Try to discover the basic outline in most of your correspondence.
1)Read through the memo below
2)Identify what type of content each of the four paragraphs contains
NEU
School of Business & Administration 9/Chapter 2
MEMO
To: All Staff Date: 20 July 200X
From: General Manager Subject: Dress Code
① As you know, we have always enforced a strict dress code.
We have now revised this code.
② I would like to inform you of the changes.
③ The code for branch staff and office staff is different. As
I'm sure you will appreciate, there are no changes for branch staff. All branch staff must wear the correct uniform at all times. On the other hand, if you work in the office, you may wear 'smart-casual' wear. However, on any day that you do meet people from outside the company, please ensure you are dressed in a business-like manner.
④ Please adopt the new dress code from 1 September. If you have any questions, please call Annie Wong on 2344
7765.
School of Business & Administration 10/Chapter 2
①
As you know, we have always enforced a strict dress code. We have now revised this code.
background
②
I would like to inform you of the changes.
writer’s purpose
NEU
School of Business & Administration 11/Chapter 2
③
The code for branch staff and office staff is different. As I'm sure you will appreciate, there are no changes for branch staff. All branch staff must wear the correct uniform at all times. On the other hand, if you work in the office, you may wear 'smart-casual' wear. However, on any day that you do meet people from outside the company, please ensure you are dressed in a business-like manner.
reader’s information
NEU
School of Business & Administration 12/Chapter 2
④
Please adopt the new dress code from 1
September. If you have any questions, please call Annie Wong on 2344 7765.
reader’s response
NEU
School of Business & Administration 13/Chapter 2
Memo background writer’s purpose reader’s information reader’s response
Letter background writer’s purpose reader’s information reader’s response closing marks
NEU
School of Business & Administration 14/Chapter 2
• When writing to customers, you include a salutation (Dear...) and a complimentary close
(Yours sincerely / faithfully).
• When writing to customers, you add a polite closing. You can also add this closing when writing to colleagues .
NEU
School of Business & Administration 15/Chapter 2
• SOFAR Strategy it'll help you remember how to organise external correspondence.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 16/Chapter 2
Salutation
Dear Mr./Mrs./Ms./Miss...
Opening
Background + Purpose
Facts
Action
Remarks
Reader's Information
Reader's Response
Polite Closing
You can also use this outline for memos and internal e-mails. Just leave out the salutation .
NEU
School of Business & Administration 17/Chapter 2
• SALUTATION
Begins with ' Dear '.
Include the reader's name (e.g., Dear Mr. Chan,
Dear Ms. Lewis).
NEU
School of Business & Administration 18/Chapter 2
NEU
School of Business & Administration 19/Chapter 2
• OPENING
The O pening includes two parts (and usually two paragraphs): background (referring to previous contact with the reader or introducing a situation) writer's purpose
NEU
School of Business & Administration 20/Chapter 2
OPENING (BACKGROUND)
The background "sets the scene" by referring to a previous contact.
■ If you've had no previous contact with the reader, you should briefly describe the situation.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 21/Chapter 2
• EXAMPLES
1) Previous contact: Thank you for your call this morning.
2) A situation: Our annual staff party is coming soon!
3) An attention-grabbing statement or question:
Have you heard about...? Our Department Open
Day is coming soon!
NEU
School of Business & Administration 22/Chapter 2
Column A
With reference to your correspondence of 21
August...
Thank you for your call today about...
Regarding your request for credit approval...
Column B
Thank you for your letter of
21 August.
Further to our conversation earlier today...
I have just received your request for credit approval.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 23/Chapter 2
Sentences that begin with prepositions (e.g., with, in, further, for, following, regarding ) are difficult to write correctly. They are also quite long and therefore more difficult for your reader to understand.
So, keep your writing simple by writing shorter, more direct sentences .
NEU
School of Business & Administration 24/Chapter 2
OPENING (WRITER'S PURPOSE) announce complain confirm explain inform notify propose request suggest apologize
NEU
School of Business & Administration 25/Chapter 2
MEMO
To: All Staff Date: 20 July 200X
From: General Manager
Subject: Dress Code
As you know, we have always enforced a strict dress code.
We have now revised this code.
I would like to inform you of the changes.
The code for branch staff and office staff is different. As I'm sure you will appreciate, there are no changes for branch staff. All branch staff must wear the correct uniform at all times. On the other hand, if you work in the office, you may wear 'smart-casual' wear. However, on any day that you do meet people from outside the company, please ensure you are dressed in a business-like manner.
Please adopt the new dress code from 1 September. If you have any questions, please call Annie Wong on 2344 7765.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 26/Chapter 2
• Which sentence states the manager's purpose?
I would like to inform you of the changes.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 27/Chapter 2
• Read the two situations below
• Write an appropriate opening for each of them
Situation 1: Reply to a customer who called this morning asking for details about opening a new account.
Suggested answer:
Thank you for calling this morning asking about how to open a new account.
I am delighted to give you the details about opening a Premier account.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 28/Chapter 2
Situation 2: Reply to a customer's letter received yesterday. He want to know why delivery of his order is late.
Suggested answer:
Thank you for your letter of 28 April about the delivery of your order.
I apologise for the delay and would like to explain what has happened.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 29/Chapter 2
NEU
School of Business & Administration 30/Chapter 2
In this section, tell your reader how to respond?
when to respond?
NEU
School of Business & Administration 31/Chapter 2
• For example, if you are writing to invite someone to lunch, what do you want your reader to do?
Come to lunch, right? It may seem obvious to you, but you need to make it obvious to your reader, too. That will get the result you want.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 32/Chapter 2
Writer's
Purpose:
I'd like to invite you to lunch next Thursday.
Reader's
Response:
Please call by Tuesday and let me know if you can come.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 33/Chapter 2
What you want your reader to do depends on why you are writing.
Writer's purpose
Invite
Confirm
Inform
Request
Complain
Reader's response
Please call by Wednesday and let me know if you will be able to join us.
If we need to make any changes to the schedule, please let me know before
Friday.
Please adopt the new dress code from
1 September.
Please send your bid to us by 15 March.
Please deliver the delayed shipment within three days.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 34/Chapter 2
• REMARKS
When writing to customers, end politely and positively. Do this with just one sentence.
But be careful! Try to make your writing sound natural as if you were speaking to the reader face-to-face .
NEU
School of Business & Administration 35/Chapter 2
Have you ever written sentences like these? Would you actually say them to someone in person?
1) If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me.
2) Assuring you of our best attention at all times.
3) Thanking you in anticipation.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 36/Chapter 2
More natural ways to close a letter:
I look forward to hearing from you.
I look forward to receiving your order.
I hope this information is useful.
Please call me if you need any further information.
Please call me if you have any questions.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 37/Chapter 2
• In this chapter, you learned how to organise the contents.
• You learned that, when writing to colleagues or customers, you can follow a similar outline.
• SOFAR can help you remember the basic outline.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 38/Chapter 2
Salutation
Dear Mr./Mrs./Ms./Miss...
Opening
Background + Purpose
Facts
Action
Remarks
Reader's Information
Reader's Response
Polite Closing
NEU
School of Business & Administration 39/Chapter 2
There are 10 sentences and 3 other parts of a letter below. Please arrange them in the correct order .
1) Yours sincerely
2) May I suggest that you contact Mr. Ong directly.
3) I am sorry that I was not in the office when you rang.
4) We do have a branch in Singapore.
5) I hope this information is helpful.
6) Dear Mr. Rushford
7) The address is 54 Liu Fang Road, Jorong Town, Singapore.
8) Alex Ribero
9) I am pleased to provide the information you requested.
10) The manager is Mr. David Ong
11) He can provide you with the financial advice you are seeking.
12) Thank you for trying to contact me by phone yesterday.
13) His telephone number is 65 535 1234.
NEU
School of Business & Administration 40/Chapter 2
Dear Mr. Rushford(6)
Thank you for trying to contact me by phone yesterday.(12) I am sorry that I was not in the office when you rang.(3)
I am pleased to provide the information you requested.(9)
We do have a branch in Singapore.(4) The address is 54
Liu Fang Road, Jorong Town, Singapore.(7) The manager is Mr. David Ong(10) May I suggest that you contact Mr. Ong directly ? (2)
His telephone number is 65 535 1234.(13) He can provide you with the financial advice you are seeking.(11)
I hope this information is helpful. (5)
Yours sincerely(1)
Alex Ribero(8)
NEU
School of Business & Administration 41/Chapter 2
NEU
School of Business & Administration 42/Chapter 2