Business communication
parts of business letter 2
Parts of a business Letter
The Head address: It is the name of the company printed in the centre of the page with the detailed address, telephone number. Where 2 addresses are to be
indicated, the name of the head office and the branch sending the letter , the branch address will be at the top and the head address is printed at the bottom of
the page.
Contents: name of the organization, nature of the business, detailed telephone numbers, telegraphic code no. some companies also print their emblem .it
should not occupy more than one fifty of the total space of the letter
Significance: return address
Telephone number
Nature of the business
Note: ( when there is no printed letter head it is customary to write the full inside address on the top right hand side of the page)
 The Date: It is usually types three spaces below the last line of the sender’s address in the following manner
 In full block and N.O.M.A forms left hand side, centre in the B.F.G form.
 Contents: In the U.S. date is written as August 30, 2008 and in England 30th August, 2008.never write 6/ 08/08.
 Significance: legal function, you know when the letter was written and when a transaction took place
Reference Number
 Position: it is typed slightly above or below or in a line with the date but on the opposite side some companies print letter heads which clearly
indicate where the number is to be filled in.
 Contents: eg.1. Your reference:
Our Reference:
2. Ref. No
3. R.N.
It contains letters of the alphabet and numbers, depending upon the system of filing in a company. It sometimes also indicates the initials of the person who
has sent out the letter or the department from which it is sent
Significance: filing correspondence’
Helps to trace previous correspondence.
The Confidential Notation
 Position: optional part and used only when the contents of the letter are meant solely for and exclusively for one person.
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typed below the reference line on the left hand side
 Always remember if it is typed in the letter is must also be typed on the envelope.
 Contents: Confidential/Private/Personal.
 Significance: Is not opened by the staff but received by the person whose name is written. Useful incase of character of employees, status
enquiries, high level policy decisions.
The Inside Address
 Position: the full name of the person, firm or company to whom you are addressing the letter is written two spaces below the level of the date and
two spaces above the salutation and the attention line in the left hand margin. It may be typed in the indented form or the block form like in the
US. It is no longer the right thing to write “ To” before the address.
 Contents: name of the person, his designation, name of the company or firm and its full postal address. The same details should be typed on the
envelope
 Significance: filing for future reference becomes easy’
 Important when window envelopes are used.
The Attention Line
 Position: when used, the Attention line is to be placed two spaces below the inside address and two spaces above the salutation. It is usually
written in the centre of the page . It may be used with or without the subject line.
 Contents: contains the name of the person to whom the letter writer would like to go in the company or firm. It is underlined and can be used in
one of the following ways:
 Attention of Mr. Patel
 Attention: Mr. Patel
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Confidential: Attention Personnel Manager
 Personal Attention of Mr. Patel.
 Remember that since attn line is used to draw the attention of a particular person the inside address should be of a general nature.: the ABC
Company Ltd.
 Significance: To attract attention from a particular individual
The Salutation
 Position: Left hand side below the inside address or Attention line. It is typed flush with the margin and is never indented. IN NOMA form it is
omitted.
 Contents: Greeting the person
 Sir, ( when subordinates write to their superiors, very formal)
 Dear Sir/ Madam ( when addressing individual officers in an organization
 Sirs/ Dear Sirs
 Gentlemen: ( U.S.)
 Dear Mr. Patel,( Used when business relations are friendly)
 My dear Mr. Patel,( Used when relations are very friendly or close… very rare)
 Respected Sir,( No longer used in business letters only while applying for a job
 May it please your Excellency: ( formal way of addressing presidents, prime ministers)
 Dear Customer, Dear Reader,( used in Circular letters)
 Significance: Traditional way of greeting the reader of the letter
 It gives a clue as to the relationship between the letter writer and the reader.
The Caption Line/ The Subject Line
 Position: It is placed below the salutation just above the body of the letter. In full block form it is typed on the left hand side but in all other forms
in the centre of the page.
 Contents: Short title to the letter. It consists of three letters Re: , Ref. or Subj: Ref can only be used in connection with some written
communication
 Ref: Your letter dated July 3, 2008.
 In the US Re, Ref considered unnecessary and they use a heavy underline.. This is placed above the salutation
Business communication
parts of business letter 2
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Significance: reader understands at a glance what the letter is all about
Filing purposes.
The Body of the Letter
 Position: The letter itself , in paragraph form begins a space or two below the Caption line. When the Caption line is placed above the salutation it
is typed two spaces below the Caption line.
The first line will be indented in each paragraph. No indenting is done in the Full Block form, modified and the N.O.M.A. Forms.
Paragraphs are indicated by extra spacing between them. If the letter is very long it should be indicated on a separate sheet of paper. It is bad manners to type
on the reverse side of the page.
Body of the letter
 Contents: A good business letter builds itself around its central idea. If a banker is writing to a furniture manufacturer regarding the poor quality
furniture manufactured by him he cannot in the same letter ask him to collect his pass book. The latter information should be stated seperately on
another letter.
 The beginning is important. Let the reader know from the very first sentence what the letter is about. Use short paragraphs. The usual form of
letter is in the first paragraph we write about any previous correspondence, second the main message, third elaborate and fill in the details and the
last what action is to be taken and your expectations.
 The “ You attitude” should always be used while drafting letters.
 Negatives like cannot and impossible should be avoided.
 Significance: It is the most important part of the letter. All the other parts are relevant because they make the body easier and more convenient.
The Complimentary Close
 Position: It is polite way of saying “ good bye” It is typed two or three spaces below the last line of the body of the letter. In the full block form it
is typed to the right of the centre and in the NOMA form it is omitted altogether.
 Contents: It must match the salutation. Thus formal salutations like Sir, Dear Sir take the formal close like Yours faithfully and yours truly. Dear
Mr, will take a less formal close like Yours cordially or vsery truly yours. The complimentary close is followed by a comma. A common mistake
in India is to put apostrophe before “ s” , Your’s in INCORRECT.
 Significance: It helps to add a polite touch to the letter and shows the relationship between the correspondents.
The Signature
 Position: It is written four lines below the complimentary close. In the full block form it is written to the left of the page and in the other forms to
the right of the centre. In the NOMA form it is written on the left hand side just a space or two below the last line of the last paragraph.
 Contents: It consists of the a. Handwritten sign of the person sending the letter, b. full name of the person in person or type, c. The name of the
company or firm in capital letters. This can be omitted if already mentioned on the letter head. In case of partnership firm, Shah and Patel
P.B.Shah.
In case of limited company
The Bharat Forge Co, Ltd.
S. Narayan
Secretary.
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The Pro Signature: BY the agency can be used only if they have been given power of
attorney to the person signing.
Yours faithfully,
per pro The Bharat Forge Co ltd.
Sign
Regional manager
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A power of attorney is said to exist where one person has by a written document been appointed to act on behalf of another person. We can use
p.p or p. also. Where a written document does not exist a junior agent can sign “ for”.
Yours faithfully,
for The Bharat Forge Co ltd.
Sign
Sinificance: It is a proof that the person signing has written what he has in the body of the letter.
Enclosures
Position: It must be typed a space or two below the signature in the left margin.
Contents: Information about additional papers sent along with the letter.if more than one paper is enclosed then we can indicate the exact number
: Encl: 4.
Encls: 1. Cheque
2. Demand Draft
3. Transport receipt.
 Significance: This is very important for the clerk. If it is indicated then he will extract them safely.
Copy to the notation
 Position: It is typed two spaces below the Enclosure notation, in the left margin. Though very few companies use carbon copies , the phrase has
remained as an indication that a copy of the letter is being sent out to another person.
 Contents: When we send identical copy of the original letter we use the abbreviation c.c.. When a frest letter id typed we have to write cop: When
we send identical copy of the original letter we use the abbreviation c.c.. When a frest letter id typed we have to write copy to
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c.c. The President
Wool Merchant’s Association
Shepwool Street
Kanpur
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b.c. This means blind or blank copy is sometimes used before an address. When an existing copy has to be sent to a third party without informing
the recipent of the original letter.
Significance: This is important for filing.
Initials of the Dictator and typist.
Position: This is typed at the end of the letter always in the left margin.
Business communication
parts of business letter 2
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Contents: The initials of the dictator are typed first followed by the initials of the typist. Initials of the dictator should be in capital letters and that
of the typist in small letters.
PRST/tm, T.W./p.r.,PT im,M:j
Significance: this is imp from the point of view of the sender of the letter. In business houses it becomes necessary to pinpoint responsibilityfor letters that
are sent out and for future investigation of any mistakes in them.
The Post script
 P.S. has no place in a business letter. It is only permissible if information is received at the last minute and has to be inserted in the letter. When
P.S. is used it must be initialed or signed by the letter writer to show that it has not been added by someone else.
Superscription
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It means that which is written on the top or the outside. The details written on the envelope. The details are:
Name and address of the addressee
Name and address of the sender
Mailing instructions, “Quick Mail”, Registered A.D.
Attention line to draw the attention of the person.