Dear readers, here we are presenting you a few writing tips and format of Business Letter Writing , which will be important for upcoming SBI PO exam.
A business letter, as the name suggests, is a letter which has a formal tone and is used for business purposes. Apart from this, business letters are also written for conveying messages to people who we do not know personally. This makes the business letter different from the usual casual or informal letter.
While writing a business letter, a person has to follow certain rules. One of the most important rules is that it should be short and concise. Businessmen do not have the time to read long letters and hence, the letter should not be more than a page i.e., with maximum 2-3 paragraphs. Apart from this, you have to follow a unique format for business letters, which differs to a large extent from informal letters.
Business Letter Writing Tips:
It will be a good idea to gather some crucial information on the things that you have to keep in mind while writing a business letter. Here, you will find some important tips for the same.
Sender’s address and date: According to the rules, it is important to begin the letter with the address and other contact details of the sender. Followed by this, one has to mention the date on which the letter is written.
Recipient’s name and address: After you have written the date, you have to mention the recipient’s name and full address. This should come 4-6 lines after the date.
Salutation: Once you are done with the address of the recipient, you have to begin the letter with a salutation. The salutation should have a greeting word or phrase followed by a personal title – Mr./Ms. – and the full name of the person. Some of the letter salutations that you can use for business letters include Dear (full name), Dear Sir/Madam, etc. If you do not know the name of the recipient, it would be best to begin with To Whomsoever It May Concern.
Subject: After the salutation comes the subject line where you have to mention the purpose of the letter in short. Make sure that the subject line is in upper-case characters and is aligned either to the left or to the center.
Body: The body of the letter can have 2-3 paragraphs. In the introduction, talk about the reason for writing the letter and in the following paragraphs, you can give the necessary details. It is important to maintain double-line spaces between paragraphs when you are writing a business letter.
Complimentary closing: Once you finish writing the letter, you have to end it with a complimentary closing. Some of the closings include Respectfully Yours, Sincerely, etc. Leave four blank spaces after the complimentary closing and then, write your full name. The blank space should be used to sign your name.
Enclosure: If you have enclosed some document with your letter, it is important for you to mention it just below your name. Leave two spaces and write ‘Enclosure’ or ‘Enclosures’ below it. If you have attached more than one enclosure, do not forget to mention the correct number in brackets.
BUSINESS LETTER FORMAT:
Address
Telephone Number
Email Address
Date
Recipient’s Name
Address
Dear Mr./Ms. (Recipient’s Full Name),
Subject: (PURPOSE OF THE LETTER)
In the first paragraph, you can introduce yourself, if the recipient does not know you. After this, mention the purpose of the letter. (Use Double Paragraph Spacing)
In the second paragraph, give out the details i.e., the facts that support the statement you made in the first paragraph. You can end the letter with this paragraph or you can have another one, if the information you want to convey does not fit in this paragraph. Complete the letter by thanking the recipient for taking out time to read the letter.
Respectfully Yours,
(Your Signature)
(Your Name)
