Chapter One Business Letters (商务信函) business_letter_外贸函电_百

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2023年12月16日发(作者：)

Chapter One Business Letters (商务信函)

1.1 Introduction

Business letter is the most frequently used form of communication. Business executives are

supposed to write good business letters as to carry out business routine efficiently.

All business letters have two main functions. One is to ask for and give a reply to an enquiry,

offer, order or complaint. The other one is to keep a record of all the important facts for ready

reference. An effective business letter will say what the writer wants it to say clearly and simply.

A business letter that is neat, easy to read, and present a professional image will leave a good

impression on the reader.

1.2 Writing Guide

1.2.1 The Essentials of Business Letter Writing——7 “Cs” principles

Clarity清晰 : Try to express yourself clearly. Keep in mind the purpose of the letter; Use

appropriate words in correct sentence structures; Avoid ambiguous sentences.

Conciseness简洁 : Say things in the fewest possible words. Try to avoid wordiness or redundancy.

Courtesy 礼貌: Not mere politeness. Always keep in mind the person we are writing to, see

things from his point of view, visualize him in his surroundings, see his problems and

difficulties and express our ideas in terms of his experience.

Consideration 体谅: It emphasizes You-attitude rather than We-attitude.

Keep the reader’s request, needs, desires, as well as his feelings in mind.

Correctness 正确: Appropriate and grammatically correct language, factual information and

accurate reliable figures, as well as the right forms and conventions.

Concreteness 具体: Make the message specific, definite and vivid.

Completeness 完整: Provide all the information and data necessary for a specific issue.

1.2.2 The Structure of business letters

Letterhead

信头 The letterhead indicates the name, address, telephone, fax number and E-mail

address of the company sending the letter. Many companies use letterhead stationery. If letterhead

stationery is not available, you can type the heading, which includes a return address, and leaves about

a two-inch top margin.

Reference 编号 The reference may include a file number, department code or the initials of the

signer followed by that of the typist of the letter. Type the reference number below the letterhead in

short form as“Our ref.:”for the sender’s reference number, and “Your ref.:” for the recipient’s. The purpose of this is to facilitate filing of the letter, link it with previous correspondence.

Date

日期 There is no rule for the date placement. If you use letterhead stationery, place the date

one to three blank lines beneath the letterhead. If without letterhead, place the date immediately below

the return address. Writing date in English goes in two styles:

American Style-- The standard order: month, day, year. Example: September 12, 2008.

British Style --The standard order : day, month, year. Example: 12 September, 2008.

Mailing or In-house Notation

邮递方式 Mailing notation shows the specific means of delivery for

the convenience of verification. Besides there are two other commonly used forms of mailing notation,

e.g. by courier and by EMS. Type them two lines below the date and in all capital Letters.

Mailing notations: e.g. “special delivery”, ”airmail”, ”registered mail”, “certified mail”

In-house notations: e.g. “personal”, “confidential”.

Inside name and address

封内名称及地址 It should include some or all parts of the following:

the name of the recipient, the department name, company name, suite or room number, street address,

city, postcode, state/province and country. It appears on the left margin and usually starts two to four

lines below the date. It appears exactly the same way as on the envelope.

Precede the addressee’s name with a courtesy title (such as Mr., Ms. or Dr.) The person’s

job title can be placed on the same line of the person’s name, or on the line below.

e.g.: （1）Mr. Dick Eaton, President （2）Ms. Patricia T. Higgins

Assistant Vice President

If the name of a specific person is unavailable, you may address the letter to the department,

followed by the name of the company.

e.g.: （1）Customer Service Department

Acme Construction Company

Attention Line

主送，The attention line is used to name the specific individual the letter is addressed

to. It is usually placed between the inside address and the salutation or within the inside address and

centered over the body of a letter in the indented style. Its abbreviation is Attn.. It suggests that the

sender hopes the letter receives the immediate attention of a certain person or a specific department.

Salutation

称呼 The salutation is the polite greeting with which a letter begins. Place it two

lines below the inside address. The salutation should correspond to the first line of the inside address,

The customary formal greeting in a business letter is “Dear Sir” or “Dear Madam” used for

addressing one person; and “Dear Sirs”, “Dear Mesdames” or “Gentlemen” for addressing two or

more people. If the addressee is known to you personally, a warmer greeting such as “Dear Mr.

Smith” is preferred. Quite often now companies are owned and /or managed by women, and it is

more and more customary to use the greeting: Dear Madam or Sir, if you are not sure whether the

letter will be read by a man or a woman. If the addressee is a group, use “Ladies and Gentlemen”. Or

you may use a polite description, such as “Dear Friends”, “Dear SPA supporters”. End the salutation

with a colon, or a comma.

Subject Line/Caption

标题或事由 The subject line is the general idea of a letter. It calls

recipients’ attention to the topic of the letter. It is often inserted between the salutation and the body

of a letter, usually two lines below the salutation. It is also useful as a guide for filing. Some

companies omit the word “Subject:”, some replace it with “Re:” or “re:” (meaning “regarding”),

and some underline the subject line. The following forms are commonly used:

SUBJECT: SALES CONFIRMATION NO. 5678 FOR 300MT OF SOYBEAN OIL

Subject: Sales Confirmation NO. 5678 for 300Metric Tons of Soybean Oil

Body

正文 This is the most important part of a letter. It expresses your idea, opinion, purpose and

wishes, etc. It usually begins one or two lines below the salutation. Lines within a paragraph should be

single-spaced and double-spaced between paragraphs.

Complimentary Close

结束敬语 The complimentary close is purely a matter of custom and a

polite way of bringing a letter to a close. It appears one or two lines below the last line of the body.

Capitalize the first word and end with a comma. The main words in complimentary closure are as

follows: sincerely, faithfully, cordially, respectfully and truly. These words may appear in any of these

combinations: Your sincerely, Sincerely yours.

Signature

签名 The writer’s signature consists of a handwritten signature and a typewritten

signature. Type the name under the complimentary closing, leaving enough blank lines (usually leave

three blank lines) to sign your name. Never “sign” with a seal or stamp. Then type the signature

identification and title. The writer’s signature should be placed between the complimentary closure

and the typed signature.

Multiple-Page Letter Heading

多页信的标题 When typing a multiple-page letter, use letterhead

for the first page. The following page or pages should have the same quality, size and color as the first

page. The multiple-page heading bears the name of the recipient or his/her organization, the page

number, and the date.

Reference Initials

主办人代号 Consisting of the signer’s initials in capitals followed by a slash

or colon followed by the lowercase initials of the person preparing the letter, this item serves as

reminder of who prepared the letter. It should be placed at the left margin, two or three lines below

the signature. When you type your own letter, don’t use initials. When the signature block includes

the writer’s name, use only the typist’s initials. Reference initials are usually given in the form of

“author’s initials/typist initials”, or “author’s initials: typist initials”.

Enclosure Notation

附件 When there is something enclosed with the letter, type the word

“Enclosure”, or an abbreviation of it （Encl.） in the bottom left-hand, a double spaces under the

reference initials, with a figure indicating the number of enclosures, if there are more than one.

You can use any of the following styles:

Encl. :

Enclosure:

1. Purchase Order No. 1234

2. Check No. 123

Carbon copy Notation

抄送 When you send a copy of the letter to a third person, place a notation

directly below the enclosure notation or reference initials. The copy notation is indicated with “C.C.”,

or “c.c.” which is a holdover from the days of carbon copies. Many companies are now using “P.C.”

(for photocopy).

Postscript/P.S. 附言 If you wish to add something you forget or for emphasis, you may usually add

the postscript two lines below the carbon copy notation. Postscript may be preceded by “P. S.”, but

this is not strictly necessary. In business letters, postscript is not commonly used, while in

personal letters, it frequently appears. This item is usually used in the informal styles of letters.

The adding of a P.S. should, however, be avoided as far as possible, since it can appear as

afterthoughts, indicating a lack of planning. But studies show that postscripts are one of the first things

people read and remember, especially when it is handwritten. It sometimes serves the purposes as a

message that requires emphasis, or as a personal note.

Look at the following example to see where the different parts go in a business letter.

P.S.: You get 5% discount if you book the space by the end of this month.

1.2.3 The Formats of a business letter

There are various ways in which the component parts of a business letter can be laid out on the page.

Choice of letter format is a matter of individual taste, but it is better to follow established practice, to

which the business world has become accustomed. A good plan to make correct practice habit is to

adopt one form of letter format and stick to it. The three main formats are as follows.

1. Blocked Format With this letter style, all letter parts begin at the left margin. Because this

style can save the typist’s time, so it has come to be much widely used and preferred now. The loss of

clarity occasioned by the absence of indentations may be made good by increasing the number of

separating line-spacing between paragraphs.

2. Semi-blocked Format Like blocked format, all letter parts begin at the left margin, except the

dateline, complimentary closing, company signature and writer’s identification, which are set against

the right-hand margin. They are placed in this position for filing and reference purposes. It is also

named as a modified blocked format.

3. Indented Format The indented format may follow the same layout as either the blocked or

semi-blocked formats, but will differ in that the paragraphs will each be indented by four or five

spaces. It is a traditional format, especially in Britain.

1.2.4 The Format of envelopes The envelope should match the stationery in color and style.

Most companies have the return address in the upper-left corner of the envelope, giving the same

information as the letterhead. Otherwise you must type or write your return address the same way as

you do for the inside address, usually in smaller typeface than the name and address of the receiver.

Name and address of the receiver is always single-spaced with all lines aligned on the left, and

they should be in all capital letter, with no punctuation at the end of each line. The order in writing the

address is from the smallest division to the largest, just opposite to the Chinese custom in writing

addresses.

The in-house notation is placed three lines down the return address and is in all capital letters.

The stamp is put at the upper right corner of the envelope with mailing notation, if there are any, given

in all capital letters below the stamp.

The format of the address on the envelope can be in blocked or indented style, but it is better to

keep the same format with the inside address of the letter.

1.3 Letters for example

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