Writing Business Letters - 2

Today business communication gains more popularity, becoming gradually more informal as the Internet along with electronic media becomes an important aspect in business contacts. Although it is no longer a surprise to receive an electronic business message from an unknown person but addressed to you by your first name, in business, writing letters is still very important and thus a person needs to know the basic rules of writing a formal business letter. It is important to be aware of the fact that the tone of a business letter directly depends of the way to address to the correspondent. 

It is often better to omit the formality in case you have never met your correspondent or never had any dealings with the person you're writing to. However, those who speak French should be cautious and shun from starting a business letter with such simple greetings as Sir or Madam. This is because such greetings sound extremely cold. However, if the letter does start with Sir or Madam it is more likely to be a complaint. The most common forms of addressing are Dear Sir, Dear Mr. Smith or Dear John. You should avoid starting a business letter with Dear Mr. John Smith.

In French you should mention the job title of the person you address your business letter. In English commercial correspondence you do not mention the job title of the addressee. However, you may write a business letter to a Chairman of a company by writing Dear Chairman, but this is probably the only case where job title can be mentioned. This is why it is very important to mention the job title of the addressee under the individual's name in the firm's address.
The beginning of a business letter

You may consider stating an official business letter by writing:

- Dear Sirs (in case you address your letter to a company rather than a certain individual within the company).
- Dear Sir or Madam (in case you do not know the name of the individual who will receive your message).

- Dear Sir, Dear Madam (in case you are aware of the person's name but decide to remain formal).

- Dear Mr, Mrs, Ms, or Miss Smith (in case you know the name of the person you address the letter to or you have a formal relationship with the individual; if you write to a woman and don't know her marital status you should use Ms; but be aware that though it sounds formal, not all women like such addressing)

- Dear John (in case your business correspondent is a friend or a close person).

- Sir, Madam (this form of addressing is usually used for formal complaints, to state anger, for legal communications and the like).

Writing a reference

When writing a reference you have several options:

- "With reference to": "your advertisement", "your letter of September 6", "your telephone call", "your enquiry".

- "Thank you for your": "letter of 5th May", "enquiry", "offer”. 

The motive for writing a business letter:

When you want to mention the reason for writing your message, you may use the following forms:
"I am writing to": "enquire about", "confirm", "inform", "apologize for".
Making a request:

In case you want to make a certain request you may use the expression: "I would be grateful if you could".

Refusal

Please consider using the following expressions when stating a refusal or providing bad news: "unfortunately", "I'm afraid that", "I regret".

Enclosing:
When enclosing certain documents please consider using the following: "I enclose ...", "Please find enclosed…"

Closing:

When closing a business letter you may use the following expressions: "Thanking you in advance", 
"Thank you for your help", "Please contact us again if:" "you need additional information", "you have any questions".

You may also consider ending the letter with: "I look forward to:" "hearing from you soon", "meeting you next Thursday".
Your business letter may end with the following expressions:

If you write to an unknown correspondent:

- "Yours faithfully" (if you started the letter with "Dear Sir/Madam")

- "Yours truly" (if you started the letter with "Dear Sir or Madam")

- "Truly yours" (if you started the letter with "To whom it may concern")

If you write to a man or woman whose name you don't know:

- "Yours faithfully", "Yours truly", "Truly yours".

If you write to a person whose name you don't know:

- "Yours sincerely", "Very truly yours", "Sincerely (yours)".

If you write to a close person or a man or woman whom you know personally:

- "(With) Best wishes", "Yours", "Love", "All the best", "Kindest/Best regards".