4.4 business letters

an individual. E.g.: Letterhead Date Inside address Attention of Mr. Smith（请史密斯先生过目) Salutation Re Delay in Delivery of Goods. （货品交付推延事宜）
Letterhead Date Inside address Attention: Mr. Smith（请史密斯先生过目) Salutation Subject: 100 Tons Canadian Flour （主题：加拿大面粉100吨） Body
The salutation（称呼）: The most common salutation: Dear XX The given name or surname? Depends on the relationship between the writer and the recipient. In a business letter: surname. Use Ms. when addressing a woman, unless previous correspondence indicates she prefers the title Mrs. or Miss. Dear Professor/Prof. Smith: Dear Mr. Johnson,
Sincerely yours, JOHN BROWN & CO. signature John Brown President P.S. I have just received your letter of July 10, for which I will write you later after full investigation. Encl. —— Invoice. JB/MS
The Subject Line: The subject line describes the purpose for writing a letter. It is used when the writer wants to draw thereader’s attention to the contents of the letter. It is particularly helpful if recipients, such as government agencies, receive a volume of correspondence. This line is right below the salutation, at the center place. It is often underlined to draw the reader’s attention and “Re” or “Subj.” is often used in front of the line.
Type on the right-hand margin. E.g. 17 Philpot Lane, London, E.C. 3 25 April, 2008 or 17 Philpot Lane, London, E.C. 3 25 April, 2008 (伦敦市东部中三区菲尔勃街17号)
Business letters
More formal than social letters Neatly typed Signed by hand in ink
13 parts (6 basic parts)
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. the heading the inside address the salutation the body the complimentary close the signature
The Body of the Letter: the content of the letter. All paragraphs should begin flush with the left margin (the block style) or begin with an equal indention (the indented style). Singspaced between paragraphs. (see word example)
The inside address: containing everything necessary for delivery of correspondence: the name, job title, company name, street adrress or post office box number, and the city, state, and Zip Code. The inside address should be single-spaced and placed at the left-hand margin. The Attention Notice or Particular Addressee（特别指定阅信人）: an attention line is used when correspondence is addressed to a company but sent to the attention of
complimentary closing and the typed name of the writer for a signature.E.g.: Example 1 (The most common style): LEVER BROTHERS COMPANY signature Sales Department Example 2: signature Manager AMERICAN MOTORS, INC. （美国汽车股份有限公司经理 某某）
Enclosure（附件）: Enclosure is often written out. More than one enclosure can be noted as: Enclosure （函内附件） Encls ——2（函内二件附件） Encl ——cheque（附支票一张）
Carbon Copy Notation（副本标记）: The shortened form is “cc”. Since carbons are obsolete in many offices, the notations “pc” for photocopy and “c” for copy are commonly used. The notation “bcc” or “bc” is used for blind copies (the copies that the recipient of the document will not necessarily know about). Postscript（附言）: often shortened (P.S.). Initials below.
The Complimentary Close（结尾客套 语）: Sincerely, (most common) Sincerely yours, Truly yours, Cordially yours, Respectfully yours, (used when the letter is written to a high official) If a closing has more than one word, capitalize only the first word. The Signature: All letters should include the name and the title of the writer. Enough space should be left between the
The letter head（信头）: including the company’s name, address, telephone number, fax number, and web site. e.g. AMERICAN TRADING CORPORATION
11 EAST 26TH STREET NEW YORK 10, N. Y. (纽约州纽约市第10邮区东26街11号美国贸易公司)
Dear Dr. Stein, Dear Mrs. Black, Dear General Manager Smith: (wrong) To organizations or persons whose names you do not know, use： Dear Sir: Dear Madam: Dear Sir or Madam: Gentlemen,(pl) Dear Sirs, Dear Ladies, To whom it may concern, (敬启者：)
Example 3: CHICAGO DEPARTMENT STORE (Mrs.) signature Advertising Manager Initials（署名/责任字头）: The typist’s initials are often included but may be omitted. Use initials at the left margin and place them two lines below the writer’s title. Dictator: John Brown. Typist: Mary Smith. JB/MS JBMS JB:MS JB-MS B/S B-S
The reference and date: Reference Number （信件编号） is written for reference, quoting or filing. Its exact position is right below the writer’s address and above the date of the letter. It often consists of Our Ref. No. and Your Ref. No. e.g. In replying, please refer to 120（回信时， 请参照120） When replyingplease quote Our Ref. NO. 98. （回信时请附注我们的信件编号98。）