ORGANISATION AND TECHNIQUES FOR BUSINESS LETTERS

In the words of H.N. Casson,” A good letter serves as market key that opens locked
doors. It opens markets. It opens the way for your goods and services. It tells the story of
the real character of the firm.”

KINDS OF LETTERS
Letters written in daily life can be grouped under the following headings: -
PRIVATE LETTER
Private letters are those letters which are written on personal matters. Letters which pass
between father and son, wife and husband, relatives or friends can be classified as
’private letters’.

BUSINESS OR COMMERCIAL LETTERS

Such letters are exchanged between business houses. They also include the letters written
by the business houses to the government departure on various subjects such as making
representation, making compliments, requesting for license, etc.

OFFICE LETTERS
These include those which are excluded between government officials and official
matters. They also include the letters written by government officers to individuals, firms,
companies, institutions, etc.
The letter written by the government officials to another in an informal tone on an official
subject is known as demi-official (D.O.) letter.
BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE
Business correspondence refers to the letters which facilitates business transactions. A
modern businessman has to write large number of letters; and the larger the business the
greater the volume of the correspondence(letters). Letters are written when goods are
purchased and sold; when they are shipped and insured ; when complaints are received
and adjusted when accounts are opened and settled. Correspondence has today become
the indispensable institute of commerce. It has been well said that commercial
correspondence is the approach to commerce through the medium of letters, and the
function of traders correspondence with his customer is to open up and maintain business
relations, to introduce and conclude transactions, so that it may properly be regarded as
the mental side of commercial activity.

ESSENTIAL CHARACTERSTICS OF BUSINESS LETTER: -

A good letter is able to achieve the purpose for which it is written. A letter
accompanying a catalogue should succeed in persuading the address to make some
purchases. A letter adjusting the complaint must satisfy the complaint. The
effectiveness can be brought about only if the letter contains the following
features: -
1) Clarity
2) Coherence
3) Simplicity
4) Correctness
5) Completeness
6) Conciseness
7) Convincing
8) Courtesy
9) Originality
10) Appearance

CLARITY
Even sentences of the business letter should be clear and unambiguous. A
business letter is not a literary piece and should not read like an unseen
passage. Difficult words requiring dictionary or difficult constructions
requiring analysis, are altogether out of place. Flowery expression and poetry
language should also be avoided. everything should be said in an easy, simple
and direct manner. Then alone it can be so clear as to enable the reader to
understand it at once by a cursory reading. It must be remembered that a busy
trader has no time to go through a letter several times, study it thoroughly and
master its contents like a student preparing his lesson. He wants to know the
intention of the writer in simple, easy and few words. In particular, a letter
must not be ambiguous and open to tow or more interpretations. It should say
what it means. If the letter is vague or ambiguous, it may lead to further
correspondence or disputes, which should be avoided by a businessman.

THE LAYOUT OF BUSINESS

The layout of the business letter is a conventionally determined pattern. However,
these days the tendency is a adopt a friendly style. Although the choice of layout is
the matter of individual preference yet one should follow an established type or
form. As a business world is used to a particular for to avoid inconvenience,
confusion and wastage of time. A proper layout also gives the letter a formal look.
For a letter a formal look. For a letter, the single line spacing gives it a compact
look. For short letters, usually double line spacing is followed. Usually the type
script of subject matter determines the typing to begin. On the left hand, margin
should normally be about 3 cm. the lines must be carefully ended. There are
 various styles of layout for business letters. A proper layout gives the letter a
clarity in its look. The different styles used for business writing include the
following:
1) Fully indented style
2) Semi-indented style
3) Fully-Blocked style
4) Modified blocked style
5) The Hanging paragraph style
6) The Noma simplified style

1) FULLY INDENTED STYLE

In the fully indented style, the name and address and the paragraphs of the body
are five spaces indented. This is done to show the separation of paragraphs. On
both left hand and right-hand side margin of 3 cm is left. The letter is typed in
single line spacing. The subject heading is two-line spacing below the salutation
which is three line spacing below the inside name and address. The paragraphs are
separated by double line-spacing. The complimentary close begins at the center of
the typing line and the typed signature and designation follow ten spaces and five
spaces as is determined depending upon the length of the two. The inside address
is offset to give the letter a balance. In this form of layout each paragraph is
prominently displayed. Some do not like this style because of tis numerous
indentations. This style has been used so much that it has become old fashioned.

2) SEMI-INDENTED STYLE

It is a modified version of the fully, indented one. The inside name and address unlike
being five spaces (every time) is in a block form. The complimentary close and
designation both towards the right-hand margin. The punctuation adopted in this style is
of closed Pattern. This implies a free use of commas after salutation and complementary
close and after the name and address excepting the last line and the date. The blocked
inside name and address is liked by all because of its compactness and tidiness that it
yields the left-hand margin. The placement of complimentary close evenly across the
center of the typing line provides a matching counterpart to the inside name and address.

3) FULLY BLOCKED STYLE

This is a modern style and is widely used. All lines including dates, inside name and
address, subject line paragraph, complimentary close, signature start at the left-hand
margin. In this style, the open pattern of punctuation is used which implies none expect
essential punctuation mars are used outside the body. There is a complete absence of
punctuation marks from the date, the salutation, the complimentary close and from the
end line of the inside name and address. Some people who use this style like to place the
date towards the right margin in its usual position which yields a man balanced
appearance to the letter.

4) MODIFIED BLOCKED STYLE

This style is similar to fully blocked style. The date, subject heading and the
complimentary close signature and designation are placed like the semi-indented style.
The punctuation adopted is of open pattern. This style is popular in the United States and
a number of business houses have also started following this style of letter. Those who
follow this style claim that the letter Name and Address gets an attractive look because of
the left-hand margin remaining unbroken. They also believe that it is easier and quicker
to type because of not many indentations. There is a treble-line spacing between
paragraphs observed for loss of clarity caused by the absence of indentation.
 5) ASSEMBLING THE FACTS

Apart from choosing the right tone, approach and format the plann9ing the letter also
include a due consideration of necessary facts. Foe writing, the letter we must first collect
the requisite facts and details. Secondly, we should consider what the reader would think
and feel about what to write. The business house or the firm we represent must be
properly represented through out letter. We must be aware of all the information that
influences our matter in hand. This may pertain to previous correspondence, price.,
qualities, date of delivery. If it is a reply to a complaint, we must know whether it is
justified or not; if justified we must know the reason behind it and the step that would be
taken to deal with it. Similarly, for making an enquiry we must have all need information.
For making a reply to a person we must carefully go through the contents of the letter we
have received.

6) DRAFTING OF A BUSINESS LETTER

After completing the planning for writing a business letter it is necessary that we should
prepare a draft of it before finalizing the letter. In the process of drafting following points
should be considered carefully. We should go through the rough draft considering
ourselves as reader and check the following:

1) Do I have any doubt about the salutation, about its approval?

2) Does my letter may not sound well after I go through it?
3) Have I been successful in getting my thoughts down on the paper?
4) Have I ordered my thoughts properly?
5) Can I shorten my letter without losing its clarity?
6) Can I delete unnecessary words and phrases?
7) Does my letter have any badly phrased expression which offend the reader?
8) Have I made any claim or criticism which may result to legal action for
defamation?
 The proper dealing with the content of the letter 2while drafting it may produce a
letter well-thought out, short and to the point.

FORM LETTERS

Usually an office is required to send out identical letters to many persons, firms and other
institutions. In such case, ‘form letter’ may be used. A form letter is a standardized letter
and is used by an enterprise to answer correspondence of similar nature. It may be a
printed from on a card. Only the date, name and address of the addressee, and referencing
have to be filled in to complete it. Form letters are often used for debt collection or for an
acknowledgement of orders or complaints, price enquiries, etc. two specimen of form
letters are given below: -

Advantages of Form Letters: there are many advantages of using form letters.

1) They save the time of the managers as well as of the typists.

2) Incoming routine letters can be immediately answered with the help of form
letters.
3) Form letters ensure uniformity in the wording of outgoing letters.
4) The task of filling the necessary details in a form letter can be left to clerks
resulting in saving of supervisory time.
5) There is reduction in the cost of producing the correspondence.
DRAWBACKSOF FORMAL LETTERS

1) These letters lack personal touch and may not create a favorable impression on
the receiver.
2) These letters do not have any flexibility of dealing with individual cases.
3) The style of such letters is too formal to make the desired impact on the
recipient.
The advantages of form letters far outweigh their drawbacks. They are,
therefore, a very important part of correspondence in many offices. It should be
that printed matter in the form letters is drafted with utmost care.

STANDARD PARAGRAPH
Instead of form letters, standard paragraphs may be used in letters dealing with
standard situations like delay in payment or delivery of goods. These
paragraphs are prepared with great care to give them the ‘personal touch’.
They are serially numbered and are supplied to typist and correspondence
clerks. The clerks or typist use these paragraphs while drafting letters on
standard situations. In order to meet special circumstances, not-standard matter
may be drafted and used along with standard paragraphs. Standard paragraph if
drafted carefully, are an improvement upon from letters. However, care should
be taken not to use them indiscriminately.
TYPES OF BUSINESS LETTER

1) TRADE ENQUIRY AND REPLY

EXAMPLE

Sundra Mohan & Sons,

32, Rajamandi,

Agra

August 23,20…..

M/s. Ram Lal &Sons,

New Krishna market,

Delhi.

Gentleman,

We shall be pleased to receive a copy of your latest price list of printed cloth of
different varieties. We have to execute a larger order which include these goods and
we hope to purchase a fair quantity of different varieties from you, provided your
prices suit us.

Yours faithfully,

Surendra Moan & S

 2) PLACING AN ORDER

EXAMPLE

TOTAL INSURANCE CORPORATION

Independence Avenue

Kolkata-710003

Telephone;325……

Telegram : TOTALIN, KOLKATA

Our Ref.: CAL/16/2

Universal Office Supplies Ltd.

Kolkata-700001

Sub : Supply of typewriters

Dear Sirs,

Following our discussions yesterday, we now confirm our order for:

1) Six (6) standard Tiptop machines.

2) Four (4) 18” carriage Tiptap machines.
A completed copy, no. A621/92, of our official order form is enclosed. We accept
your discount terms of 5% on the list price, and we note your guarantee to deliver
the order not later than 7Jun, 20…

Yours Faithfully
Office Manager
3) LETTER OF COMPLAINT
EXAMPLE
NEW INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED
P.O. BOX 1234
Independence Avenue
Kolkatta- 133456

Our Ref.: CAL/16/2

Universal Office Supplies Ltd.,
J.C. Road, Kolkata-32443667

Sub.: typewriter order: missing items

Dear Sirs,

Please refer to our order No. A445/45 and our letter CAL/16/2 of 24 April.
20…..
All the machines were delivered to us yesterday and were inspected by our stock
superior. The following items were missing:
1) Three cleaning kits.
2) One 18” machine covers.
3) Ten instruction books.
We should be pleased to receive items as soon as possible. We also hope that
any future orders will be more carefully checked before they leave your store.

Your faithfully,
M.L. Arora
Office Manager
4) DUNNING OR COLLECTION OF LETTERS
EXAMPLE

JAIN TRADERS
54, Deepika Towers
New Delhi-5654234
Mav1.20…

M/S Goel Brothers.

34, Shivaji Marg.
New Delhi-455654
Re : Overdue Account

Sir,

We wish to draw your attention to our Statement of Account (No. A534dt.

March3,20…) for Rs.14200/-. This sum has not been received. This might have
been due to an oversight or forgetfulness. Please get it cleared after checking your
records.
We are enclosing another copy of statement of Account for your early response.

Yours Faithfully,
Jain Traders
 5) CIRCULAR LETTER

EXAMPLE

SUDERSHAN ELECTRONICS LTD.

24, UPPER CIRCULAR ROAD,

KOLKATTA,

MAY20,20….

……………..

……………….

RE: Opening Of New Branch

Gentleman,

As the volume of our trade in Utter Pradesh is constantly increasing, we have

opened a new branch at Lucknow, which has been placed under the management of our
assistant General Manager, Mr. P.S. Gupta. The branch would begin to function from
June 1,20……

The new branch would supply you the same goods as ourselves and at the same prices.
But your requirements would be attended to by it more promptly and with grater
economy in freight.

We thank you for your support and hope you would continue it.

Yours Faithfully,

Sales Executive

Sudershan Electronics Ltd.

6) STATUS ENQUIRY

EXAMPLE

12, Esplanade East,

Kolkata,
19th July, 20….

M/s. Batliwala & Sons,

22, Kalbadevi Road,
Mumbai.

RE.- Names of Refrees

Dear Sirs,
We thank you for your order of 14th July, and it having our attention. It is our
invariable practice, when opening new accounts, to ask for a couple of trade
reference. As we have not had the pleasure of doing business with you previously,
we shall much appreciate your sending us, as soon as convenient, the names of
two firms of standing in your town.

Yours Faithfully,
P. Ghosh & Sons
 7) BANKING CORRESPONDENCE

EXAMPLE

25, Sant Nagar,

Karnal,

20th June 20……..

The Manager,

Bank of Baroda,

G.T. Road, Karnal,

RE: Payment Instructions

Dear Sir,

Please remit by the 24th of the months March and September Rs. 1134.00 to the Life
Insurance Corporation of India, Karnal as premium on my life insurance policy no.
2335553. Please also pay by the 20th of each month Rs. 100/- to the Lions Club, Karnal
as subscription. Please place both the above-mentioned amounts to my debit.

You are requested, to the let me know by the 15th of each month in case the state of my
account disallows these payments.

Yours Faithfully,

R.R. Garg

S.B. A/C. No. 7553

 8) INSURANCE LETTERS

EXAMPLE

B.A. Kamat

1103, Shiv Nagar,

Andheri,

Mumbai-400 342

May15,20….

The manager,

L.I.C. OF INDIA

Branch No. 3531,

Andheri,

Mumbai-3653 7435

SUB: Claim under policy no. c-65643

Dear Sir,

I am sorry to state that my father, Mr. A.R. Kamta, expired on May 5, 20.. My father
had taken out a policy for Rs. 100000/- for 20 years in 1990, and had been paying his
monthly premiums on the above policy very regularly.

As I am the nominee in my father’s policy, I shall be grateful if you let me know the
procedure to be followed for claiming the death claim amount.

Thanking You

Yours Faithfully
 9) CORRESPONDENCE WITH GOVERNMENT DEPARTMMENTS

EXAMPLE

VIJAY UDYOG LTD.

17, Miles Stone,

Faridabad.

The General Manager,

Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd.,

New Delhi.

SUB.: Rectification of Telephone Bill NO……

We regret to inform you that the telephone bill of the months November and December,
23, 20…. Of our company show a more than 200% increase in its calls to that of the
previous telephone bill. We thin, there is some clerical mistake in computation of
telephone calls.

You are, therefore, requested to arrange for rechecking of your records in respect of our
company and send us the revised bill.

We look forward for an early response.

Yours faithfully,

Secretary,

Vijay
 REPORT WRITING

With the growth in the size of modern business organization and their activities, a need
for written communication has arisen within the group. The top management has been
depending upon experts for their reports on various subjects. A report is a form of
systematic presentation of information relating to an event, process of action or some
business activity. It is a written statement of results, events, qualities, conditions, progress
or interpretation of records. The basics of many business decisions originate in reports. It
should be kept in mind that a mere expression of opinion without supporting factual data
is not a report.

A report may be defined as a formal statement describing a state of affairs or what has
happened. It contains detailed description of a problem or a situation, findings of an
investigation, recommendation or action taken. It generally includes conclusions and
suggestion for future course of action.

A report is a more or less official document that presents, facts for the information of an
interested reader. It involves investigation and analysis and the facts may lead to
conclusions and recommendations. The facts must be accurate, complete, easy to find and
usually must be interpreted. They provide valuable records for the business. They can
also be made use of the future.
LUCKNOW UNIVERSITY

CORPORATE
COMMUNICATIONS

TOPIC:- TYPES OF LETTER WRITING,

REPORT WRITING,
ORGANISATION AND TECHNIQUES OF
WRITING

SUBMITTED TO:- SUBMITTED BY:-

MR. SAKSHAM SRIVASTAVA SHUBH KIRTI ARYA
M.B.A.5YRS’ [5TH SEM.]
ROLL NO.-14
PLAGIARISM REPORT
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I have taken efforts in this project. However, it would not have been possible without the
kind support and help of many individuals and organizations. I would like to extend my
sincere thanks to all of them.

I am highly indebted to Saksham Srivaastav Sir for their guidance and constant
supervision as well as for providing necessary information regarding the project & also
for their support in completing the project.
I would like to express my gratitude towards my parents & member of Saksham Srivastav
for their kind co-operation and encouragement which help me in completion of this
project.
I would like to express my special gratitude and thanks to industry persons for giving me
such attention and time.
My thanks and appreciations also go to my colleague in developing the project and
people who have willingly helped me out with their abilities.