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SHORT TRANSACTIONAL TEXT WRITING

1. Invitation
2. Diary Entry
3. Post Card
4. Giving Directions
5. Giving Instructions
6. Advertisement
7. Flyer
8. Poster
9. Filling in a Form
10. Writing an email
11. Sending a fax

6 STEPS OF WRITING A TEXT

1. Planning / Pre-writing
Follow the instructions and/or decide the following: Style, point of view and any
other requirements. Use a mind map to outline the main ideas of each paragraph.

Introduction

Conclusion Paragraph 1

TOPIC
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 3

Compile a list of appropriate nouns, verbs, adverbs and adjectives that comes to
mind when thinking about the topic. Check the rubric according to which your essay
will be marked to ensure you understand what is required of you.

2. Drafting
Write a first draft by using the structure above that you created. Make use of the
word list to add substance to your paragraphs. Establish the tone and language
appropriate for the topic.

3. Revising
Read your draft through critically and make notes on your essay aspects you want to
revise e.g. elaborate on, shorten, consider different arguments, statements,
adjectives etc. Ask someone to read the draft and make suggestions.

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4. Editing
Decide and finalise the revisions you want to make. Check all grammar and spelling
and ensure all punctuation is complete. Ensure paragraphs follow each other in a
logical sequence.

5. Proofreading
Read through your essay one more time – only small changes can be made at this
time as it is the final check before presentation.

6. Presenting
Present your finalised essay in neat and readable handwriting!

HINT: Write short sentences! Subject + verb + Object. Rather combine two shorter
sentences using appropriate conjunctions than writing long, rambling sentences where the
message is lost.

All short transactional text’s lengths to be between:

English Home Language: 100 – 120 words;
English FAL: 80 – 100 words;
English SAL: 60 – 80 words.

1. INVITATION

The language used in an invitation depends on the event that the invitation is meant for e.g.
Party at your house: Informal;
Event at school: Ranges between informal to very formal dependent on the type of event. A fun day
at school invitation will make use of informal language and an invitation to the Minister of Education
for a formal supper in the school hall will use formal language.

The fonts and pictures will once again range between e.g. fun, smart, funny, serious etc.

Fun Smart Funny Serious

Gothic Unusual Smart Antique

The following must be included on an invitation:

Date
The occasion e.g. party, dinner, concert, wedding etc.
Pictures – if relevant to the occasion

Who? Name the person / institution extending the invitation.

When? A specific date and time in the future when the event will take place.
Where A specific place where the event is taking place.
?
What? A specific event that will take place to be shared by different people – general e.g. a flea
market or parent’s night at school etc.
Why? The reason for writing about this specific, shared event.

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RSVP - Répondez s'il vous plaît (French)
What does it mean?
The person receiving the invitation needs to respond (usually by a specific date) whether he/she is
accepting the invitation. A RSVP is usually required where arrangements have to be made for a
specific number of people attending e.g. a party / wedding reception etc.
It is written on the invitation as follows:

RSVP: dd/mm/yyyy or 28 February 2020

Contact information on who/where to RSVP to must be included e.g.
myschool@gauteng.co.za / Marisa on 083 555 6666

HINTS:

* Use the future tense; First or third person.

* Highlight sensory details – purpose is to entertain – where applicable to event.
* Descriptions must be clear and form a picture in the reader’s mind;
* Make a list of adjectives, verbs and adverbs that make the event clear in your own mind and
ensure you use these in your invitation;
* Keep on the topic – do not fill the invitation with irrelevant information;

https://kulasara.blogspot.com/2018/11/25-awesome-formal-event-invitation.html?m=0

Examples:

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 https://www.e-invites.co.za

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2. Diary Entry

A dairy entry is written in the first person and the language used is simple and to the point.
A diary entry is in a way speaking to yourself and can take different tones:

* A recount of what happened on a specific day and/or time;

* Addressing a decision;
* Reflection on a specific issue;
* Expression of oneself and emotions e.g. anger, love, frustration etc.
* Asking questions etc.

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https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Diary
3. Post Card

A postcard is essentially a short letter to say hello to someone, tell someone about a specific
event/day, impart information about your holiday, apologise, say thank you etc. It can
essentially be about anything that can be written in a few words – shorter than a letter.

The language in a post card is casual and informal but avoid slang and colloquial language for
schoolwork!

Stick to the simple tenses – present, future and/or past.

https://en.islcollective.com/english-esl-powerpoints/grammar/past-simple-tense/how-write-postcard-2/40749

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 https://www.slideshare.net/anaamellercortes/how-to-write-a-postcard

4. Giving directions

Telling someone how to get from Point A to Point B should be:

* Concise and clear: Use basic English to offer directions.

Short phrases are best. Speak slowly and use very careful pronunciation

* Chronological – directions must follow on each other.

Use transitions
Separate each leg of the route with a transition.
after that
then
next
when you get to…go…
finally

* Refer to specific directions e.g.

North South East West
Left Right Straight Down/up
Past Follow Cross over Etc.

* Give an indication of distance:

When walking e.g. 3 street blocks, 50 meters etc.
When driving e.g. Cross 7 streets, 50km etc.

* Give indication of position e.g.

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 Behind Next to Below / Above On the corner of
In front of Opposite / across Beyond In / under / at etc.

* Give indications of time / length of travel e.g.

It’s just around the corner (not far).
It’s not far.
It’s a bit of a way. (it takes a while)
It’s about a five-minute walk.
It’s about a twenty minute bus ride.

* Give landmarks that the person can be on the lookout for e.g. at the robot…., by the statue
of ….., there will be a shopping centre….. etc.

* Offer warnings
Stay in the right lane.
It’s a very busy road.
It’s a big hill. (if they are walking or on a bike)
There might be construction.
If you pass the … you went too far.
There’s no parking.

5. Giving instructions

When describing how something is done e.g. how to make a cup of coffee, the instructions
must be in chronological order. The best way to do this is to write the instructions in
numbered points.

1. Use a frame to help you write the instructions. e.g. 1) You need: 2) Steps
2. Draw a mind map to help you write the instructions.
3. Pay attention to language, style, grammar and format.

Example of instructions on how to make a cup of coffee.

You will need:

A kettle Water
A cup A teaspoon
Instant coffee Sugar
Milk

How to:

1. Put water in the kettle.

2. Boil the kettle.
3. Put 1 to 2 teaspoons of coffee in a cup.
4. Put sugar in the cup.
5. Add milk to the cup.
6. Pour boiling water into the cup and stir.

6. Advertisement

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An advertisement is designed to evoke a certain response e.g. buy a product or attend a specific
event. Before designing the advertisement, you must have in-depth knowledge of the following:

Product
What are the most important benefits of using it? What is the thing that you want every customer to
know about the product? Identify the true value of the product and focus on that. Promote your
true value. This is one of the most important parts of your advertisement since the customers care
about what they get in return for their money. And if the value is high, the price will follow.

Price
It should pay for your expenses and leave you with a margin or profit.

Place
Get to know where your customers spend time, what platforms they interact with or who are the
influencers they follow and trust. You should find and focus on the platform which is more likely to
reach the majority of your customer base.

Promotion / Position
Decide where your advertisement will appear e.g. newspaper, magazine, social media etc.

Design – The AIDA Principle

Attention
An advertisement must be seen to be effective.

Colour

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 Fonts
The type / shape of letters should be used effectively to attract attention. The font should be
suited to the product/event being advertised.
Examples:

Appeal
To what sense, feeling, ambition etc. is the advertisement appealing – food, love, adventure
etc.

Layout
Below are two examples of common (and effective) layouts for advertisements.
Consider what you want to highlight, what must catch the eye first, what do you want
people to remember etc.

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 Graphics
As the saying says: A picture can paint a thousand words!
The use of interesting / unusual pictures or even cartoons draw attention. Do not fill your
advertisement with pictures but placing 2/3 well thought out pictures can make a world of
difference.
E.g. Which of the following two pictures will catch your attention and illicit a smile?

Interest

It is essential to keep the potential customers interested in the advertisement. This means large
amounts of dull text is not interesting. An original, entertaining, brief, witty and informative
approach should result in a positive reaction and building of the interest. Once again, personalizing
the approach can do wonders in your quest.

Desire

Let's assume you have grabbed the consumer's attention and kept it. Now, the ad must create
desire. The story must become relevant in order to make the product irresistible.
Building up the desire to have or use a product/service in potential customers consist mostly of
accumulation of positive arguments. In addition to the basic information provided to this point, now
it is time to bring forth numerous benefits of a product/service which have not been mentioned so
far. Remember, this part of the AIDA model is sometimes known as decision. Once the desire has
been created, the decision is almost made.

Action

Closing the deal is the last step of the AIDA principle. The people who arrive to the action stage are
the ones which acquired a positive impression of the product/service which was advertised and the
only thing which can now be done is offering them a sale. This is a stage where you win some and
you lose some. However, if the work in the previous stages was done well, a solid ground is made for
potential future transactions.
It is important to make it clear for the consumer on HOW and WHERE to take action.

Include a selection of the following details – dependent on your product or service:

Physical address Telephone / Cell number Website address
Email address Small map (if the location is difficulty to find) etc.

Example of a well-designed advertisement:

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7. Flyer / Leaflet

A flyer is a small pamphlet, paper advertisement intended for wide distribution and typically posted
or distributed in a public place, handed out to individuals or sent through regular mail.

See below the information that needs to be included on two types of flyers – an event and a
promotion. A flyer needs to also comply with the AIDA principle discussed above.

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8. Poster

A poster’s design elements are similar to that of a flyer and must also comply with the AIDA principle
discussed above. A poster is ideal to attract the attention of a large number of people and is usually
placed next to busy roads on lamp poles, buildings, shopping centres and/or any place where large
volumes of people move through.

A poster must include the following:

* Title / Name
* Subtitle: specifying what is on offer;
* Relevant information e.g.
Date Time Location
Contact details
Any other relevant information.
* Visuals / Pictures / Artwork: must be clear and eye catching.

Example:

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9. Filling in a Form

You will have to fill in various types of forms during the course of your life e.g. job
applications, to open a bank account, tax returns, entering a competition etc. Even the front
page of your exams is a type of form.

HINTS:
* Write clearly in block letters;

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 * Always use a black pen;
* Read carefully what information is required so that you don’t have to scratch out – it
doesn’t look good or professional.
* Complete your answers in the designated places.
* Be honest in all your answers.

Example of a job application form:

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10. Writing an email

Electronic mail (email) does not involve any paper and is sent from one computer, through
various email servers e.g. gmail, yahoo, Outlook, Webmail etc. to another computer. An
internet connection is necessary for this to take place.

An email needs to be created in a specific format:

1. To…..: The electronic address of the person you are sending an email to.
e.g. name@server (e.g. webmail).(fullstop). country (e.g. co.za)
johnsmith@webmail.co.za
Email addresses do not contain any spaces.

2. Cc…: Sending a copy of the email to another person (same email address format as
above.) e.g. if you send your mother an email you may want your father to also
receive the email.

3. Bcc… : Sending a copy of the email without the original recipient knowing that the
person (in the Bcc) is also receiving the email.

4. Subject: A one sentence summary of what the email is about.

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 5. An appropriate greeting, depending on the nature of the email e.g. formal, friendly
etc.

6. The content (body) of your email.

7. An appropriate salutation, depending on the nature of the email e.g. Best regards,
Kind regards, Love etc.

8. Your name or signature

11. Sending a fax.

A fax can be used for multiple purposes but especially in cases where a hard (paper) copy
needs to be transmitted to the receiver.

All the information must be completed on the fax cover sheet. If there is information that is
not applicable, write N/A in the designated space.
A short message may be written on the fax cover sheet or more pages may be added after
the cover sheet to convey more information.

Street Address
City, Postal Code
Phone Company Name
Fax
Website

Fax
Recipient Name Your Name
To: From:
Fax Number Number of pages
Fax: Pages:
Phone Number Date
Phone: Date
Subject Name
Re: cc:
Urgent For Review Please Comment Please Reply Please Recycle

Comments:

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SOURCES:
https://hackernoon.com/how-to-write-an-amazing-advertising-copy-98e6677ed084
https://za.pinterest.com/pin/550916966896495422/
https://www.mdirector.com/en/digital-marketing/25-typefaces-advertising.html
https://za.pinterest.com/pin/359302876492483687/
http://seaharvest.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/SH-Sustainable-Fishing-ad_FA.pdf
https://www.cleverism.com/lexicon/aida-principle-attention-interest-desire-action/
https://visme.co/blog/flyer-design/
https://za.pinterest.com/pin/81838918210191541/

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