Business letters are sent every day the world over, and even though they’re usually sent via email these days, the format for writing a proper business letter hasn’t changed. If you want to be heard, or rather read, you have to adhere to this format to make sure your point gets across. Because business letters have a standardized format, straying too far from the norm could result in a rejection of your letter’s ideas or suggestions. Do it correctly and you’re sure to hear praise, or at least a response. So if you’re ready, let’s jump in.
Summary
- Your name and address should be placed in the top right hand corner.
- The next line down should be the date of the format “31 December 2010” and should be on the left hand side of the page.
- Directly below the date is the title, position, company, and address of the person you’re addressing.
- The body paragraphs below that should be below the addressee’s information and should be kept concise and to the point.
- The closing should summarize your letter and say what the person should follow up with.
- Your closing name should line up with the side that you placed the date on.
The Heading
In the top right hand corner of the page, write either your name and position or your company’s name. Directly beneath your name or company’s name, type out your address. The physical address of your company should be on the first line and directly underneath that should be the state and zip code of the address.
Example:
John Smith
123 Fake Street
Fake City New York 12345
Notice that in the header where you put your address, there is no punctuation between the city and state. This is crucial.
The Date
Now, this is where a lot of people laugh. Business letters and the actual body content of them aren’t as important as the actual date of the letter. Putting a proper date on the letter is one of the most important things you can do. There are of course many different formats for the date, but the most common and most accepted is as follows.
Example: 31 December 2010
The date is placed on the next line below your heading and on the left side of the page. So far, you should have 4 lines of text on the page.
Their Information
Directly below the date, in almost the same format as your own name and location, you’re going to put the name and location of the person you’re addressing. The first line should be their name, the second line should be their title within the company, and the lines following will contain their address.
Example:
David Johnson
Director of Public Relations
Public Relations Company
9876 Fake Street
Fake City New York 12345
Note again that there is no punctuation between the city and the state, nor is there anything separating the zip code. Now that you have all of the information you need at the top of the letter, it’s time to move onto the body.
The Substance
The substance, or rather the body of the letter, should contain what it is you’re trying to say. Start the body of the letter by addressing the addressee with a greeting. Something like “Dear, David” is perfectly acceptable.
When writing what it is you want to say to the person, there are a few things to keep in mind. Keep everything you’re trying to say in a very clear and concise format. Going overboard with adjectives or fluid language is unnecessary. Do everything you can to address your point and keep it short.
Finishing it Off
To finish your business letter, there are just two things you have to worry about. First of all, if your letter is a long one, try and summarize everything at the end into a conclusion paragraph and say what you’d like to happen next. This is normally a good place to say something to the effect of, “please reply as soon as possible” to imply that you want to continue correspondence. Finally, you put your name. If you know the person you’re writing too personally, a closing of “Regards,” or “Sincerely,” is acceptable. Depending on which side you put the date on, that’s the side you put your name on.