How to Make a Good Formal Letter (Part 1)

Have you ever read a formal letter? Or you have make a formal letter? Formal letter is a kind of letter which formally send by institution or company to the others. Now I want to give some information about the part of formal letter that would help you to write a formal letter. Usually a formal letter consist of :

v           The Heading (The Return Address) or Letterhead.

Usually use printed paper where heading or letterhead is specially designed at the top of the sheet. It bears all the necessary information about the organization’s identity.

v           Date of Writing.

The month should be fully spelled out and the year written with all four digits, example : October 12, 2005 or 12 October 2005 - UK style. The date is aligned with the return address. The number of the date is pronounced as an ordinal figure, though the endings st, nd, rd, th are often omitted in writing. The article before the number of the day is pronounced but not written. In the body of letter, however, the article is written when the name of the month is not mentioned with the day.

v           The Inside Address

In a business or formal letter you should give the address of the recipient after your own address. Include the recipient’s name, company, address and postal code. Add the job title if appropriate. Separate the recipient’s name and the title with comma. Double check that you have the correct spelling of the recipient’s name.

The Inside Address is always on the left margin. If an 8 ½” x 11” paper is folded in thirds to fit in a standard 9” business envelope, the inside address can appear through the window in the envelope.

v           The Greeting.

Also called the salutation. the type of salutation depends on your relationship with the recipient. It normally begins with the word “Dear” and always includes the person’s last name. Use every resource possible to address your letter to an actual person. If you do not know the name or the sex of your receiver address, you can use “Dear Madam / Sir (or “Dear Sales Manager or Dear Human Resources Director). As a general rule the greeting in a business letter ends in a colon (US style). It is also acceptable to use a comma (UK style).

v           The Subject Line (optional).

Its inclusion can help the recipient in dealing successfully with the aims of your letter. Normally the subject sentence is precede with the word Subject: or Re: Subject line may be emphasized by underlining, using bold font, or all capital letters. It is usually placed one line below the greeting but alternatively can be located directly after the “inside address” before the “greeting”.

v           The Body Paragraphs.

The body is where you explain why you’re writing. It’s the main part of business letter. make sure the receiver knows who you are and why you are writing but try to avoid starting with “I”. Use a new paragraph when you wish to introduce a new idea or element into your letter. Depending on the letter style you choose, paragraphs may be intended. Regardless of format, skip a line between paragraphs.

v           The Complimentary Close.

This short, polite closing ends always with a comma. It is either at the left margin or its left edge is in the center, depending on the Business Letter style that you use. It begins at the same column the heading does. The traditional rule of etiquette in Britain is that a formal letter starting “Dear Sir or Madam” must end “Yours faithfully”, while a letter starting “Dear” must end “Yours sincerely”. (Note: the second word of the closing is not capitalized).

v           Signature and Writer’s identification.

The signature is the last part of letter. You should sign your first and last names. The signature line may include a second line for a title, if appropriate. The signature should start directly above the first letter of the signature line in the space between the close and the signature line. Use blue or black ink.

v           Initials, Enclosures, Copies.

Initials are to be included if someone other then the writer types the letter. If you include the other material in the letter, put “Enclosure”, or “Enc”, or “Encs”, as appropriate, two lines below the last entry. Cc means a copy or copies are sent to some one else.

Continue to part 2. .