10 rules of business correspondence

Business communication is impossible without correspondence because a personal meeting to resolve questions of cooperation is not always possible. The most pressing problems of business correspondence helps to solve in the short term, but failure to observe the rules of etiquette or illogical construction of the letter could harm the partnership or repel a potential customer. As the official negotiations, there are certain rules: the design of the letters and style of communication.



General rules of business correspondence

1. Before writing a letter, determine its characteristics: the type of letters (cover, warranty, ordering, reminder, notice, etc.; presentation of a letter or assuming the answer); the degree of accessibility for the addressee (if you can state all the necessary points in one letter or it will take the second, clarifying); the urgency of the delivery (if the letter is urgent, it is better to send it registered or by e-mail). 2. Make a letter on existing templates, based on its type and based on the GOST R 6.30-2003. "A unified system of documentation. Unified system of organizational and administrative documentation. Requirements to paperwork". 3. Any business letter has the following General structure:

• name of the organization sender;
• date of writing;
• the address of the recipient, indication of a specific reporter;
• opening address;
• indicating the subject and purpose of the letter;
• main text;
• conclusion (formula courtesy);
• the signature of the sender;
• indicating the application and distribution of copies (if any).

4. When preparing a business letter use a text editor Microsoft Word: use the headset Times New Roman, size 12-14 p., line spacing – 1-2 p.; page numbers the letter appear at the bottom on the right side; if you print text on the letterhead A4 use a 1.5–2 line spacing, A5 and at least one line spacing. Requisites always be typed using single line spacing. 5. If you act on behalf of the organization and are going to send a letter in print, be sure to use a letterhead, because its presence would be the hallmark of your company. Take the design of the official letterhead with the utmost care, this skill should be mandatory for any office employee. 6. In international correspondence, the letter should be written in the language of the addressee, or in English (the most common in business relationships). 7. Stick to the correct business tone. Start the letter with appeals, which, depending on the degree of your intimacy with a correspondent may start with "Dear + full name" and "Dear + name". Remember, the words in the appeal or to specify the recipient in any case impossible to reduce (for example, "dear" as "SW." or "Department head" as "head of Department") rules of business etiquette. Always end the letter with words of gratitude for cooperation. Before the signature of the phrase should be "sincerely, ..." or "Sincerely, ...". Appeal to "you" in official correspondence is unacceptable, even if you maintain correspondent friendships. 8. Carefully select vocabulary, avoid errors and ambiguous phrases, unnecessary use of professionalisms. The letter must be clear. 9. Separate the contents of the letter on semantic paragraphs so that it is not bulky and is difficult for perception by the recipient. Follow the rule: first and last paragraphs should contain no more than four lines of print, and the rest – no more than eight. 10. Reply to a business letter according to the etiquette: a written request within 10 days after receipt; mailed, sent by Fax or email, within 48 hours, excluding weekends.

In-house business correspondence

Business correspondence between company employees is more simplified in comparison with correspondence sent to a third party. The content of such correspondence may be different, but it also must comply with specific rules:

• to be concise;
• to be business in nature;
• the letter must indicate the date;
• the present formula of courtesy and the signature.

Example of in-house business correspondence can be a letter of congratulations on behalf of the Director or of the collective, addressed to him or the employee who received the promotion. When writing the discussion of the draft typically used only some of the required elements of a business letter – the indication of the theme, the appeal, a summary of the subject matter and the formula of politeness with printed signature. Remember that the shape of the letter and a template should be selected based on the level of service and the type of information you want to provide to the recipient.

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