Format of Business Letter

Three Types of Precision

No matter what its purpose, anything you write should possess certain qualities that are common to all good writing the basic of which is precision. You must be precise. If your writing lacks precision, none of its other virtues will matter. Imprecision will confuse, frustrate, and disappoint readers – especially those who must rely on your message to do their own jobs – and ruin your effectiveness with them.

Essentially, there are three kinds of precision you need to achieve: mechanical precision, factual precision, and verbal precision. Mechanical precision means that you have complied with all the accepted rules of the letter layout, its format, punctuation and capitalization. Factual precision is that quality that allows our readers to grasp your intended meanings fully and immediately, with absolute clarity: your writing should be adapted to the reader dually emphasize the idea and stick to appropriate writing strategy for different types of letters. Verbal precision (which overlaps substantially with factual precision) results from using the most accurate words and phrases to convey not only the meanings but also cooperative and creative atmosphere.

1.1. Mechanical Precision

Mechanical precision means that you've complied not only with all the accepted rules of punctuation and capitalization but also with the form and elements of a business letter format.

Format of Business Letter

Format letters addressed to organizations or customers or professionals or executives are commonly called business letters. The form of business letters is more strictly prescribed than the form of familiar letters. There are many ways to lay out a business letter. Four types of business letter format (style) are more often used:

– block (полностью сблокированный способ расположения информации);

– modified block (сблокированный способ), which is the most frequently used;

– semi-block (полу-сблокированный способ);

– simplified format (упрощенный способ).

Block format (A) is the most traditional and quickest one. In Block format everything – date, name and address of the reader or addressee, reference, salutation, the topic of the letter, text, complimentary close (вежливое завершение) begins at the left-hand margin.

Modified block (B) is the most useful to learn because it is accepted everywhere. In modified block everything is on the left, but the date, reference, complimentary close and the writer's name and title are on the right (they start from the horizontal center of the page). There is no punctuation in the address, after "Dear..." or after "Yours faithfully/sincerely"; the paragraphs start at the margin and there are line spaces between them; the writer's name and title are under the signature.

In semi-block format the layout of the letter is similar to modified block but the first line of every new paragraph is indented (начинается с красной строки).

In simplified format (C) the layout of the letter is similar to block format, but salutation, complimentary close and the word "subject" are not used. The subject of the letter, the writer's name, position or title are typed in capitals.

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