Business letter

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A commercial business letter is a letter written in formal language, usually used when writing from one business organization to another, or for correspondence between such organizations and their customers, clients and other external parties. The overall style of letter will depend on the relationship between the parties concerned. There are many reasons to write a business letter. It could be to request direct information or action from another party, to order supplies from a supplier, to identify a mistake that was committed, to reply directly to a request, to apologize for a wrong or simply to convey goodwill. Even today, the business letter is still very useful because it produces a permanent record, is confidential, formal and delivers persuasive, well-considered messages

General Format

There are two main styles of business letters:

1. Full block style: Align all elements on the left margin.
2. Modified block style with other elements on the left page margin.

Margins

In general, left and right margins are one inch (approx. 2.5 cm).

For letters that are a full page or longer, top and bottom margins are likewise one inch (approx. 2.5 cm).

For letters shorter than a full page, the text is centered vertically so that the top and bottom margins match.

Font Formatting

No special character or font formatting is used, except for the subject line, which is usually underlined.

Punctuation

The salutation/greeting is generally followed by a comma, although in the United States a colon is often preferred. The valediction/closing is followed by a comma.

Example Template

[YOUR NAME]
[SENDER'S ADDRESS]
(optional[SENDER'S PHONE]
(optional[THE SENDER'S E-MAIL]

[DATE]

[RECIPIENT W/O PREFIX]
[RECIPIENT'S COMPANY]
[RECIPIENT'S ADDRESS]

(Optional) Attention [DEPARTMENT/PERSON],

Dear [RECIPIENT W/ PREFIX]:
[First Salutation then Subject in Business letters]

[CONTENT.]

[CONTENT.]


[COMPLIMENTARY CLOSING (Sincerely, Respectfully, Regards, etc.)],


[SENDER]
[SENDER'S TITLE]


Enclosures ([NUMBER OF ENCLOSURES])

cc: [CC RECIPIENT], [CC RECIPIENT TITLE]
[CC RECIPIENT], [CC RECIPIENT TITLE]