PREPARE A BUSINESS LETTER IN ADVANCED ENGLISH

1. D1.LAN.CL10.10 PREPARE A BUSINESS LETTER IN ADVANCED ENGLISH

2. Assessment Assessment for this Unit may include • Oral questions • Written questions • Work projects • Workplace observation of practical skills • Practical exercises • Formal report from employer or supervisor

3. Prepare a business letter in advanced English There are three elements in this unit: • Element 1: Recognise the purposes of different types of business letters in the workplace • Element 2: Understand the conventions of writing a business letter in English • Element 3: Apply the conventions of writing a business letter in English

4. Recognise the purposes of different types of business to business letters in the workplace The performance criteria for this unit include: • 1.1 Identify the purposes of various business to business letters • 1.2 Identify the purposes of business to customer letters • 1.3 Identify the purposes of letters from employer to employee

5. 1.1 Identify the purposes of various business to business letters 2 There are many different reasons why a business may send another business a letter : • Explaining terms and conditions • Complaining about faulty goods or poor service • Requesting a refund or exchange • Giving a price quotation • Giving or refusing a credit application • Sales letters or product information updates • Introducing a new person or policy • Invitations to a product launch or event • Persuading through promotional material or marketing and sales offer letters

6. 1.2 Identify the purposes of business to customer letters Some examples of purposes of business to customer letters include: • Confirming bookings, itineraries, payments • Sending an invitation • Offering special deals and discounts • Persuading • Providing information about terms and conditions • Responding to a complaint, suggestion or enquiry • Thanking and welcoming new customers

7. Complaints In groups, discuss the following: • Have you ever had a bad experience while travelling? • What was it? • Was it someone else’s fault or was it yours? • Who did you complain to?

8. 1.3 Identify the purposes of letters from employer to employee There are many different purposes for letters from an employer to an employee and these could include: • Confirming employment and welcoming an employee • Outlining company policies and procedures • Explaining employee’s responsibilities and entitlements • Congratulating and acknowledging fine performance • Confirming staff appraisal outcomes and training plans • Warning and/or dismissing

9. Job Advertisement Front-desk attendant required 187 room, 5 star hotel in the heart of Roma The suitable candidate should have experience in front office computer systems, be able to work in a team and have high standards of customer service. Please send your CV and letter of application to: Mr Marsha Thana Personnel Manager Roma Hotel 67 Makan Road, Roma Phone 456 222 980 Applications close on 30th July.

10. Listen, speak, take notes You are now going to do an activity which requires you to listen, speak and take down notes. Read the following instructions: • Your trainer is going to give you a job card • Read the job card carefully • Look up any words from the job card that you do not understand • Move around the classroom and ask other trainees ‘What do you do in your job?’ • Listen carefully as other trainees read out their job description • Write the name of the job and the trainee’s name in the spaces provided on the survey sheet below

11. 2.1 Identify an appropriate format for a business letter (1) Jester Restaurant & Bar 22 Long Rd, Mayes, UK (2)1st April Harry Stone (3)Chief Accountant, Big Beer Brewery The Industrial Estate, Bruntsfield, UK (4) Dear Mr. Stone, (5) I am writing to request a refund or replacement for our last shipment of beer we received on the 8th September. 27 bottles were broken or damaged. Attached are several photos of the damaged goods. Please advise when you can respond to this request. (6)Regards, (7)Caroline Hobbes Caroline Hobbes (8)F& B Manager

12. 2.2 Explain the importance of tone when writing a business letter in English When writing a business letter there are many factors to consider including: • Understanding the purpose of your letter • Identifying who the audience is • What is the intended outcome of the letter or what do you want readers to learn or do after they read the letter • Understanding the relationship between your role and others. For example, you may use a different tone when writing to your boss as opposed to writing to a close colleague in the same position

13. Using the appropriate tone Tips for getting the tone right • Use fairly formal tone • Don’t be too formal if the situation does not require it • Avoid CAPITALISATION as this is the same as yelling when writing • Use short sentences • Create a compassionate and professional tone • Avoid using the passive voice (for example, ‘You can write a letter.’ not ‘A letter can be written by you.’) • Use the pronoun ‘we’ or ‘the organisation is happy to....’ or ‘the resort ...’ • Use the active voice (for example, ‘We made a mistake with your delivery.’ not ‘A mistake was made with the delivery.’) • Be careful when using the pronoun ‘you’ as it sounds accusatory in some instances • Use the pronoun ‘you’ to create a closer relationship to the reader (for example, ‘You can use the internet facilities for free.’ not ‘Clients can use the internet for free.’)

14. 2.3 Discuss the type of language preferred in business letters in English You should use: • Language that is unambiguous and concise • Active voice rather than passive, for example, “I will discussthe matter with my staff.” not “The matter will be discussed.” • Friendly language that avoids difficult vocabulary and complex sentences • Language that is specific rather than general, for example, “I will get back to you by close of business today.” not “I will get back to you later.” • Non-offensive or sexist language • Polite language; not bossy or demanding language • Offers of assistance in the last paragraph, for example, “Feel free to contact us for further information.” • Correct grammar and spelling with a clear order and cohesion of ideas • Correct spelling and punctuation

15. 2.4 Plan a response to a business letter After carefully reading the letter or email that you have received, it is important to plan how you will respond. Before writing your response you should: • Read the letter again and identify all of the main points • Determine the purpose of the response • Identify the audience or reader • Note down everything you need to include in the response • Make sure that you cover all parts of the letter • Put your points in a logical order • Determine the correct format for the response

16. Summarising the main points When summarising a letter or text you must remember to: • Only include the most important points from the original text • Keep the summary as short as possible • Do not include any extra information that is not in the original text, or any personal opinions about the topic • Leave out descriptive words, such as adjectives and adverbs • Write the summary in your own words

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18. 3.1 Apply an appropriate format for a business letter in English It is important to: • Use the appropriate format for the style of letter • Write the sender’s and receiver’s address in as much detail as possible and in the correct order • Write the month of the date in words not figures • Use the correct title for the receiver • Use the correct salutation and close, for example, Dear/Sir with Yours faithfullyDear Mr/Ms. Smith with Yours sincerely • Include your job title, if appropriate, in the signature block • Leave a space between paragraphs

19. 3.2 Use an appropriate friendly and professional tone when writing a business letter in English Dear Sir/Madam, I am writing to enquire about our booking request which we belatedly lodged with your establishment earlier this month. Although we sent our booking several days ago, we are as of yet to receive a reply confirming our forthcoming lodgings. This may be due to the fact that you are currently being bombarded with requests and are thus pressed for time to engage in correspondence informing us that our booking is granted. We are currently in the midst of arranging our travel itinerary and it would be most gracious of you if you could acknowledge our room booking so as to be able to complete our preparations knowing that we have a roof over our heads when we arrive. Yours sincerely, Baron Munster

20. Tone Baron, I already emailed you two hours ago and confirmed your booking. CHECK your emails in future before you blame others for not doing their job! Regards, Anne

21. 3.3 Use the type of language preferred in business letters, including correct spelling, punctuation and grammar When writing business correspondence you should: • Include the necessary information that responds to the reader of the letter • Always plan before you write • Make sure the information is in a logical order • Use simple and polite language • Make sure that the your writing is clear, concise and easy to understand • Avoid using colloquial language or being too informal • Avoid using pompous or overly formal language • Be accurate in your writing using correct titles, names, figures, dates and times • Check your writing when you have completed the letter and pay attention to spelling, grammar and punctuation

22. What is a paragraph? A paragraph is a group of sentences. In a good paragraph, every sentence is about the same topic. For example, if the topic is about the best tourist spots in Russia, then every sentence in the paragraph is about those tourist spots.