Planning a business letter

PLANNING A BUSINESS LETTER

The rule of the five questions

The six guidelines to a letter writing style are as follows: be accurate; think clearly; write simply; be brief; be positive; be courteous.

To these add the rule of the five questions- questions you have to ask yourself as you write your letters.

1.       What are you to say?

This simply means that you have to think clearly before you write; you have to be sure in your own mind what you want to say. If you are not clear on this point, how can you expect the recipient of your letter to grasp what you have written?

If you have several items you want to write about, why not list them?

This can help.

2.       Are you being logical?

Are you jumping from one point to another with no reason or order? Your aim must be to take points in a logical sequence so that, to both you and its reader, your letter has ordered content and meaning.

3.       What about paragraphs?

You have decided what to say; you have arranged your thoughts. Now, think about paragraphs. Remember that a letter without paragraphs can be both confusing to read and difficult to grasp. Paragraphs are signposts to the reader that you have finished with one point and are moving on to the next. Use your paragraphs, therefore, as signposts.

Your letter may be complex. If so, give each paragraph a heading, each pointing the way. The paragraph should be kept short, however. If it has to be long, break it down into sub-paragraphs. Also, in a business letter, consider using numbers to emphasize the content of the paragraphs.

4.       Have you identified the subject?

In other words, does the reader know what your letter is about? It is sometimes useful to give the letter itself a heading; this immediately identifies the subject.

5.       Have you shown the way ahead?

Your letter should end by signposting the way ahead, so that both you and the reader clearly understand what is to happen next.

Remember then, as you write your letters, to ask yourself these five questions- what are you to say; are you being logical; what about your paragraphs; have you identified the subject; have you shown the way ahead?

Learn to produce letters that are nearly set out and well-presented, free from errors and jargon. In this way you create a favorable image for your firm. A poor letter, no matter how important its content, only irritates and does nothing to help a firm’s business. Therefore, cherish this as your golden rule: Never let a letter go without being satisfied with it.