TECHNICAL WRITING

SEMI FINAL
PREPARED BY:
MS. FRITZI RHOSE L. SUGAROL
Lesson 5:
Business Letters
Punctuations and
Styles
PUNCTUATIONS USED IN
BUSINESS LETTERS
There are three ways on how to
punctuate our business letters.
We can use Open Punctuation,
Standard Punctuation, and Mixed
Punctuation.
OPEN PUNCTUATION
In writing a business letter,
open punctuation does not
include any punctuation after
any part of the letter except
the body of the letter or the
message.
STANDARD PUNCTUATION
This is the most common style of
punctuating a business letter which
includes punctuation on salutation
and complimentary close only. The
punctuation on salutation is colon
while on complimentary close, it's
comma.
MIXED PUNCTUATION
This format uses comma
(British Style) or colon
(American Style) after the
salutation and uses comma
after the complimentary close.
BUSINESS LETTER STYLES
There are several business letter styles that are
accepted and being used in the corporate world.
• Full Block Style
• Modified Block Style
• Semi Block Style
• Simplified Style
• Indented Style
• Hanging Indented Style
FULL BLOCK STYLE
In this style, some make use
of Open Punctuation and
some do not. All parts of this
business letter start at the left
margin.
MODIFIED BLOCK STYLE
This style places the inside address
and all paragraphs at the left hand
margin while the heading, dateline,
and complimentary close start at the
middle part of the paper or #3 on the
top ruler of MS Word going to the
right margin.
SEMI – BLOCK STYLE
This style is like the Block Style
however it follows the rule of
indention to its paragraph. This
style also makes use of
standard punctuation.
SIMPLIFIED STYLE
This style is similar to the Full Block Style,
beginning all the parts of the letter at the left
margin. However, the heading is placed at
the center upper part of the letter. This style
follows the open punctuation and omits the
complimentary close. The spaces in between
of every part from the very first part of a
business letter are 6, 4, 3, 3, 4-5.
INDENTED STYLE
This style makes use of indentions
which has uneven number of spaces
in the various elements of the letter.
Nowadays, this style is rarely use
because of its complexity of arranging
the different elements of the letter.
HANGING-INDENTED STYLE
This style is another unique style of
writing a business letter. The first line
of each paragraph is aligned with the
inside address and salutation flushed
at the left. The lines succeeding the
first line are indented five spaces. It
usually uses standard punctuation.
BUSINESS LETTER ENVELOPE
FORMATS
There are different envelope formats in
business writing. Here are some of the
examples:
• BLOCK FORM
• INDENTED FORM
• SEMI-BLOCK FORM
LESSON 6:
TYPES
OF
BUSINESS LETTERS
There are different types of business
letters that are commonly used in the
corporate world. They differ in
purpose, style, and nature. Some
business letters transmit good news
while some transmit bad news.
Moreover, some letters of interest to
the reader which do not affect the
emotion and feeling of the reader are
called routine letters.
WRITING GOOD VS BAD-NEWS
LETTERS
If the business letter directly affects and stirs.
the emotions and feelings of the reader, it is
either a good or bad news business letter. If you
are writing a letter promoting someone from
your employee in your company, if you are
commending a team in your corporation for
beating the monthly sales, you are probably
writing a good-news letter. The good-news
business letter is light in mood expressing
pleasant information.
Unfortunately, there will be times wherein you will
be required to write bad-news business letters. If
you are writing a letter rejecting a job applicant, if
you are writing a thank-you letter for an
employee, or worst, writing a letter to fire an
employee, you are probably writing a bad-news
business letter.
No matter what type of letter you are writing, no
matter how good or bad the letter is, always
make sure to be professional in writing the
business letter. Mind over matter is the rule of the
game.
There are common types of business-
letters such as the following:
1. Application Letter - is sometimes
called cover letter, is composed
persuasively whenever you are applying
for your target job. This letter is usually
accompanied by your resume for
additional information of you experiences
and skills.
In writing your application letter, you may
follow this format:
First Paragraph: Determine the reason/s why
you are applying for the job. Mention if the job
is solicited or unsolicited.
Second Paragraph: Explain why you deserve
the job without being too boastful. You may
support it by citing your qualifications.
Last Paragraph: Even if you think you are
hired or not, thank the hiring personnel.
There are three styles of resume:
a. Chronological Resume focuses on the
employment history of the applicant. This style is
ideal for those who already have several work
experiences showing steady career growth.
b. Functional Resume focuses on skills rather than
on employment history. This style is ideal for those
who are fresh graduates seeking for their first job.
c. Combination Resume focuses on drawing the
best features or strong points of chronological and
functional resume styles.
2. Letter of Inquiry -is a letter
that asks for a particular
information or assistance.
This type of business letter is
direct and the questions are
constructed to get the
information straightforwardly.
In writing a letter of inquiry consider, the
following guidelines:
First Paragraph. Begin with the most
important question or a summarizing
statement.
Second Paragraph. This part may contain the
explanation or list of questions.
Third Paragraph. The ending should tell the
reader what you want to be done and when.
3. Letter of Reply or Response -is
written in response to a letter of
inquiry which directly answers all
the inquiries regarding the
company's products or services.
As part of business as usual, most
companies promptly reply to all the
inquiries addressed to them.
In writing the letter of response, the following
steps may help you:
Acknowledge the inquiry by mentioning
important details from the letter of inquiry you
received.
Build goodwill and pave the way for future
contacts by using a cordial or friendly tone.
Answer the questions fully and send prompt
replies.
4. Letter of Request - is
commonly used everywhere.
We daily use it in academe, in
industry, even in corporate
world. The main purpose of
this letter is to request for
something you need.
In writing a letter of request, you may follow these
steps:
First Paragraph: (orientation) This is the
introduction part where you begin with the details
of the event or any activity. The date, time, and
venue should be also indicated
Second Paragraph: (Information) In this part, you
need to mention the requested materials or
equipments or even venue. You need to be very
specific in this part.
Last Paragraph: (Action) Thank the person in
charge to promote good will.
5. Letter of Order - is
one type of business
letter which is written for
the purpose of
purchasing items that
are for sale.
An order letter according to Rosales et al (2009) usually contains
the following:
a. Name of the item ordered
b. Description of each item, giving size, style, finish, quality,
material, weight, or whatever will help in identifying the article
wanted
c. Catalog number of the item, if it is available
d. Quantity of each item wanted
e. Price of each item and the total price of the order
f. Method of shipment desired by the buyer
g. Address where the goods are to be shipped or delivered
h. Date of shipment
i. Credit references, if payment is made from an account
j. Mode of payment
Qualifications and carter objective will help you
select format of your resume.
1. Chronological Resume Format includes:
• Applicant's name
• Address
• Telephone number
• Job objectives
• Education
• Work history - listed job by job, beginning with
the most recent position
2. Functional Resume Format
focuses on the applicant's skills
rather than on previous employment.
3. Combination Resume Format
highlights the best features of 1 and
2 emphasizing the applicant's
capabilities while also including a
complete job history and is
recommended for fresh graduates.