How To Write A Memo
How to write a memo April 4, 2014 MEMORANDUM
TO: Mr./ Ms. Business Communicator
FROM: Jackie L. Christy, Secretary to the CEO
SUBJECT: Memo writing This memo tells you how to write an effective memo.
Notice that a memo always begins with a statement of the purpose of the memo. Memos vs. Letters: Use memos rather than letters when you are communicating within your organization, including the members of your team, upper management and employees on another team. . Heading Information:
The material at the top of the memo always includes the date, the names of the writer and the receiver of the memo, and the subject of the memo. Use a courtesy title (Mr., Miss, Mrs., Ms., Dr.) before the recipient's name and a job title after it to help in routing and filing the memo, unless the memo is very informal and of a temporary nature, such as a reminder to someone in your department about the meeting on Friday. Use a job title after your name, and hand write your initials by your name. This confirms that you take responsibility for the contents of the memo. The subject heading should be as specific as possible
, including project names and numbers.
Paragraphing: Long paragraphs of dense text make reading difficult. Keep your paragraphs short and to the point. If you need to write long memos to a person– don’t. Make an appointment with the person instead. Style: Use strong, active verbs, personal pronouns, and vocabulary appropriate for your audience. Be as concise as possible. Ending: Traditionally, memos required no conclusion other than "Please contact me if you have questions" or something of the sort. They also required no closing signature. Now, however, it is becoming more common for memos to close the way letters do, with a typed signature under a handwritten signature. Some writers even include the polite "Sincerely" before their signature.
TO: Mr./ Ms. Business Communicator
FROM: Jackie L. Christy, Secretary to the CEO
SUBJECT: Memo writing This memo tells you how to write an effective memo.
Notice that a memo always begins with a statement of the purpose of the memo. Memos vs. Letters: Use memos rather than letters when you are communicating within your organization, including the members of your team, upper management and employees on another team. . Heading Information:
The material at the top of the memo always includes the date, the names of the writer and the receiver of the memo, and the subject of the memo. Use a courtesy title (Mr., Miss, Mrs., Ms., Dr.) before the recipient's name and a job title after it to help in routing and filing the memo, unless the memo is very informal and of a temporary nature, such as a reminder to someone in your department about the meeting on Friday. Use a job title after your name, and hand write your initials by your name. This confirms that you take responsibility for the contents of the memo. The subject heading should be as specific as possible
, including project names and numbers.
Paragraphing: Long paragraphs of dense text make reading difficult. Keep your paragraphs short and to the point. If you need to write long memos to a person– don’t. Make an appointment with the person instead. Style: Use strong, active verbs, personal pronouns, and vocabulary appropriate for your audience. Be as concise as possible. Ending: Traditionally, memos required no conclusion other than "Please contact me if you have questions" or something of the sort. They also required no closing signature. Now, however, it is becoming more common for memos to close the way letters do, with a typed signature under a handwritten signature. Some writers even include the polite "Sincerely" before their signature.