The arrangement of a business letter.
To make your letter effective remember that your presentation of the letter should also be effective. Usually, the letter is drafted in two styles – Blocked and Semi Blocked. Blocked – Every line in this style begins flush with the left hand margin. Paragraphs are differentiated by leaving a blank space in between them. Semi Blocked – The first line of each paragraph is indented in this style of writing letters.
The structure of letter contains the following elements: Heading: Many organizations use their letter head for writing business letters. This covers one fifth of the total space of the page. Date: This is very important as it might act as a proof that you wrote on a particular date. Type the date two spaces below the last line of the heading at the left hand margin of the letter. Reference: The advantage of writing a reference is that it helps to trace the letter at a later date. Writing reference number is of two types – one indicates the reference number what you allot for the letter that you write; the other indicates the correspondent’s previous letter to which you are replying now. Inside Address: The complete address of the person whom you are writing to should be written. You should place it two line-spaces after the date. Salutation: This is the vital part of the letter which is a good as wishing the person. It is important that you address the name of the person if you know it. Subject: This indicates to the reader of the letter what the letter is about. It saves the time of the reader. The subject of the letter is written two line-spaces after the salutation. Body: This contains the text of the letter that you write. You should organize the body of the letter into paragraphs depending upon the matter of your communication. Conclusion: The conclusion is also known as ‘complimentary close’. You should always end the business letter with a firm or positive note. Signature: You