Basic Concepts

• Business readers don't take time to read; they just skim.
• It depends on the reader and the situation! Tailor it to the person you spoke with.
• Better not to send it than to send it with mistakes!
• Always specifically address the issue at hand

The e-mail is now the basic business communication, but it's informal. This has spilled over into business letters.

Good writing and good communication can shoot you past others. Show you know and you care.

4 Purposes of Commmunication

• Inform -- this is the most basic step, you almost always have to get beyond this
• Persuade -- Inform + convince
• Motivate -- Persuade + action
• Inspire -- qet them to take a chance and go with your idea

Letters & Their Purpose

• Cover letters need to motivate them to get in touch with you (they've probably already read your resume).
• Thank-you letters need to persuade them that you appreciate them and appreciated your interaction. Keep its purpose pure.

Organization Model

• Open tells what and why you're writing, establishes a reason for the communication, inovlves the reader in the communication, summarizes your message, and, if necessary, explains the organizaton of the document. If there's something they need to do something with, put it at the top! If there's something you want, put it at the top! In an e-mail, this is the subject line and the first sentence or two.
• The Body is the least important part. People don't read this, unless you've really already involved them, so don't keep your real payoff for this section. But you can explain your message, anticipate questions, and use a logical order. Leave out what they don't need!
• The Close is where you spell out exactly what the next action is or re-iterate, very specifically, what you expect or would like, along with any deadlines. Also include courtesies.

Headings

Use headings to organize your letter into clear, readable parts, if the letter is long.

Have a heading with the recipient, the date, and the page# on top of subsequent pages of the letter.

Tone

Be as informal and personal as you can be, given the audience. Don't use "traditional" or fancy language. Only use words you'd use in speech. Use simple contractions if you know the person. Over time, make it more personal and more informal; the point of the communication is to build a relationship.

Full Block format

Start everything by the left-hand side of the page. Keep the letter in the visual center of the page; don't just have a few short lines at the top of the page (you can either put the address at the top and add up to 6 CRs to shove the content down, or just add CRs at the top of the page to move the whole block of text down.

Use a colon after last names in the introduction, or a comma after a first name if you want to be more informal.

Blank line between paragraphs. Always. But keep the right edge jagged.

This is the preferred format, but, if your correspondent has used a different format, use that format.

The personal touch

Suppose you want to make a typed letter more personal?

• In an Executive Postscript,you hand-write a PS to a typed letter.
• You can use a Post-It note if the first recipient may not be the final recipient of the letter; they can read the note with the personal info and pass the clean letter on.
• Add a business card, a lot of people have scanners that will add you to their contacts automatically.
• Executive stationery, which is white or cream with, perhaps, a border around it, and your name, or initials, at the top. This is a unique and versatile piece.