An example of an outgoing letter on company letterhead. Rules for writing a business letter

The introduction of a standard for the form, which, in turn, defines the requirements for the form of an official letter, was caused by the need to unify the process of its registration, this allows:

organize centralized production of letterheads;
reduce the cost of typing work;
reduce labor costs for writing and formatting letters;
facilitate visual search for necessary information;
expand the possibilities of using computing and organizational technology when processing letters.

The sample form is the basis for designing forms and templates for all types of management documentation. The area allocated to sample forms for the location of each detail corresponds to the optimal volume of this detail in printed characters.

How to write a formal letter

Often, the form of an official letter looks like a sheet of paper with permanent details printed on it using a typographic method. However, in Lately, less and less used standard forms, since the letter with all the necessary design can be printed using a printer.
An official letter consists of a “frame”, the main text, which contains information about the addressee, the abbreviated or full name of the sending company, its telegraph or postal address, fax and telephone numbers, the number of the telegram or letter that became the reason for the correspondence. Standard forms establish the field sizes and formats of documents that are part of a certain documentation system; there is also a sample structural grid, rules and details for its location.

Opened form:

Letter form and design
General writing rules
Compilation emails
Summing up

An entrepreneur has to conduct active correspondence both with officials (for example, representatives of government agencies) and with “semi-official” ones - partners, contractors, freelance specialists, and so on. The skill of written communication is developed quite quickly, but at first you can make a lot of mistakes and make a not the most pleasant impression on your recipients.

Info

In this article we will talk about the features of writing both ordinary business letters (in on paper), and electronic messages. Letterhead and Design Be sure to use your company's letterhead.

This always makes an impression and increases the loyalty of the “interlocutors”.

How to prepare an official letter form?

It is this line that determines whether a person will open the incoming message. If you are writing to someone you don't know, you should try and come up with an interesting title.

But don’t overdo it – topics like “Urgent!!! Unique offer, open right now!” They only make you want to quickly click on the trash can icon at the top. The title should consist of 3-5 words and reflect the content of the message.

If you are not familiar with the addressee, briefly outline who you are and how you found out about him.
Without this necessary introduction, the message may be considered spam and immediately deleted.
Do not disable quoting in the settings - let the previous correspondence be displayed below, under the cut.
Reading from a screen is a dubious pleasure. A paper letter can be picked up, and for this reason alone it is perceived more seriously on an unconscious level than an electronic one.

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This will “revive” communication – emoticons on the screen (even in a business message) are perceived quite positively. Of course, they cannot be used in “paper” letters.

Be sure to sign.
In emails, it usually consists of 3-6 lines and includes the sender’s first and last name, his position, company name, website address and contact phone number.

Details of the service letter

There are more options here:

“With respect,” “Sincerely yours”;
"WITH Best wishes»;
“With hope for continued cooperation”;
“We are always happy to provide you with a service”;
etc.

In a word, the choice of the last phrase is a matter of taste. Ethics of business writing Even veiled disdain in a business letter does not go unnoticed. Of course, in this case, you will no longer be able to count on a positive or even equal attitude towards yourself. The conclusion is obvious: do not give in to emotions and keep yourself within limits even if the recipient really annoys you.
Always pay attention to the tone of the message. You should be especially careful when drafting a letter containing a refusal. It is extremely unwise to begin such a message with a categorical “no” in one form or another - this will create in the person the feeling that he was simply sent.

How to write an official letter to an organization?

The type of forms, standards for filling them out and design elements must be specified in the order for the organization (or instructions for office work). Basic requirements for business letter forms can be found in GOST 2003 “Requirements for the preparation of documents.”
It is advisable to “squeeze” basic information about the company into the form:

name (and abbreviated name);
actual and postal addresses;
E-mail address;
Contact phone numbers;
Website address.

This is not a list of required data, but only a sample list. If desired, you can add or exclude something.

How to write and format business letters correctly

Important

We can say that an official letter consists of a “frame” of the letter and the main text and contains, in addition to the main text, information about the addressee: the full and abbreviated name of the sending organization, its postal and telegraph address, telephone, fax and teletype numbers, the number of that letter or telegram , which served as the reason for the correspondence, and much more. Forms can be with either angular or longitudinal arrangement of details.

Attention

The design of the form must comply with the principles of technical aesthetics, which in turn has a positive effect on the perception of its content. Considering the property of the human eye it is easier to fix top part of any object, when preparing documents, their upper part should be made more saturated, and the lower part more “stable”.

Sample official letter from an organization

If you touch on several issues in it, they should be closely interrelated. If you need to contact the same organization on several different topics, it is better to write a separate letter for each of them.

Language of writing The style of business correspondence is “lightweight” official business. It is possible and necessary to standardize phrases, use some cliches and cliches, but it is not recommended to reduce all this to dry bureaucracy. "

Living language is always perceived easily and favorably. Of course, business written language must comply with the norms of etiquette (which will be discussed below), but the essence of the issue should be stated clearly and concisely.

Official letter: existing types, design rules

The standards for sample forms establish the formats and sizes of fields of documents that are part of the unified documentation system, as well as the requirements for constructing the structural grid of the sample form, details and rules for their location. Documents included in unified documentation systems consist of three main parts, which are located within clearly demarcated zones. This arrangement of the document ensures the necessary speed of perception of its text. Details are mandatory characteristics established by law or regulations for individual species documents. The composition and arrangement of details on the forms of organizational and administrative documents must comply with the relevant standards. Previously, these standards were regulated by GOST 6.38-90, currently GOST R.30-2003 is used.

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It is part of the organization’s incoming and outgoing document flows. There are many types of business letters: advertising, commercial guarantee, covering, informational, claim, instructional, etc.

The culture of business correspondence requires an entrepreneur to be able to correctly draw up such documents. A pre-designed letter form can help with this.

It serves as a business card of the company, which demonstrates its style and creates a favorable image. Properly executed business correspondence allows the addressee to receive full information about the sender, its strict style makes the information official and simplifies subsequent use of the documentation. This is especially important at the initial stage of company development, when advertising costs are still limited, but there is already a need to create a positive image in the business environment.

Official letter on organization letterhead

Location of details (corner version) of the letter form (dimensions are indicated in millimeters) Fig. 2. Arrangement of details (longitudinal version) of the letter form (dimensions are indicated in millimeters) The most convenient for processing and economical in terms of using the sheet space is the corner form. In this case, the right side of the top of the sheet can be used to place the details “Addressee”, “Resolution”. Using a longitudinal letterhead is advisable in cases where the name of the organization contains a large number of printed characters, for example, may be the case when the details of the form are given in two or more languages. In this case, the details should be printed in Russian on the left, and in the national language on the right, at the same level.

16Apr

Hello! In this article we will talk about business letters.

Today you will learn:

Why business correspondence has not lost its relevance;
What types of business letters are there and how they are formatted;
How to write a business letter correctly.

Now outside our windows is the time of high technology and the Internet. But business correspondence has not lost its importance and relevance, it has simply moved to other media. Let's talk today about why it is important to be able to compose and format business letters.

Why do you need business correspondence?

First of all, this is an opportunity to exchange opinions, suggestions and thoughts with employees or business partners. With the help of correspondence, they state complaints, requests, and clarify misunderstandings between companies.

Business correspondence is one of the types of official correspondence.

Differences between business letters and others

The main differences are as follows:

Stylistics of presentation;
Vocabulary that does not allow clear expression of emotions;
Done on the official letterhead of the company;
The font is not too small, but not large either, and is the same throughout the text;
Rarely occupy more than 1 page;
Presence of strict official chain of command.

Types of business letters

All business letters can be divided into several groups. We will dwell on each in more detail and give a brief description.

Letters that do not need to be answered.

Letter of guarantee;
Accompanying;
Informational;
Warning letter;
Reminder letter.

Letters that require a response.

Appeal;
Offer;
Request;
Requirement;
Petition.

Non-commercial letters.

Invitation letter;
Letters expressing condolences;
Letters expressing gratitude;
Letters informing about something;
Letters containing recommendations;
Letters of guarantee;
Letters confirming that the goods have been received, the service has been provided, and so on;
Letters of congratulations on various occasions;
Letter of request;
Letters of instructions;
Covering letters.

Commercial letters.

They are usually used before entering into an agreement, as well as during the validity of the contract.

These include:

Letters responding to inquiries;
Direct request;
– a letter in which it is proposed to make a transaction or conclude an agreement;
Claim;
Reminder;
A letter containing a warning about the termination of agreements or the need to fulfill obligations, etc.

If we talk about classification by structure, there are 2 types of business letters:

Containing the author's text and written in free form;
Compiled according to a strict pattern.

By addressee.

Circular – a letter that is sent to several addressees;
Regular – sent to one recipient on behalf of one person;
Collective – sent to one recipient, but from several persons.

Letters are also divided according to the form in which they were sent:

Sent as a fax message;
Sent by email;
Those sent in regular envelopes.

There are types of letters that, for ethical reasons, should be handwritten rather than typed. This applies to condolences and congratulations.

Secrets of proper design

The text of the letter is divided into introductory, main and final parts. They are logically connected to each other. The introductory part includes the circumstances that led to the creation of the letter, and the main part represents the content itself. The final part summarizes the results, which express the request, refusal, etc.

In general, business correspondence with all responsibility can be called an art, because it is necessary to learn how to conduct it correctly, in compliance with all requirements. After all, most often we only think about the information being presented clearly, and we forget about the fact that the letter can be considered the face of the company.

Stylistics.

Each letter is strictly maintained business style, means of speech characteristic of official documents are used.

Requirements for presentation of information.

All information contained in the letter is presented as follows:

Addressed, intended for a specific person;
All information must be current as of the date of writing;
Reliable;
Impartially;
Reasoned;
As completely as possible, so that a decision can be made based on it.

Form.

First of all, the letter is drawn up on letterhead that is proprietary to the company.

To write a business letter, A4 size sheets are used;
The left margin of the form must be at least 3 cm, since after some time they will be sent to the file;
The name of the company, its legal and actual address, and email address are indicated;
It's better to use a standard font Times New Roman, size 12. It is the most optimal and is well perceived when reading;
It is allowed to draw up business letters without using a letterhead, but then you still need to provide the information from the form.

If the letter deals with large transactions related to finance or confidential information of another nature, send such letters by fax or in electronic format Not recommended. It’s better the old fashioned way, in a regular paper envelope.

Numbering.

If the letter consists of several pages, then they are numbered starting from the second. The numbers are marked at the top in the middle in Arabic numerals. There are no dots next to the number.

Division into parts.

This means dividing the letter into paragraphs. The text should not flow in a continuous stream, otherwise it simply will not be perceived. Thanks to the division into paragraphs, you can see where one thought ends and another begins.

Availability of fixes.

It is not advisable to allow corrections, typos, or erasures. The letter must be written correctly, and the text must be printed at intervals of 1.5 - 2.

Details used.

We will indicate only the main ones, since we already briefly talked about them a little earlier:

If the enterprise is state-owned, the Coat of Arms of the Russian Federation is used. It is located in the middle of the official form;
Full company name;
Fax and telephone numbers;
Bank account number;
Addressee - and the name of the recipient company is used in the nominative case; to indicate the position and surname of the recipient, use the dative case;
If the addressee has academic degree or title, indicate it before the person’s last name;
Any details are written on a new line and with a capital letter.

Business letter after a meeting

You held a business meeting, there was some prospect for. We will discuss further how to reflect this in a letter.

First of all, at the beginning of the letter, refer to the date and time of your communication with your potential partner, even if a couple of days have passed since the meeting.
Avoid mistakes or overly complex phrases: keep the letter short and clear, but in such a way that the recipient will want to read it.
Mention what the conversation was about. Eg: " We discussed how much a Venetian-style vase would cost.”
Make sure that the recipient of the letter expresses his/her opinion on the topic of the meeting.
Indicate a time when you can communicate by phone or meet in person.
Let the recipient know that you are looking forward to working with him: “ I look forward to future business relationships with you«.
End your letter with the following or similar phrase: “ Best wishes to you...».

Electronic business letters

It is impossible to ignore the requirements for their design, since now more and more letters are issued in electronic form rather than in paper form. After all, it’s the 21st century.

Prepare an email business letter a lot of work does not compile; the formatting requirements are identical to traditional letters. The only thing is that such a letter should always have a title (or subject line) so that it simply does not get lost in the flow of documentation.

In addition, when such a letter is answered, it is better not to change the subject of the letter, so you will quickly understand what is being said if you receive a lot of emails.

Also, you should not use state-of-the-art software when creating attachments to such letters; it is far from a fact that your recipient has the same. If it is not there, the letter simply will not open.

Don't use emoticons when writing a business letter electronically. Technology is great, but keep it business-like when writing.

What is the deadline for replying to a letter?

If the letter is classified as requiring a response, then when to respond depends on the information contained in the letter:

If you receive a request, please confirm that it has been received within the next three days of receipt. And the final answer can be given within a month;
If we are talking about condolences, it can be sent within ten days after the sad event happened;
It is permissible to send congratulations within 8 days from the moment you learned about the special date;
If we talk about general rules good manners, then it is better to respond to letters within seven days.

How to write a business letter: in simple language about complex things

Distinguish between a business letter and personal correspondence. We have already talked more than once today about what these differences are, we should not forget about them. Now let’s look at writing a letter step by step.

Stage 1. We indicate the addressee.

In the upper right corner of the form we write the surname, initials and position of the person to whom we are addressing the letter. If the addressee is an organization, indicate its legal address.

Stage 2. Appeal.

We place it in the middle of the form. It is carried out in a respectful manner, without abbreviations or erasures.

Example: Dear (name, patronymic)! Also, the addressee can be addressed by indicating his position. But when you address a person by name, it reduces psychological stress and indicates that the business relationship is stable and established.

Stage 3. Statement of purpose.

Explain the purpose of the letter, its essence and main ideas. This part is the main one. Write about what you want to say, what is the reason for your appeal. But do not forget about the official and neutral style.

Stage 4. Making proposals and recommendations.

Almost any business letter implies that the addressee will respond to it. This is generally not required only by letters of an informational nature. Therefore, do not just describe the problem, but also suggest how it can be solved.

If you file a complaint, ask for certain measures to be taken; if you offer to cooperate, tell us what options are available.

Simply put, the one who receives the letter must see that they not only want something from him, but also understand how this can be accomplished.

How to end a business letter

A business letter must be written perfectly. If writing rules are not followed, it can negatively affect the company's reputation as a whole. Therefore, we now propose to dwell in more detail on the design of the final part of a business letter.

At the end of the letter, summarize everything that was discussed earlier. But you shouldn’t stretch your conclusions into 10 sentences; after all, brevity and conciseness are valued in business letters. It's better to limit yourself to simple phrases.

We will base the ending on 2 indicators: it should be as polite and correct as possible. There are different options for how to build it.

Here are some examples:

Thank you for your attention or help: Thank you! (Let me thank you...);
Express your hopes for the future: We hope for mutually beneficial cooperation (We hope to receive an answer in the near future...);
You can construct a phrase to assure the addressee of something: We would be glad to cooperate with you;
Make a request: We ask you to report the results;
Apologize for any inconvenience caused: I apologize for the unexpected delay in payment for the material.

How to say goodbye to the recipient.

Despite the fact that the correspondence is official, you can say goodbye in different ways.

Here are a few options:

With respect to you...;
With wishes of success...;
Best wishes…

We sign correctly.

When signing the letter, indicate your position, first and last name. If you doubt the appropriateness of a phrase like: “ Yours sincerely" - just don't use it.

You can indicate your contacts, additional phone number or email address in the signature, so you demonstrate to the recipient that you are ready to communicate and cooperate with him.

In the next part of our article I would like to talk about business letters in English.

Business letters in English

There is no regulated form for composing such letters. Everything will depend on the purpose of the letter and who its addressee is. Here are some brief recommendations for drafting.

Date of writing.

If we are writing in the USA, then when indicating the date we put the month first, then the day and only then the year. If to the UK, the date is entered as in the Russian Federation. In this case, write the month in letters to avoid confusion.

Recipient details.

If you write to a man, contact him like this: Mr (insert last name);
If a woman who is married: Mrs (insert last name);
To an unmarried lady: Miss (indicate last name);
If you don't know the lady's status: Ms (insert last name).

Specifying the address.

The order is the opposite of that accepted in the Russian Federation: office, house number, street name, zip code, state name (if writing in the USA), county name and country name (if writing in the UK).

How to contact the recipient.

Standard calls:

Dear Madam;
Dear Sir;
Dear Sir or Madam;
Dear Mrs;
Dear.

After the address we put a comma (if writing to the UK) or a colon (if writing to the USA). It is not customary to put an exclamation mark.

Subject.

Be sure to indicate the subject of the letter, just like in the Russian Federation.

Main text.

Divide it into paragraphs. Or write each sentence on a new line.

How to say goodbye.

For example, like this: “ Thanking you for assistance, we remain Yours truly"– Thank you, my devoted one..., although it could be less formal.

Signature registration.

We put our signature under the farewell paragraph, indicate our first and last name, company name and position.

Design of applications.

If you are enclosing any documents, please indicate this at the end of the letter: “ Enc." and list applications.

What to write with a capital letter.

Last names and initials;
Company names;
Names of cities, states, etc.;
Any words that indicate the position held;
The first words in farewell;
Opening addresses.

Before we end the conversation, here are some examples of business letters in Russian and English.

Samples of business letters in Russian and English

Conclusion

To summarize, I would like to say that a business letter is a tool for communication in any field of activity. If it is written correctly, it will definitely present your company in a positive light.

On the other hand, a letter written sloppily and with errors can completely destroy the most promising business. Write letters correctly, and we tried to tell you how to do it.

- a generalized name for various contents that serve as a means of communication between institutions in the process of carrying out their activities.

A letter is the most common way of exchanging information; it unites a huge group of documents that are very different in content, distinguished by the method of transmitting text ( by mail). Letters make up the majority of incoming and outgoing documents of any institution and have many varieties.

Types of letters:

instructive;
accompanying;
informational;
warranty;
advertising;
claims;
arbitration;
confirmation letters;
reminder letters;
notification letters;
letters of request.

The letters express congratulations, wishes, and greetings on special occasions. Letters are sent as a sign of participation and expression of condolences in dramatic and tragic situations.

The letter is drawn up on a format specially designed for this type of document A4. If the text of the letter does not exceed seven lines, it is allowed to use the format A5.

Date of the letter is the date of its signing.

Text of the letter built according to the scheme:

introduction (here are the reasons for composing the letter, references to events, facts, decisions of higher institutions and other factors that served as the basis for composing the letter);
evidence (this sets out the rationale for the issue stated in the letter);
conclusion (listing conclusions, requests, demands, proposals).

Often in documentation practice, letters are used that contain one final part of the text without explanation.

The length of the letter, as a rule, should not exceed one page.

Purpose of compilation and direction letters boils down, as a rule, to incentive motives, hence the basic requirements for the text: clarity, precision, brevity of presentation. The practice of correspondence has developed several general rules that must be followed when composing and formatting letters.

The letter should be devoted to one issue, which simplifies the processing operations and speeds up execution in the organization to which they are addressed.

The text of the letter, as a rule, is stated in the third person singular, for example: “The school does not have the opportunity...”, “In the coming year the school does not offer...”, etc.

The right to official letters, as a rule, belongs to the manager, and during his absence (illness, vacation, business trip) to his deputy or the official acting as the manager. Letters are currently sent not only by mail, but also using telegraphs, fax machines, and computer networks (e-mail).

Regardless of the method of transmitting the document, uniform requirements for its preparation and execution are used (see Fig. 3.7).

Rice. 3.7. Example of letter formatting

In recent decades it has become integral part in any area of business. In addition to drawing up contracts, acts and annexes to them, document specialists are engaged in drawing up various kinds of appeals and letters. At the legislative level, the principles of their design and the general template, of course, are not defined. In such a situation, the question arises: “How to correctly draw up this or that legally weak, but business document?” The answer to this is extremely simple and comes down to drawing up such papers according to generally accepted standards in office work.

Today our resource decided to consider the principles of writing an official letter and the features of this document. Information on the summarized topic and a template for the paper itself can be found below.

Official or is one of the basic types of documents in the field of office work of modern business. It is a universal way of transmitting information, implemented in the simplest possible manner, but in compliance with all the rules and regulations of business relations.

Naturally, the information presented in official letters is not of an entertaining nature. Such papers can be invitations, partly advertising, informational and others, but in no case entertaining.

There are many differences between an official letter and a regular one. The main one is purpose. If a business document always has a precise purpose of sending or transmitting to the addressee, then regular letters are often used for “communication for the sake of communication.” In addition, business messages:

are not anonymous - they always have information about the sender and recipient
written on behalf of a specific person or organization or association represented by him
(if the sender has a stamp)
compiled according to generally accepted rules in office work
cannot be entertaining, as mentioned earlier

An optional, but also common difference between an official letter and a regular message is that the former is written on company letterhead. This approach gives the address the highest level of solidity and generally indicates its business status.

A few words about the details and general content of the document

Official letters are issued for various reasons, as a result of which the content naturally varies. Despite this, the general structure of business messages cannot be taken away. It is this that is defined as true in the field of office work, is not subject to dispute and forms the basic requirements for the relevant documents. Typical details of an official letter include:

full name of the sending company or full name of a specific citizen
information about checkpoint, checkpoint, and OKUD (for organizations)
address and all possible contacts of the sender
similar information about the addressee
the essence of the message
date of its composition
and printing (for organizations)

Important! The type of business documents we are considering today is one of the few that do not need to include a title. The absence of the latter is by no means a mistake, but compliance with basic office work standards.

It is advisable to issue the letter itself on letterhead, of course, if its sender is a company. For government agencies, such forms have an image of the coat of arms, for commercial organizations - their emblem.

Clear and understandable for the recipient.
Without the use of profanity, not to mention insults and obscenities.
Neat, concise and competent.

In principle, document experts do not make any other requirements for official letters. It is enough to comply with the noted norms, rules and general content of the document.

You can download a template for an official letter to the organization below:

Types of official letters

An official letter is a fairly extensive group of business papers. The most used of them include:

, reflecting the sender’s desire to do something for the benefit of the addressee
Letters of request
Requests
Event Invitations
Invitations to cooperation
Papers that remind the recipient of something
Commercial offers
Requirements
Instructions
Advertising and information letters

By the name of each type of official letter, you can understand its general purpose and the purpose of sending the message. As practice shows, the transfer of various types of requests in the business environment is carried out for a variety of reasons, and the list of their types noted above is far from final.

Features of the design and transmission of the message to the addressee

At the end of today’s article, let’s pay attention to the transfer of official letters to the Russian Federation. First of all, it should be noted that the main nuance of successful business relationships is a competent approach to their management. In case of execution of the relevant documents we're talking about about them:

neatness
full compliance with business standards
purposefulness (sending an official letter to someone in the form of spam will significantly undermine the authority of the sender)

In addition, it is advisable to approach the composition of the message extremely responsibly. Its text should be literate, concise and understandable. The use of complex verbal structures and terms is undesirable. The general tone of the address should be kept within limits. Restraint is welcome, but familiarity is never.

As for the transmission of business letters, the sender has no restrictions. You can deliver a message to the addressee:

via the Internet in electronic form
via mail
via courier or even in person

Transmitting official letters is a vast field. All senders will be able to choose a convenient message.

This concludes the most important provisions on the topic of this article. We hope that the information presented has helped all readers understand the essence of official letters in the Russian Federation and the rules for their execution.

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