1、Business Letters Topic 1OutlinenBusiness CourtesynStructure and Format of a Business Letter 6“NO”s in Commercial ActivitiesnDo not reproach your country and governmentnDo not touch upon state secret and business secretnDo not touch upon the private affairs of the other partynDo not gossip your boss,
2、colleges and people of the same trade at their backsnDo not touch upon topics of bad tastenDo not touch upon private questionsNational Habits American tradesmen usually prefer to talkabout business while eating,so the besttime to hold business talks is breakfast time.And pay attention not to shake h
3、ands nowand then,you dont have to exchange yourgreetings excessively.Just go straight tobusiness.While holding business talks with Britishtradesmen,you should bear in mind 3“NO”s:n The first is never wear striped tie.n The second is never talk about the private affairs of the Imperial House while ch
4、atting.n The last is never call them“English”but“British”.German tradesmen are quite formal.nYou should shake hands with them whileyou meet and say goodbye.nTo that who has a title,you should callhim by his title,otherwise you will beconsidered impolite.Finnish tradesmen are quite special.n Try to a
5、void politics while having a conversation.n If you succeed in making business with them,sometimes,they will invite you to sauna,that means youre welcomed,dont reject.n Frenchmen dont like private questions.n Australian tradesmen will cancel the negotiation if they find the representative they talk w
6、ith has no right to make decision.They find it a waste of time.n Canadian tradesmen hate the frequent change of price,and they also do not like small profits and large sales.n People in Middle East on Arab hate alcoholic drinking and smoking,so try to respect their national habits.Parts of a Busines
7、s Letter1.Letter-head（信头）2.Reference and Dateline（案号和日期）3.Inside Name and Address（封内名称及地址）4.Salutation（称呼）5.Body of the Letter（信文）6.Complimentary Close（结尾敬语）7.Signature（签名）Letter-head The letter-head includes:nThe writers namenPostal addressnTelephone numbernTelegraphic Telex address and codeReferen
8、ce nWhen one firm writes to another,each will give a reference,including a file number,departmental code initials of the signer and the typist initials.nThese are marked Our ref:and Your ref:to avoid confusion.e.g.Your ref:25JDAjc Our ref:34LGBwwn2 line-spacings below the letterhead.DatelinenTyped 2
9、line-spacings below the letter-headnPlaced to the right side of the sheetnAlways typed in full and never abbreviatede.g.n24th March,2005(British style)nMarch 24th,2005(American style)Inside Name and AddressnContents:receivers name,address and zipcodenPosition:On the upper left side of the sheet,5 li
10、ne-spacings below the line of the date.nTitle:Courtesy title:Mr.,Mrs.,Miss,Ms.Professional title:Dr.or Prof.SalutationnThe salutation appears on a line by itselfn2 line-spacings below the inside name and addressnFor one person:Dear Sir Dear Madam(Ms)For more persons:Dear Sirs(Gentlemen)Dear MadamsnF
11、ollowed by a colon(:)for formal salutation,and a comma(,)for less formal salutation.Body of the LetterWhen writing,pay attention to the following:nWrite simply,clearly,courteously,grammatically,and to the point.nParagraph correctly,confining each paragraph to one topic.nSee that your typing is accur
12、ate and the display artistic.Complimentary Closen2 line-spacings below the body of the letter.nThe first word should be capitalized and a comma can be either used or omitted at the end.nStudy the form in P23.Signature nThe signature includes:the signed name of the writer,the typed name of the writer
13、 and his business title.nIts written in ink immediately below the complimentary close.nThe written one and the typed one must be correspond exactly.nNever sign your letters with a stamp.EnclosurenIndicating there is one or more enclosures in the letter.n2 line-spacings below the signature.ne.g:Enclo
14、sure:Price list Enclosures Enclosures 4 Encl.As stated Encs.Your letter might also contain 8 Attention Line（经办人姓名）9.Subject Line（事由）10.Reference Notation（归档、参考行）11.Enclosure（附件）12.Carbon Copy Notation（抄送）13.Postscript（附言）Formats of a Business LetternThe indented style（缩行式）：British stylenThe block style（平头式）:American stylenThe modified block style（改良平头式）:most widely usedOverseas Trading Co.153 Market Street,STAMPLondon,E.C.3 China National Chemicals Imp.&Exp.Corporation,Er-Li Gou,Xi-Jiao,BEIJING,CHINA
