Elements and

Characteristics of
Business Correspondence
Lesson 2
 Written words make an
impression, just as spoken words
do, so keep in mind this one sure
thing: on paper, words create a
record.
 Establishing an objective will
answer one critical question
about your writing task:
What do you want the reader to
know or do, or be able to do
after reading your letter?
The answer needs to be specific Element #1:
and detailed. If the objective is Objective
too general, it will be difficult, if
not impossible, to present a
credible argument or a
compelling reason to read the
letter.
 Not so good: To
explain the proposed
cafeteria at Choco
Loco, Inc.

 Good: To explain how

the newly proposed Example:
cafeteria at Choco
Loco, Inc. will benefit
the employees, the
company, and the
Makati City
community.
 Knowing who your
readers are and what they
need from you are crucial
to satisfying your
objective. Element #2:
 Ask yourself some key Readers or
questions. ( Who is going Audience
to read your document?
Will it be one person or
many? What information
will they need?
 Identifying your reader is not
always possible, but often a
quick call will do the job. Most
businesses and organizations
provide names and contact
procedures over the phone. It
Element #3:
is especially important to check Contact Person
on these matters as large
companies often have specific
procedures for contacting their
associates or employees.
 The tone of voice used in the text
must fit the recipient of the letter.
It should reflect the relationship
between the writer and the reader
and suit the purpose for which the
letter is intended.
 Your tone will create the right Element #4: Tone
impression when you couch your
language in the words and phrases
that will most help your reader
understand your letter and its
underlying objective.
 It is a very individual
thing reflecting a
writer’s thinking
process, command of Element #5: Style
languages, vocabulary,
and communication
skills.
 Writers inform their
readers of the relationship
they have with the
material and in the text by
their use of personal
Element #6: Point
pronouns. The selection of
first, second or third of View
person pronouns
designates their point of
view and degree of
personal involvement.
Personal Pronoun Singular Plural

1st Person I, me, my we, ours, us

2nd Person You, your You, your

3rd Person He, him, his, she, they, them, their

her,it,its
 Thus, the hallmark of well-written business letter is that its
objective is clearly understood by its reader.
 Be careful about your choice of personal pronouns when
you write a business letter. Your reader will interpret its
point of view by the choices you make. Since your words will
be on paper, the reader will see, rather than hear, how you
talk, so check your sentence structure, grammar, spelling,
and punctuation.
 Business letter is one of
the vital components in
the success of a business.
To ensure that we are Characteristics of
writing an effective a Business Letter
business letter, there are “
Ten (10) Cs” we should
consider.
 Refers to the inclusion of
complete information.
The business letter should
answer the question
WHO, WHAT, WHEN,
1. Completeness
WHERE, and HOW to
produce a good and
complete business letter.
 Refers to the correct grammar,
punctuation, spacing, information,
and structure. It also refer to the
correct format of a business letter.

 To attain correctness, double check 2. Correctness

the spelling of the names, address
letters properly, verify numbers
and amounts, always check the
dictionary.
 Refers to being direct and brief
without compromising the complete
idea. In writing a business letter, we
should not include unnecessary
information which might confuse the
reader.

 Example:
 Instead of saying : At the present
time
 Say: Now 3. Conciseness
 Instead of saying: Prior to
 Say: before
 Instead of saying: Pitch in
 Say: join to
 Instead of saying: Start from scratch
 Say: make new from nothing
 Instead of saying: Meet the deadline
 Say: complete the job
 Refers to the smooth flow of ideas
in a business letter. The content of
a business should be in order and
easy to follow.

 Some of the devices that you may 4. Coherence

use to achieve coherence are use
of synonyms, use of transitional
words, use of pointers, use of
repetition of words, and use of
sentence patterns.
 Refers to readability of information
which easy to understand. We
should bear in our minds that 5. Clarity
simple words are more preferred
than complex ones.
 Refers to the use of specific words
not general words.

 Example:
 Instead of saying: Return of
investment 6. Concreteness
 Say: profit
 Instead of saying: Marker
penetration
 Say: successful selling
 Refers to the politeness of the tone
of the business letter. Being
friendly by showing positive
approach is the key for a successful
communication in business.

 Below are some examples of the

negative and positive word. But 7. Courteousness
then again, positive words are
more preferred in doing business.
 Negative: bad, sad, old, hard, slow,
disagree, delay, demand
 Positive: good, glad, new, easy, fast,
agree, early, request
 Refers to the use of professional
tone to show respect to the reader
of the letter. Also, we need to
anticipate the “YOU” attitude in
writing our letter.

 Example: 8. Consideration
 Instead of saying: We are glad to
offer you the best services.
 Say: You will be pleased to find
must-try services in our branch
near you.
 Refers to the uniformity of the
time and style of the writer of a 9. Consistency
business letter.
 Refers to the personality of the
writer as himself which might 10. Credibility
reflect on his writings.
 ELEMENTS OF A BUSINESS LETTER
 Because business letter is part of communication, it also follows the
communication process.

 There are three elements in the communication process that are also present in
business writing. There should be a sender, message, and receiver.

Sender Message Receiver

 The sender of the letter is the one
who is writing it. It is one of the
protocols in business writing that
the receiver of the letter should be
known by the sender. The
complete name, position, as well
as the address of the receiver
should be included in the letter.
The sender or writer must be also
knowledgeable in basic grammar,
punctuation, spelling, and
mechanics skills so that he might
build a good impression to the
receiver of the letter.
 The message is very important in the
communication process because it is
the reason that moves the sender to
start the communication process.
 The message of the letter should be
well-written, simple, and
understandable.
 The message should be direct and
persuasive and should avoid including
unnecessary information. It should be
concise and complete so that
everything you want to say is
included.
 Lastly, the receiver of the letter
completes the elements of
communication process. The main
role of the receiver is to carefully
decode the message of a business
letter and provide a feedback that
will complete the entire
communication process.
 Answer the following questions
briefly. (15 points)

 1.What advice will you suggest to

the reader when decoding the
message of the letter?
 2. What will you feel if the writer of
Assignment
the letter failed to include your
complete name on the letter?
 3. Among the ten characteristics of
a business letter, which do you
think is the most important? Why?