Formal Business letter

Any letter other than a Complaint, Request, Job application, or Personal is a Business letter. It could be an explanation you write to a library about the books that were never returned, or a letter to the Car Rental Company, describing the road accident you were involved in.

There are 4 paragraphs in this type of letter. They should look like this:

1     start with “Dear Sir/Madam,” (or write the person’s name if it was given in task instructions)

Explain shortly (in one or two sentences) who you are and/or what are you writing about.

“I am writing in regard to books I borrowed from the library on March 15, 2005, and never returned”.

2     Explain in more detail the purpose of your letter. Consider the idea that task instructions give you, and write according to it. Make up interesting details in addition to the original idea. This should be the biggest paragraph of the whole letter.

3     Say what kind of answer you expect or what suggestions you have for the situation. It is also a good place to apologize, if applicable.

4     Write a formal ending for the letter, your name, and sign.

“I look forward to hearing from you.”

If you know the name of the person you are writing to, sign

“Yours sincerely

            Mr. Smith”

If you don’t know the name of the person you are writing to, sign

“Yours faithfully,

            Mr. Smith”

THANKS FOR READING: Personal Letter Essential Tips for IELTS General Training Module