Types of business letters

Here are some of the most common types of business letters and when to use
them:

1. Cover letters
A cover letter is a business letter typically sent with your resume when
applying to a job. While not all employers require a cover letter, it is a great
opportunity to explain your professional experience, qualifications and
interest in the company and job. Cover letters are often one page and include:

Contact information
Salutation
Purpose of the letter
A brief overview of your skills and experience
Conclusion
2. Letters of recommendation
You might write a letter of recommendation on behalf of
another professional to verify their qualifications and
work ethic. A letter of recommendation can strengthen
an application for employment, higher education or
another professional opportunity. Some jobs require
recommendation letters from two to three people who
can discuss your qualifications for potential roles. Letters
of recommendation include:

Relationship of the recommendation

Evaluation of the candidate's qualifications
Examples
Closing statement
3. Interview follow-up letters
An interview follow-up letter is a message you send to
interviewers to thank them for their time. This shows
hiring managers you are respectful and grateful for
their consideration for a position. Be sure to send this
follow-up letter within a day of the interview to express
your thanks and to reiterate your interest in the
position. Include key details from the interview that
show how you were actively listening. Components of
an interview follow-up letter include:Interview
overview
Expression of thanks
Your skills and qualifications
4. Offer letters
An offer letter is one that employers send to inform a jobseeker
that they want to hire them. These letters often accompany a
verbal offer. Within the letter, you find key details about the
position, including salary, start date, benefits and other
employment terms. Candidates respond and choose to accept
the offer, negotiate terms or decline. Parts of an offer letter
include:

Job description
Job title
Projected start date
Salary
Benefits
Requested acceptance timeline
5. Sales letters
The purpose of a sales letter is to introduce a
service or product to a client or customer. Sales
professionals often use these letters when
contacting prospective buyers or strengthening
relationships with longtime clients. Sales letters
help you personally connect to clients.
Components of a sales letter include:

Product description
Cost
Invitation to purchase or try a product
6. Letters of commendation
Employers write letters of commendation to express pride and
gratitude for exceptional performance. These show employee
appreciation, and managers might send them out to the entire staff
to congratulate an employee for successfully completing a project.
This can boost an employee's morale and encourage other
employees to excel.

Parts of a commendation letter include:

Purpose of letter
Details of success
Invitation to congratulate
7. Letters of resignation
A letter of resignation informs your employer
of your intent to resign. While you may
verbally notify your coworkers and employer of
your plans to leave, many organisations prefer
an official letter to file. Employers may request
multiple copies of this letter to file with
managers and human resources. Components
of a resignation letter include:Declaration of
resignation
Reason for resigning
Last day
Thank you note
8. Thank you letters
A professional thank you letter is an important way to let
colleagues, employers, vendors or other business contacts
know you value their time or efforts. Sending a professional
thank you letter can build rapport with the recipient and
communicate your intentions for the future. It might be
appropriate to send one after someone helps you with a
job search when a customer makes a purchase, or if a
business awards you a contract. You can also send a formal
version letter to express your general appreciation for
someone.Greeting
Reason for writing
Details of the interaction
Closing
9. Complaint letters
Consumers most often send complaint letters to
businesses when they are unhappy with a service or
product. Businesses may also occasionally need to
write a complaint letter if a vendor or service failed
to meet their expectations. For example, if a
company sold new database software that
frequently closed without saving work, an employee
may write a complaint on behalf of the company.
Components of a complaint letter include:Formal
greeting
Expectations at the time of purchase
Description of the issue
Expected resolution
10. Apology letters
An apology letter is an important tool in the
workplace that acknowledges a mistake,
expresses regret and asks for the recipient's
forgiveness or patience. Apology letters create a
formal record of your admitting to and
attempting to rectify a mistake or failure. Parts of
an apology letter include:Acknowledgement of
the mistake
Apology
Remediation plan
Request letters
A request letter is a way to formally ask for
something in the workplace. You can use this
letter to request a raise, a training class, a
recommendation or even a meeting to ask for a
promotion. Letters of request can also be a
beneficial way to gain specific information. Parts
of a request letter can include:Explanation of the
request
Supporting documents
Timeline expectations
12 parts of a business letter
Standard across most types, here are the main parts of a
business letter:Heading: Include your name and contact
information, such as an address, phone number and email
address. You might also include a company logo in the
header.
Date: the date you send the letter
Reference: Applicants may reference a job position or
customers may refer to the order information when filing a
complaint.
Recipient's address: the details of the recipient including
their address and contact information
Subject: Include the topic of the letter. If you are writing a
complaint letter, the subject can be the order number
Salutation: the formal greeting directly addressing the
recipient
Body Paragraphs: the full text with details of the letter
and relevant information
Closing: the last paragraph in a business letter that
includes what the writer expects from the recipient
Signature: Some letters require a handwritten signature
in addition to a typed signature.
Enclosures: Consider including your contact
information. You may not need to include this if you
have shared your contact details in the heading.
Copy Circulation: the additional recipients for a letter
PostScript: You can include an additional message after
the writer finishes an article. You can note this with P.S.
and your text after your signature.
 NOTICE WRITING
A notice is a written or an oral statement that contains the
particulars of holding a meeting. When a circular is served among
the members of the meeting to attend the meeting, it is called a
notice. It is a letter of invitation which carries the request to the
members to attend a meeting.

A notice includes time, place, date and agenda of a meeting. The

notice should be sent by the proper authority in due time so that
the members can attend the meeting in due course of time.

So, a notice is formally written or it is a formal information,

notification or warning about a fact or an invitation to the
concerned person for attending the meeting.
Notice writing is a formal means of communication.
The purpose of notice writing is to bring to notice a
certain piece of information to a group of people.

They are generally pinned in any common area

where the concerned people can read them. It is
one of the common methods of communication. It
gives important information about something that
is about to take place or has taken place.

It is usually meant for a wider audience and is put

up in a public place for easy accessibility.
 FORMAT OF NOTICE
Name of the Organisation – The first thing to write is the
name of the organisation/school/college from where the
notice is being issued. This will help people identify who
has published or put out the notice.
Title – The title for any notice writing is the word “Notice”
itself. This is to let the readers know that they are about to
read a ‘Notice’.
Date – The next important thing that you must keep in
mind while drafting the notice is to write the date. The date
is written in the left corner of the notice. The date helps
the readers to understand when the notice was issued.
Writing dates also helps to use it as a reference for future
use.
Heading – The heading of the notice refers to the
subject of the notice. In the heading,you have to
write briefly about what the notice is about. This
helps the readers to have an idea about what the
notice might consist of.
Body – The body contains the main content of the
notice. But one must keep in mind that the body of
the notice should be kept short and informative. Only
necessary information would be written in the body,
which is usually written in passive voice.
Signature and Designation – The notice ends with
the signature of the person who composes the notice
and their designation (in capital letters). It helps the
readers to understand who has issued the notice
Name of Issuing Organization/Authority: Right at the very top, you
print the name of the person or company that is issuing the said
notices. This will help the reader identify the notices as important
or unimportant to him.

Title: When writing notices we mention a title “NOTICE” at the top.

This helps draw attention to the document. Notices are generally
posted at a public place or published in newspapers. It is important
that they do not get lost in a sea of information. So a bold title
clearly mentioned helps draw the attention.

Date: After the tile to the left-hand side we print the date on which
the notices have been published. Since this is a formal document
date is an important aspect of it since these documents stay on
record.
Heading: Then we move on to an appropriate heading to
the notices. This heading should make abundantly clear
the purpose of the notices.

Body: After the heading, we write the brief and to the

point body of the notice. The main content of the notice
features in the body.

Writer’s Name: At the end of the notices we write the

name and designation of the notice-writer. The notices
have to also be signed by the same person to lend it
authority and validity.
 Notice
• Typed or printed on the organizations Letter
Head
• Name of the body/group (Exe. Board, Board
Meeting, extraordinary meeting, AGM)
which is to meet.
• Day, date & time of the meeting.
• Place of the meeting

contd. …
• Agenda of the meeting
• Notice of the meeting should sent in
advance so that the members can
necessary preparations as well as to reach
the meeting on time.
• It is customary to mention in the that
tea/lunch will be served.
 ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF A VALID NOTICE
1. Signature - The notice must be signed by the proper
authority. Only the legal authority should serve the notice.

2. Proper Time - The notice must be served in proper time. It

should be circulated according to the rules and regulations of
the company or the organization.

3. Time date and place - The time, date and place of the
meeting must be stated in the notice.

4. Unconditional - There must be no condition or complexity in

the notice about attending a meeting. Always a notice should
be unconditional.
5. Agenda - It means topics to be discussed in a meeting.
A valid notice should contain the agenda of the
meeting.

6. Conciseness - The notice must be short in size. It should

be clear, simple and easy.

7. Proper Persons - Notice should be served to the proper

persons who are entitled to attend the meeting.

8. Enclosure - An explanatory statement should be sent

with the notice.
Name of the School/College/Organisation
NOTICE
Date
Heading of the Notice
Body of the Notice
Signature
DESIGNATION
 ABC Co-operative Housing Society
NOTICE
25th October 2017.
Diwali Gathering
On the auspicious occasion of Diwali, the Society has
organized a gathering followed by dinner. All members
of the society are requested to attend the event in the
clubhouse of the society at 8:00 pm on the 30th of
October.

XYZ
Chairman of ABC Co-operative Housing Society
 MINUTES OF MEETING
Meaning of minute Minutes, also known as minutes of meeting (abbreviation MoM),
protocols or, informally, notes, are the instant written record of a meeting or hearing.
They typically describe the events of the meeting and may include a list of attendees, a
statement of the issues considered by the participants, and related responses or
decisions for the issues. Minute is an official written statement of the motions and
resolutions taken in a meeting. It is brief but a complete record of all discussions held
among the members of the meeting. It is also defined as the official record of the
proceeding of a meeting that should be needed to approve by the participating
members of the meeting. An accurate written record of meetings is essential not only
for all those who attended the meeting but also for those who were unable to attend.

Official minutes document the most important points discussed during a business
meeting. They aren’t a full transcript and shouldn’t include too much detail. Instead,
they should cover the highlights and the most crucial details. In less formal settings,
meeting notes provide a record of the discussion for future reference. In more formal
settings such as board meetings, companies take minutes and file them as legal
documents.
Minutes are "a record of what was done
at

[a] meeting, not what was said“

In business writing, minutes are the

official written record of a meeting.
Minutes serve as a permanent record of
the topics considered, conclusions
reached, actions taken, and assignments
given
Importance or objectives of a minute:

1. It provides accurate summary of the proceeding of a meeting

2. Acts as documentary evidence

3. Opinions of the members can be reviewed

4. Guidelines for future meetings

5. Acts as a means of accountability to the shareholders

The following factors should be considered in drafting
minutes of a meeting:

•Name and address of the organization

•Name of the meeting Date, time and venue of the
meeting
•Name of the chair person
• Name and signature of the participating members
Minutes are generally written in the simple past tense. The
Main Parts of Meeting Minutes Many organizations use a
standard template or a special format for keeping minutes,
and the order of the parts may vary.

1.Heading The name of the committee (or other unit) and

the date, location, and starting time of the meeting.

2.Participants The name of the person conducting the

meeting along with the names of all those who attended
the meeting (including guests) and those who were
excused from attending.
3.Approval of previous minutes A note on whether
the minutes of the previous meeting were approved
and whether any corrections were made.

4.Action items (including unfinished business from

the previous meeting)

5.A report on each topic discussed at the meeting.

(For each item, note the subject of the discussion,
the name of the person who led the discussion, and
any decisions that may have been reached.)
6.Announcements A report on any announcements
made by participants, including proposed agenda
items for the next meeting.
7.Next Meeting A note on where and
when the next meeting will be held.

8.Adjournment A note on the time the

meeting ended.

9.Signature line The name of the person

who prepared the minutes and the date
they were submitted
What’s Involved With Meeting Minutes?
As mentioned above, there are essentially five steps involved with
meeting minutes:
Pre-Planning
Record taking – at the meeting
Minutes writing or transcribing
Distributing or sharing of meeting minutes
Filing or storage of minutes for future reference

Record taking/ The Process of Writing Meeting Minutes

When the meeting ends, the individual tasked with writing
minutes should get all the resources he needs to write up the
minutes in a clear, presentable way.
1. Pre-Planning Meeting Minutes:
A well-planned meeting helps ensure effective meeting
minutes. If the Chair and the Secretary or minutes-taker work
together to ensure the agenda and meeting are well thought
out, it makes minute taking much easier.

What Is the Agenda of a Meeting?

Meeting agenda = outline:
At the very least, it’s important to get a copy of the meeting
agenda and use it as a guide or outline for taking notes,
setting up your Mom (Minutes Of Meeting) format, and
preparing the minutes – with the order and numbering of
items on the minutes of meeting matching those of the
agenda.
Distributing the Meeting Minutes
Once the secretary completes writing
the minutes, he’s supposed to share
them with the group members. They
can be shared online or through the
cloud. Considering that minutes and
other types of documents can entail a
lot of paperwork, it may be preferable
to use a paperless sharing approach.