Read the second part of Chapter 9.2: Memorandums and letters (under the heading ‘Letters’) in Business Communication for Success. This reading discusses the purpose, format, and standard elements of business letters. (You do not need to read the section on memorandums, as we have already covered this in the section on Internal memos.)

Find two or three different letters that have been sent by a business or an organisation such as a government agency, school, hospital etc. (Ideally use real letters that you or someone you know has received, but if you do not have any available, you can search the internet for ‘business letter examples’.)

• Examine the letters for the ’15 elements of a business letter’ described in the reading. For each letter, consider:
  • Which elements are there and which have been missed out?
  • Why do you think that is?
• What is the purpose of the letter?
• How effective do you think the letter is in achieving its purpose?
• How would you improve the letter?
• Post a WEnote about one interesting thing you have noticed when doing this activity.

For example:

I was surprised that…

I was interested to see that…

Your comment will be displayed in the course feed. Don’t forget to look in the feed to see what others have posted.

Do Exercise 5 from the reading, which asks you to write a business letter that informs a prospective client or customer about a new product or service.

• Think carefully about which of the 15 elements you should include.
• Follow the five points at the end of the reading which advise on how to communicate effectively and project a positive image.