Fillable Printable Format of a Business Letter
Fillable Printable Format of a Business Letter
Format of a Business Letter
Format of a Business Letter
There are three basic business letter formats; however, students are encouraged to use the block format
as it is the easiest. In the block format, all parts of the letter run along the left side of the page. No
paragraphs of the body are indented.
PLEASE NOTE:
You may choose to double space your work, if you think it will allow you to make changes
more easily. This should only be applied to the body of the letter and not to other part.
There are formatting differences between the handwritten letter and the typed letter. Please
remember the format for your chosen method. It is important to remember in formal settings,
one should always type a business letter.
Parts of the Business Letter
1. Heading
The heading consists of your address and the date.
501 Spring Street
Regina SK R3T 4N7
January 3, 2002
2. Inside Address
The inside address consists of the name and address of the person to whom you are writing. IF
YOU ARE TYPING YOUR LETTER it appears 4 lines below the heading. IF YOU ARE
HAND WRITING YOUR LETTER it appears one line below the heading.
Sam Hunt, Director
The Knitting Mill
1409 3 Avenue
Toronto ON L3V 7B1
3. Salutation
The most traditional salutation or greeting for a business letter is Dear followed by Mr., Ms.,
Mrs., or Miss and the person’s last name, and ending with a colon. WHETHER YOU ARE
TYPING OR HANDWRITING YOUR LETTER, the salutation can appear 1 OR 2 lines below
the inside address.
Dear Mr. Smith:
Dear Ms. Black:
Dear Mrs. Brown:
Dear Miss Green:
4. Body
The body is the main part of the letter in which you write what you have to say to the person.
WHETHER YOU ARE TYPING OR HANDWRITING YOUR LETTER, skip one line after
the salutation.
Be concise. Ensure that sufficient information is given so that your purpose is clearly
understood, and your request is well received.
Business letters are formal so the language that you use should also be formal.
__________________________
__________________________ 1
__________________________
_________________________
_________________________ 2
_________________________
_________________________ 3
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________ 5
________________________ 6
________________________ 7
Use the BPDOG strategy to help you organize the information in the body of your
letter.
5. Closing
The closing is the ending to your letter. It appears at the bottom of the letter, under the body.
WHETHER YOU ARE TYPING OR HANDWRITING YOUR LETTER, skip one line after
the body. Only the first word in the closing should be capitalized. It is always followed by
comma.
Yours truly,
Sincerely,
6. Signature
The signature is your full name signed. Your signature should appear directly below the
closing. It should always be written in ink. WHETHER YOU ARE TYPING OR
HANDWRITING YOUR LETTER, you should allow four spaces for your signature.
7. Your name printed
4
Parts of the Envelope
ALL OF THE INFORMATION ON THE ENVELOPE MUST BE WRITTEN IN CAPITAL
LETTERS.
1. Return Address
The return address is the name and address of the person sending the letter. The return address
appears in the top left corner of the envelope and consists of your name, street address, city or
town, province, and postal code.
JEAN BROWN
501 SPRING ST
REGINA SK S3T 4N7
2. Mailing Address
The mailing address is the name and address to which the letter is being sent. It always appears
in the center of the envelope. In a business letter, the address on the envelope is the same as the
inside address of the letter. There may be separate lines for the title of the addressee (Editor,
Director, President, etc.), the division or department the person works in, and the name of his
or her company, business or organization.
SAM HUNT
DIRECTOR
THE KNITTING MILL
1403 3 AVE
TORONTO ON L3V 7O1
Com
Commonly Used Abbreviations for Provinces and Territories
Alberta AB
British Columbia BC
Manitoba MB
New Brunswick NB
Newfoundland NF
Northwest Territories NT
Nova Scotia NS
Nunavut NU
Ontario ON
Prince Edward Island PE
Quebec QC or PQ
Saskatchewan SK
Yukon YT
The Content of Your Business Letter
________________
________________ 1
________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________ 2
_________________________
Also known as the BODY of your letter
Remember BPDOG strategy for organizing the content of your business letter:
Opening Paragraph
Background
Purpose(s)
The opening paragraph explains why you are writing. This is where you supply
background information and explain your purpose in writing your letter.
My name is John Smith and I am President of Crystal Park School Council. I am
writing on behalf of the student council to invite you to our volunteer luncheon.
Body Paragraph(s)
Details
Operations
The body paragraph(s) explains any details or operations that the addressee would
need to know.
The luncheon will be held on Wednesday, June 5
th
at 11:30 AM in the school
gymnasium. Please contact the school secretary to RSVP by June 1
st
.
Concluding Paragraph
Goodwill Statement
The concluding paragraph is a good will statement. This is a short statement thanking
the addressee for his/her time and attention.
Finally, I want to thank you for your contribution to our school. We look forward to your
presence at the volunteer luncheon.
A business letter is a formal document. This means that no slang, abbreviations, or
contractions should be used in the letter.
If you follow this format, you letter should be polite, concise, and to the point and your
audience (the addressee) will know exactly what it is you are requesting.
Business Letter Format
Exemplar
Planning
B -Background -Air Canada Flight 072 April 6
th
, 2003
-John and Sara Dobson
-Bob and Susan Ede
-8:55 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Toronto – Edmonton
P -Purpose -to complain and inform company of problems
-ask for compensation
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D -Details -8:55 a.m. delayed until 10:00 a.m. engine problems – new
plane found
-10:30 a.m. de-iced, light on panel had to be checked, bags
unloaded to fix problem – determined they could not fix
and sent to terminal at 1:30p.m.
-2:15 p.m. supposed to board new plane
-3:30 p.m. boarded new plane (no food for a 4 hour +
flight)
-4:30 p.m. take off
O -Operations -unsatisfactory, terrible service, delays were too long, sat
on plane too long to be sent to terminal, we will no longer
use your services
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
G -Goodwill -Thank you for considering my point of view
Closing -compensation
12345 102 Avenue
Grande Prairie AB T8X 1N7
April 10, 2003
Bob Wonder, Customer Relations
Air Canada
PO Box 64239
5512 4
th
Street N.W.
Calgary AB T2K 6J0
To Whom It May Concern:
My name is John Appleseed and I am writing to inform you of my dissatisfaction with flight 072,
Toronto to Edmonton on April 6, 2003. A group of us, John & Annie Appleseed, John & Sara Dobson,
and Bob & Susan Ede were to fly out of Toronto at 8:55 a.m. Unfortunately, we did not leave the
tarmac until 4:30 p.m. I am writing to inform you of the unsatisfactory service that we received.
Our original flight was to leave at 8:55 a.m. but was delayed until 10:00 a.m. due to engine
problems…
We experienced terrible service and were appalled by the number of mechanical failures in your fleet.
The lack of service combined with mechanical problems has made us question whether to fly with
your carrier in the future.
Thank you for taking the time to take into account my point of view. If you can guarantee better
service and mechanical reliability we may consider your company in the future.
Sincerely,
John Appleseed
Background
Give the background to your purpose. For
example, if you are writing to apply for a job,
how did you find out about the job – an ad in
the paper, a friend, or just interest in the field?
introductory
paragraph
Purpose
What is your purpose for writing the letter?
Details
Give details about the situation. Use any of the
5WH questions to help you.
body paragraph(s)
Operations
Tell the person about anything that they need to
do or send, or that you are going to do or send,
when and how.
Goodwill Closing
Conclude with a positive statement even if you
are writing a letter of complaint. Your tome
must always be positive.
concluding
paragraph
BP DOG for Letters
