Formatting Letters, Memos, and E-Mail Messages
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Confirming Pages APPENDIXA Formatting Letters, Memos, and E-Mail Messages Appendix Outline Formats for Letters Formats for E-Mail Messages Formats for Envelopes State and Province Abbreviations Formats for Memos loc03180_appA_631-649.indd 631 23/11/11 10:21 PM Confirming Pages 632 Appendix A Formatting Letters, Memos, and E-Mail Messages Learning objective After studying this appendix, you will know LO A-1 Formats for letters. LO A-2 Formats for envelopes. LO A-3 Formats for memos. LO A-4 Formats for e-mail messages. etters normally go to people outside your organization; memos go to other people in your organization. E-mails go to both audiences. Letters, memos, Land e-mails do not necessarily differ in length, formality, writing style, or pattern of organization. However, letters, memos, and e-mails do differ in format. Format means the parts of a document and the way they are arranged on the page. FORMATS FOR LETTERS LO A-1 If your organization has a standard format for letters, use it. Many organizations and writers choose one of three letter formats: block format (see Figure A.2 ), modified block format (see Figure A.3 ), or the sim- plified format (see Figure A.4 ). Your organization may make minor changes from the diagrams in margins or spacing. Figure A.1 shows how the three formats differ. Use the same level of formality in the salutation , or greeting, as you would in talking to someone on the phone: Dear Glenn if you’re on a first-name basis, Dear Mr. Helms if you don’t know the reader well enough to use the first name. Some writers feel that the simplified format is better since the reader is not Dear. Omitting the salutation is particularly good when you do not know the reader’s name or do not know which courtesy title to use. (For a full discussion on nonsexist salutations and salutations when you don’t know the reader’s name, see Chapter 3.) However, readers like to see their names. Since the sim- plified format omits the reader’s name in the salutation, writers who use this format but who also want to be friendly often try to use the reader’s name early in the body of the letter. The simplified letter format is good in business-to-business mail, or in letters where you are writing to anyone who holds a job (admissions officer, customer service representative) rather than to a specific person. It is too cold and dis- tancing for cultures that place a premium on relationships. Sincerely and Yours truly are standard complimentary closes . When you are writing to people in special groups or to someone who is a friend as well as a business acquaintance, you may want to use a less formal close. Depend- ing on the circumstances, the following informal closes might be acceptable: Cordially, Thank you, or even Ciao. In mixed punctuation, a colon follows the salutation and a comma follows the close. A subject line tells what the message is about. Subject lines are required in memos and e-mails; they are optional in letters. Good subject lines are specific, concise, and appropriate for your purposes and the response you expect from your reader: loc03180_appA_631-649.indd 632 23/11/11 10:21 PM Confirming Pages Appendix A Formatting Letters, Memos, and E-Mail Messages 633 Figure A.1 Comparing and Contrasting Letter Formats Block Modifi ed block Simplifi ed 1 2 Date and signature block Lined up at left margin Lined up /2 or /3 of the Lined up at left margin way over to the right Paragraph indentation None Optional None Salutation and complimentary close Yes Yes None Subject line Optional Rare Yes Lists, if any Indented Indented At left margin Writer’s typed name Upper- and lowercase Upper- and lowercase Full capital letters Paragraph spacing Single-spaced, Single-spaced, Single-spaced, double-space double-space double-space between between between ■ When you have good news, put it in the subject line. ■ When your information is neutral, summarize it concisely in the subject line. ■ When your information is negative, use a negative subject line if the reader may not read the message or needs the information to act. Other- wise, use a neutral subject line. ■ When you have a request that will be easy for the reader to grant, put either the subject of the request or a direct question in the subject line. ■ When you must persuade a reluctant reader, use a common ground, a benefit, or a neutral subject line. For examples of subject lines in each of these situations, see Chapters 9, 10, and 11. A reference line refers the reader to the number used on the previous cor- respondence this letter replies to, or the order or invoice number this letter is about. Very large organizations use numbers on every piece of correspondence they send out so that it is possible to find quickly the earlier document to which an incoming letter refers. All three formats can use headings, lists, and indented sections for emphasis. Each of the three formats has advantages. Both block and simplified can be typed quickly since everything is lined up at the left margin. Block for- mat is the format most frequently used for business letters; readers expect it. Modified block format creates a visually attractive page by moving the date and signature block over into what would otherwise be empty white space. Modified block is also a traditional format; readers are comfortable with it. The examples of the three formats in Figures A.2–A.4 show one-page letters on company letterhead. Letterhead is preprinted stationery with the organization’s name, logo, address, phone number, and frequently e-mail. Figure A.5 shows how to set up modified block format when you do not have letterhead. (It is also acceptable to use block format without letterhead.) When your letter runs two or more pages, use a heading on the second page to identify it. Using the reader’s name helps the writer, who may be printing out many letters at a time, to make sure the right second page gets in the enve- lope. The two most common formats are shown in Figures A.6 , A.7, A.8, and loc03180_appA_631-649.indd 633 23/11/11 10:21 PM Confirming Pages 634 Appendix A Formatting Letters, Memos, and E-Mail Messages Figure A.2 Block Format on Letterhead Northwest Hardware Warehouse Line up 3–6 spaces depending on length of letter everything at left June 20, 2012 margin 2–4 spaces Mr. James E. Murphy, Accounts Payable Title could be on a separate line Salt Lake Equipment Rentals 1 1"–1 " 5600 Wasatch Boulevard 2 Salt Lake City, Utah 84121 zip code on same line Use first Dear Jim: Colon in mixed punctuation name in salutation The following items totaling $393.09 are still open on your account. ¶ 1 never has a heading if you'd use it on the phone Invoice #01R-784391 Bold heading After the bill for this invoice arrived on May 14, you wrote saying that the material had not been delivered to you. On May 29, our Claims Department sent you a copy of the delivery receipt signed 1", by an employee of Salt Lake Equipment. You have had proof of delivery for over three weeks, but because your payment has not yet arrived. right Single-space paragraphs margin is Double-space between paragraphs (one blank space) Please send a check for $78.42. justified Triple-space before a Voucher #59351 heading (2 blank spaces); double-space after the heading The reference line on your voucher #59351, dated June 16, indicates that it is the gross payment for Do not invoice #01G-002345. However, the voucher was only for $1171.25, while the invoice amount was indent $1246.37. Please send a check for $75.12 to clear this item. paragraphs Voucher #55032 Voucher #55032, dated June 16, subtracts a credit for $239.55 from the amount due. Our records do not show that any credit is due on this voucher. Please send either an explanation or a check to cover the $239.55 immediately. Total Amount Due Headings are optional in letters Please send a check for $393.09 to cover these three items and to bring your account up to date. 1–2 spaces Sincerely, 2–4 spaces Neil Hutchinson Credit Representative cc: Joan Stottlemyer, Credit Manager Leave bottom margin of 6 spaces— more if letter is short loc03180_appA_631-649.indd 634 23/11/11 10:21 PM Confirming Pages Appendix A Formatting Letters, Memos, and E-Mail Messages 635 Figure A.3 Modified Block Format on Letterhead 151 Bayview Road • San Francisco, CA 81153 • (650) 405-7849 • www.baycity.com 3–6 spaces September 15, 2012 2–4 spaces Line up date with signature block 1 or 2 of the way over to the right Ms. Mary E. Arcas 2 3 Personnel Director 1 Cyclops Communication Technologies 1"–1 2 " 1050 South Sierra Bonita Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90019 Zip code on same line Dear Ms. Arcas: Colon in mixed punctuation Indenting ¶ Let me respond to your request for an evaluation of Colleen Kangas. Colleen was hired as a is optional clerk-typist by Bay City Information Systems on April 4, 2010, and was promoted to Administrative 1", in modified Assistant on August 1, 2011. At her review in June, I recommended that she be promoted again. because block She is an intelligent young woman with good work habits and a good knowledge of computer right software.