unit 1商务信函基本知识介绍

1、Unit 1 Fundamentals of Modern Business Letter Writing 现代商务函电写作的基本知识,International BUSINESS LETTERS 国际商务函电,专 业 英 语 教 研 室,山东省经济管理干部学院,主讲教师：郑召关,introduction,Preface,1.Definition English business correspondence refers to the letters , cables, telexes, faxes and e-mails dealing in international business,

2、 as well as in domestic trade, of course. 2. Aim The purpose of this course is to help you learn how to write good business letters by using up-to-date expre-ssions in the simplest possible language.,It has its unique language style and jargons行话，黑话 It is full of business terminations词尾 and abbrevia

3、tions There is a close relations between business communication and international trade,3. Features,We are in the market for silk blouses丝绸上衣 and should be pleased if you could kindly quote us your keenest prices for the goods below Offer quotation order counteroffer letter of credit CIF FOB YL11/11

4、RVD S/C123 L/CUNRCV PLSRUSH,Examples:,Part of Business Letters,A. The standard parts,the letterhead the date the inside address the salutation the body of the letter the complimentary close the signature,(1) the references 收发文编号 (2) the special markings特殊标志 (3) the subject line 标题，主体，事由 (4) the carb

5、on copy notation (5) the enclosure,Part of Business Letters,B. The optional parts,There are seven parts in an ordinary business letter: 1 letterhead （信头） 2 date （日期） 3 inside name and address （封内名称和地址） 4 salutation （称呼语） 5 message（body of letter）（正文） 6 complimentary close （结束语） 7 signature and offic

6、ial position （签名与职务）,Contents and ways of writing (主要内容和写法),Some letters may contain one or more of the following, which depend on the different situation of each writing requirement: 8 reference notation （编案号） 9 attention line （送交） 10 subject line （标题） 11 enclosure （附件） 12 The “Per Pro” signature (

7、代理人签字) 13 The Identification marks （认辩符号） 14 postscript （附言）,1) Letterhead (信头) The letterhead usually includes the essential information about the writer name, address, cable address, telex number, etc. The writing of the address should be stressed as it is totally different from Chinese order. The

8、 number and the street should be put at the beginning while the city and country be put at the end. For example, 中国广东省广州市天河街14号” should be translated into “No.14 Tianhe Street, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China”.,2) Date（日期） As for the date, it is usually put one or two lines under the letterhead

9、 on the right for the purpose of filing or checking. Simple ways of writing: March 4,2006 March 4th, 2006 4 March, 2006 Avoid using “3/4/06” or “2006.3.4”.,3) Inside Name and Address (封内名称和地址) It will be the same as in the envelope, which shall be the name and address of the receiver. But when some

10、companies use the name of the owner as part of the company name, “Messrs” will be added before the name, for example, “Messrs Bob body is to specify his requirements and wishes while closing is to express thanks or hope. The contents of body will vary with the specific step of business. There are tw

11、o main kinds of layout here: indented one with the first line of each paragraph indented and blocked one with all lines on the left.,6) Complimentary Close (结束语) There are many ways of complementary close to show respect. It carries no specific meanings. Usually we keep them in pace with the salutat

12、ion. When the salutation is “Dear sir (s)”, complimentary close will be “yours faithfully, yours sincerely”; when salutation uses “Gentleman (men)”, complimentary close will be “yours truly, truly yours”, etc.,The Complimentary Close(结尾敬语/套语) (1),The complimentary close is merely a polite way of bri

13、nging a letter to a close. It is usually placed two or four lines below the last line of the body of the letter. There are many different complementary closes that show respect, but it should match the salutation. The most common sets of salutation and complimentary close are as follows:,The Complim

14、entary Close(结尾敬语/套语) (2),7) Signature (签名) It is usually printed and written on a letter, the place of which will depend on the layout of the letter. We put signature under the complimentary close with title under it. If the writer represents certain institute, the name of the institute will be pri

15、nted above the signature, for example: Yours truly, Yours faithfully, (signature) MITSUBISHI CORPORATION (Miss) Lucy Steinbeck (signature) Thomas C. Sutton General Manager, Sales Department,8) Reference Number (参考案号) In business letters, reference is often made to previous letter. It may include the

16、 date of the letter, a file number, the contract number, L/C number or the initials of the signer of the letter and take the form as “Our ref.” and “your ref.”,9) Attention (送交) When the writer wants to address the letter to a special person or corporation, he will add it under the inside name and a

17、ddress. It usually takes the form like “Attention: The Advertising Manager” (由广告经理亲阅),10) Subject Line/Caption line (标题) It is usually the order or contract number or the name of the goods to enable the receiver to be clear of the contents in the letter and for the purpose of filing. It is put under

18、 the salutation and before the message.,11) Enclosure (附录) Sometimes catalogue, pricelist, order, copies of fax or other relative documents will be enclosed in the letter, then under the signature a line on the left will be added to remind the receiver, for example： enclosure: 3 copies encl. as stat

19、ed,Per Pro. is the abbreviation of per procurationem, which is a Latin phrase denoting agency. Strictly speaking, only a partner is entitled to sign the name of his firm, but for convenience authority to sign is often given to a responsible employee by a document knowm as a power of attorney. The ph

20、rase Per Pro., P. Pro., or e ven P. P. is usually used, e.g. Sincerely yours Per Pro. United Textiles Ltd. (Signed) Anta Brown,12. The “Per Pro” Signature代理人签字,13.Reference Notation(经办人代号) （Identification Marks认辨记号）,The identification marks are made up of the initials of the person who dictated the

21、letter and those of the secretary or typist. The initials usually are in capital letters and typed two spaces below the signature against the left margin. The two sets are separated by a colon or a slant, e.g. AB/ js; AB: js (ABAnta Brown, dictator; jsJohn Smith, secretary or typist),Carbon Copy (副本

22、抄送),It is to show the letter has been sent to someone in charge of this, for example “c.c. Manager”. It is placed under the enclosure on the left.不论信件格式如何，齐左边。 如果函件要抄送其他有关单位，同时使对方也知道已抄送 其他单位，可在信件最后的左下角注明“CC to xxx” or “ CC xxx”,14) Postscript (附言) It takes the short form of “ P.S.” with something fo

23、rgotten in the letter. Sometimes one more part will appear in the letter, it takes the form of “C/O: in care of” (由转交), for example, Prof. Henry K. Wenger C/o Mr. Michael L. Mogan,Form of a business letter,1.The fully blocked style with Open Punctuation,The fully blocked style is now the most widely

24、 used method of display for all business documents. This style is thought to have a business appearance. This layout reduces typing time as there are no indentations for new paragraphs or the closing section. Open punctuation is often used with the fully blocked style. Again this reduces typing time

25、 because there is no need for any unnecessary full stops and commas.,2. Indented style with Open Punctuation,Following traditional British practice the indented style business letters are roughly divided into two styles: Blocked and Indented. The former is used mainly in the United States while the

26、latter is used to be popular in British and the old British colonies.,Layout of Business Letter (格式),There are three main layouts of the business letter: indented form, blocked form and modified blocked （ combined ） form. The first two are illustrated as below with different parts of the letter in p

27、lace.,商业信函格式有三种： 斜列式（缩行式） 平头式（并列式） 改良平头式（混合并列式）,Indented form (缩进式) Blocked form (齐头式),There are two main differences between the indented form and blocked form: the place of date and complimentary close and signature the writing of body (including the subject line) So the combined form mixes the tw

28、o differences, it can use the place of indented form and the writing of body of blocked form, or the place of blocked form but the writing of body of indented form.,1) Indented Style/Semi-block Style (1),This is a traditional style. It is seldom used in modern business letter writing.,1. Letterhead(

29、信头) - - - 2. Reference Number(参考号/发文编号) 3. Date(日期) 4. Inside Name and Address(信内地址) - - - 5. The Salutation(称呼) 6. The Subject Line(事由标题) 7. The Body of the Letter(正文),1) Indented Form/Semi-block Style (2),- - - - - - 8. The Complimentary Close(结尾敬语/套语) 9. The Signature(落款) - - 10. The Reference No

30、tation (Identification Mark)(经办人代号) 11. Enclosure Notation(附件) 12. Carbon Copy Notation(抄送) 13. Postscript(附言/注),2) Blocked Form齐头式/Full-block Style完全平头式(1),This is a popular style in recent years.,1. Letterhead(信头) - - 2. Reference Number(参考号/发文编号) 3. Date(日期) 4. Inside Name and Address(信内地址) - - 5

31、. The Salutation(称呼) 6. The Subject Line(事由标题) 7. The Body of the Letter(正文) - -,2) Blocked Form齐头式/Full-block Style完全平头式 (2),- - - 8. The Complimentary Close(结尾敬语/套语) 9. The Signature(落款) - - 10. The Reference Notation(经办人代号) 11. Enclosure Notation(附件) 12. Carbon Copy Notation(抄送) 13. Postscript(附言

32、/注),3)Modified Blocked Style (1),This style appeals to many readers.,1. Letterhead(信头) - - 2. Reference Number(参考号/发文编号) 3. Date(日期) 4. Inside Name and Address(信内地址) - - 5. The Salutation(称呼) 6. The Subject Line(事由标题) 7. The Body of the Letter(正文) - -,3)Modified Blocked Style (2),- - - - 8. The Comp

33、limentary Close(结尾敬语/套语) 9. The Signature(落款) - - 10. The Reference Notation(经办人代号) 11. Enclosure Notation(附件) 12. Carbon Copy Notation(抄送) 13. Postscript(附言/注),Part Three,1. Letterhead(信头) - - 2. Reference Number(参考号/发文编号) 3. Date(日期) 4. Inside Name and Address(信内地址) - - - 5. The Salutation(称呼) 6.

34、The Subject Line(事由标题) 7. The Body of the Letter(正文) -,This is also known as modified-block style with indented paragraphs. It is also one of the acceptable styles.,- - - - - 8. The Complimentary Close(结尾敬语/套语) 9. The Signature(落款) - - 10. The Reference Notation(经办人代号) 11. Enclosure Notation(附件) 12.

35、 Carbon Copy Notation(抄送) 13. Postscript(附言/注),4. Combined-form Style (2),Envelopes addressing,accuracy clearness appearance,The principles of addressing envelopes:,Name and address of the receiver should be typed above half way down the envelope, leaving enough space for the postmark or stamps. the

36、 return address should be printed in the upper left corner of the envelope. Post notations such as Registered, Certified or Confid-ential should be placed in the bottom left-hand corner.,Envelopes addressing,Envelopes addressing,When a letter is mailed to a third person who is bound to pass it onto

37、the addressee, write the third persons name down below the addressees, write the words care of in front of it.,The three important requirements of envelopes addressing are accuracy, clearness and good appearance. The address on the envelope and the inside address on the letter should be in the same

38、style and present the same information. Remember to use the correspondents full address, including the post town followed by the country name and postcode; both should be typed in block capitals. Type words such as “Street”, “Road”, “Avenue”, “Boulevard”, etc. in full. Post notation such as “Registe

39、red”, “Urgent”, “Via Air Mail”, “Certified”, “Confidential”, “Private”, etc. should be placed in the bottom left-hand corner. No punctuation is used except for abbreviations. The following examples of an envelope illustrate respectively the different styles.,How to write An Envelope,the writers name

40、 and address (Private & confidential) receivers name and address - - -,the writers name and address (Private & confidential) receivers name and address - - -,Indented form:,Blocked form:,the senders name and address receivers name and address - - (Private & confidential) -,注释： 在写咨询信函时，“保密”字样必须写在信封上，

41、可放在信封左下端（平头式），但通常放在发信人地址下端（斜列式）。,How to write An Envelope,the writers name and address (Private & confidential) receivers name and address - - -,the writers name and address (Private & confidential) receivers name and address - - -,Indented form:,Blocked form:,the senders name and address receivers

42、name and address - - (Private & confidential) -,注释： 在写咨询信函时，“保密”字样必须写在信封上，可放在信封左下端（平头式），但通常放在发信人地址下端（斜列式）。,1. The Common Blocked Style (used most for business),Guangzhou Foreign Trading Corp. 599 Dongfeng Road Guangzhou, Guangdong, China Overseas Trading Co. 24 Park Street London EC4 England Urgent,

43、Stamp,Part Four,2. The Common Indented Style,Guangzhou Foreign Trading Corp. 599 Dongfeng Road Guangzhou, Guangdong, China Overseas Trading Co. 24 Park Street London EC4 England Registered,Stamp,Part Four,3. The Usage of “C/O” or “Care of”,Guangzhou Foreign Trading Corp. 599 Dongfeng Road Guangzhou,

44、 Guangdong, China Mr. Liu Hai C/O Overseas Trading Co. 24 Park Street London EC4 England By Air Mail,Stamp,“C/O”, which can also be written as “c/o” or “care of”, has to be used when a letter is mailed to a third person (or organization) who is bound to pass it onto the addressee. This example shows

45、 the way of addressing in such a circumstance.,Part Four,4. The Usage of “By Kindness of.” or “Through the Courtesy of.”,Guangzhou Foreign Trading Corp. 599 Dongfeng Road Guangzhou, Guangdong, China Mr. Liu Hai Through the Courtesy of John Smith Private,Stamp,If a letter is to be personally delivere

46、d from you by someone to the addressee, write his or her name below the addressees with the following words in front of it: “Kindness of”, “Through the Courtesy of”, “Per Kindness of”, “By Kindness of”, “Forwarded by”, “Per Favor of ”, “By Favor of”, “With Favor of”, “Favored by”, etc. This example

47、shows the way of addressing in such circumstances.,Layout of E-mails,电子邮件格式,捎交,Mr. Charles Wood Kindness of Mr. J. W. Smith 由Mr. J. W. Smith 捎交给 Mr. Charles Wood,转交,最终收信人,转交人,转交人地址,Layout of E-mails,电子邮件格式,外发的邮件,收件人,被抄送人,被暗抄人,事由,主体部分,添加附件处,接收的邮件,主体部分,发件人,收件人,被抄送人,事由,日期,附件,Language and tone, Choose t

48、he method of communication carefully. Create the document thoughtfully. Present the document so that it looks good and gives an impression of efficiency and reliability. Use a format that is neat, easy to read and structures logically. Use appropriate tone, considering the circumstances, the situation and the recipient. Ensure your message is accurate in terms of grammar, spelling and punctuation.,1. Remember your ABC,Accurate Check facts carefully Include all relevant details Proofread校读 thoroughly,Brief keep sentences short Use