English for Business Communication
 Contents
Module 1 Written
communication------ an
overview
Module 2 Establishment of
Business Relations
Module 3 Inquiries and replies
Module 4 Making Quotations &
Offers
Module 5 Counteroffers &
Declining Orders
Module 6 Acceptance & Orders
 Contents
Module 7 Terms of Payment
Module 8 Letter of Credit
Module 9 Packing & Shipment
Module 10 Insurance
Module 11 Complaints & Claim
Learning Objectives




Be able to grasp the basic principles of
business letter writing
Be able to grasp the layout of business
letters
Be able to grasp the envelope addressing
Be able to grasp e-mail writing
 Preface

1.Definition
English business correspondence refers to the
letters , cables, telexes, faxes and e-mails dealing in
international business, 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-todate expressions in the simplest possible language.
 3. Features
1.
2.
3.
It has its unique language style and jargons
It is full of business terminations and abbreviations
There is a close relations between EBC and
international trade
 Examples:
 We are in the market for silk blouses and
should be pleased if you could kindly quote
us your keenest prices CFRLondon for the
goods below
 Offer quotation order counteroffer letter
of credit CIF FOB
 YL11/11RVD
 S/C123 L/CUNRCV PLSRUSH
Task 1


Warming-up Discussion
Suppose you work for China National
Garments Imp. & Exp. Corporation.
Counsellor's Office of the British Embassy in
Beijing, from which you note that they are in
the market for silk blouses. Now, you are
requested to write a letter to the buyer. Can
you list the layout of your business letter?
Specimen Letters Study
1 J&J Plaza New Brunswick,
NJ 089333 U.S.A.
Tel: 732-524-0400
Fax: 732-525-0622
E-mail: [email protected]
Date: 22nd July, 20-Soft Health Care Product Corp.
Room 2301 Yili BLD,
35 Nanjing Road,
Shanghai, China
Attention: Mr. Wang , Import Dept.
Dear Sir,
Re: SHAMPOO
We’ve received your letter of July 10th enquiring about our JOHNSON'S® Baby Shampoo
With Natural Lavender, but unfortunately, the stock of this product is running low due to the
heavy demand. But we will inform you as soon as the new supplies come up.
We sell a wide variety of Baby’s Shampoo. All of them are made of the NO MORE TEARS
formula. For your reference, we enclose an illustrated catalogue of our shampoos and we hope
you will find it interesting.
We hope that we can close business to our mutual advantage in the future.
Yours faithfully,
Johnson & Johnson
D oris F ergoson
Doris Fergoson
(Manager)
The Layout of business letters
A. The standard parts
B. The optional parts
 Layout of Business Letters
A. The standard parts
(1) the
letterhead
(2) the inside address
(3) the date
(4) the salutation
(5) the body of the letter
(6) the complimentary close
(7) the signature
 Layout of Business Letters
B. The optional parts
(1) the
references
(2) the special markings
(3) the subject line
(4) the enclosure
(5) the carbon copy notation
Form of a business letter
1.The fully blocked style
This layout reduces typing time as all typing lines
begin at the left margin there are no indentations for
new paragraphs or the closing section.
1 J&J Plaza New Brunswick,
NJ 089333 U.S.A.
Tel: 732-524-0400
Fax: 732-525-0622
E-mail: [email protected]
Date: 22nd July, 20-Soft Health Care Product Corp.
Room 2301 Yili BLD,
35 Nanjing Road,
Shanghai, China
除信头外全
部左对齐
Attention: Mr. Wang , Import Dept.
Dear Sir,
Re: SHAMPOO
We’ve received your letter of July 10th enquiring about our JOHNSON'S® Baby Shampoo
With Natural Lavender, but unfortunately, the stock of this product is running low due to the
heavy demand. But we will inform you as soon as the new supplies come up.
We sell a wide variety of Baby’s Shampoo. All of them are made of the NO MORE TEARS
formula. For your reference, we enclose an illustrated catalogue of our shampoos and we hope
you will find it interesting.
We hope that we can close business to our mutual advantage in the future.
Yours faithfully,
Johnson & Johnson
D oris F ergoson
Doris Fergoson
(Manager)
齐头式示例
Form of a business letter
2. Indented style
Indented style refers to each paragraph (body of
the letter) taking in the first line of each
paragraph in the body of the letter, five spaces
for type, and other parts are the same as a fullyblocked style.
Nippon International Trading Co.Ltd.
3 Mihonbashi, Honcho 3 Chome
Chuo-ku Tokyo 104
Japan
The Wilson Company
1377 Main Stree
Dallas, Texas 7522
U.S.A.
Attn.:Shipping Dept.
Shipping Advice
Dear Sirs,
We are pleased to advise you that your Order for 5,000 pcs of men’s shirts have been forwarded onto S/S
Peace this morning.
Enclosed please find a full set of copy shipping documents as required in your L/C No.332.
We are very glad to have been able to executed your order as stipulated and assure you of our close
cooperation with you in all your future dealings.
Yours faithfully,
Nippon International Trading Co.Ltd
Sales Manager: YOKOYAMA
缩行式示例
Enc. As Stated.
Form of a business letter
3. Modified Blocked-Style with
Paragraphs

Indented
Placement of the letterhead, the date, the
complimentary close and the signature on the
right side of the paper. Paragraphs have
indentation with five spaces from the left margin
in the letter. And this form is current used.
SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS
310 Taepyung-ro 2-ga, Chung-gu
Seoul, 100-102, Korea
Tel: 82-2-3706-1114
Our Reference No. ODL-11
参考编号和
E-mail: [email protected]
Your Reference No.
Date: 23rd December, 20-- 日期靠右
Shandong Science & Technology Co. Ltd.
21/F Bright Plaza
138 Jinni Road, Jinan
Shandong, China
改良齐头式示例
Attention: Mr. Zhou Jun, Import Dept.
Dear Sir,
Re: Our Offer for PDA Type III-H
Thank you for your interest in our latest Personal Digital Assistant Type III-H.
签名偏右
As requested, we offer you 500 sets of PDA at USD140 per set FOB Inchon for shipment in
February, 20--. We require payment by L/C.
Envelopes addressing
The principles of addressing envelopes:
 accuracy
 clearness
 appearance
 Envelopes addressing



Name and address of the receiver should be typed
above half way down the envelope, leaving enough
space for the postmark or stamps.
the return address should be printed in the upper left
corner of the envelope.
Post notations such as ‘Registered’, ‘Certified’ or
‘Confidential’ should be placed in the bottom left-hand
corner.
 Envelopes addressing

When a letter is mailed to a third person who is bound
to pass it onto the addressee, write the third person's
name down below the addressee’s, write the words
‘care of’ in front of it.
齐头式举例
写信人名称地
址
CHINA NATIONAL CEREALS, OILS AND FOODSTUFFS IMP & EXP CORP.
11th Floor, Jingxin Bldg. 2A Dong San Huan Beilu
Beijing, People’s Republic of China
收信人名称地
址：左端对齐
EL MAR PACKING COMPANY
12 MAIN STREET, FRESNO
CALIFORNia, USA
Confidential
Par Avion
stamp
缩格式举例
MESSRS WILLIAM & SONS
写信人名称地
址
76 Lancaster House
stamp
Manchester,
England
Mr. Wang Kai-ming
收信人名称地
址：逐行右缩
CHINA NATIONAL TRANSPORT CO.
120 Nanjing Road
Shanghai, China
Registered
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
Mr. Part Davis
Mr. Brian Tories
c/o Mr. Harold Bean
c/o Overseas Trading Co.
32 Bright Street
153 Market Street
Rangoon, Burma
London
转交人地址
转交人
Layout of E-mails
电子邮件格式
收件人
外发的邮件
被抄送人
事由
被暗抄人
主体部分
添加附件处
被抄送人
发件人
接收的邮件
事由
收件人
日期
附件
主体部分
Language and tone
Ø
Choose the method of communication carefully.
Ø
Create the document thoughtfully.
Ø
Present the document so that it looks good and gives
an impression of efficiency and reliability.
Ø
Use a format that is neat, easy to read and structures
logically.
Ø
Use appropriate tone, considering the circumstances,
the situation and the recipient.
Ø
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 thoroughly
Brief
keep sentences short
Use simple expressions
Use non-technical language
Clear
Use plain, simple English
Write in an easy, natural style
Avoid formality or familiarity
2. Be courteous and considerate
Reply promptly to all communications-answer on the
same day if possible.
If you cannot answer immediately, write a brief note and
explain why. This will create goodwill.
Understand and respect the recipient’s point of view.
Resist the temptation to reply as if your correspondent is
wrong.
If you feel some comments are unfair, be tactful and try
not to cause offence.
Resist the temptation to reply to an offensive letter in a
similar tone. Instead, answer courteously and do not lower
your dignity.
3. Use appropriate tone
If your letter is to achieve its purpose the tone must be
appropriate. The tone of your letter reflects the spirit in
which you put your letter across.
You alter your tone of voice to convey messages in
different ways. Much of what you say is also interpreted
through non-verbal clues----- eye contact, gestures,
inflections of the voice, etc. This type of ‘reading between
the lines’ is not possible with the written word. Therefore it
is vital to choose your words carefully. You can be firm or
friendly, persuasive or conciliatory—it depends on the
impression you wish to convey. It is important to try to get
the tone right because using the wrong tone could cause
real offence to your reader.
4. Write naturally and sincerely
Try to show a genuine interest in your reader and
his/her problems. Your message should sound sincere
while written in your own style. Write naturally, as if
you are having a conversation.
5. Remember the KISS principles
KISS stands for:
Keep
It
Short and
Simple
KISS means instead of long or complex words,
use short ones.
6. Use modern terminology
Old-fashioned phrases add nothing to your meaning.
Such unnecessary, long-winded phrases are likely to
give a poor impression of the writer and may even lead
to confusion. A good business letter will use no more
words than are necessary to convey a clear and
accurate message.
7. Include essential details
If the recipient of your letter must ask a
question, or if something is unclear, then
something has been omitted from your message.
Do not leave anything to chance. Include all
essential information.
8. Be consistent
Consistency is not only important in the
way your massage is presented, it is
important within the message itself.
The people attending will be George Bush, Bill
Clinton and Denny from the Sales.
The people attending the next committee meeting
will be George Bush, Bill Clinton and Denny
Smith.
9. Use active not passive voice
‘Voice’ is a grammatical term that refers to whether
the subject of the sentence is acting or receiving the
action. Using active voice can considerably improve
your writing style. Active voice makes your writing
more interesting, more lively and more -- well, active!
Make comparisons:
Active voice: Tom played the violin.
Passive voice: The violin was played by Tom.
10. Compose CLEAR communications
CLEAR objectives. Your message should be:
Clear Leave no doubt in your reader’s mind.
Help yourself by being specific, avoiding
vague expressions, using familiar words and
using simple English. Remember also to use
straightforward language that your reader
can understand, written in a friendly, natural,
conversational style.
10. Compose CLEAR communications
CLEAR objectives. Your message should be:
Logical Structure your message logically,
remembering to use the 4 point plan. Start with
an introduction, develop your points logically in
the central section, and come to a natural
conclusion in which you state the action you need
from the reader. Finish with an appropriate oneline.
CLEAR objectives. Your message should be:
Empathetic Put yourself in your reader’s place
and ask yourself how the reader will feel when he
/she reads your letter. If anything is unclear, or if
anything is worded badly, then change it before
you sent it.
Accurate Make sure all the relevant details are
included------times, dates, names of commodity,
facts and figures.
Right Proofread carefully (not just spell check) to
make sure everything is 100% right before you sent the
message.
The Seven Cs







Consideration
Courtesy
Clarity
Conciseness
Concreteness
Correctness
Completeness
Effective Business Writing Criteria
Courtesy
Consideration Correctness
7Cs
Conciseness
Completeness
Concreteness
Clarity
 The motto in business letter-writing
A letter is personal contact. The
exchange of information is basic to
business. Letters should be easy to
read and easy to understand, they
must be friendly and courteous.
Business letters should develop
goodwill.
Structuring communications
4 POINT PLAN
Introduction
(Background and Basics)
1
2
3
4
Details
(Facts and Figures)
Response or Action
(Conclusion)
Close
(A simple one-liner)
Situational Training---1
Headings
Date
Inside address
Special markings
Salutation
Subject line
Body
Complimentary close
Signature
Enc.
CC to
Situational Training---2
Sender’s name & address
stamp
recipient’s name & address
Postal ways