Business correspondence and email etiquette

Business Letters and Email Etiquette

Social letters and emails are the most frequently used forms in the business field. Because in the entire field of business circulation, emotional connections and exchanges are very important to enhance friendship and promote trade. Below are the business letter and email etiquette I share, everyone is welcome to read!

Classification of business letters

All business letters to and from customers should be preceded by their name, such as "Dr. Wang", "Li Manager" etc. Include your contact information and date at the end of the letter. Other written documents within the company should also be kept concise and easy to read. Every company has its own set of rules for how internal correspondence should be formatted, but I’m not here to discuss “office memos,” which are the most common form of written communication between employees. What we want to focus on here is the method and content of the company's written communication with external parties, excluding legal documents and contracts.

Business letters are mainly divided into the following categories: letters of introduction, letters of recommendation, letters of praise, letters of complaint, letters to resolve commercial disputes, letters of request and letters of rejection, etc.

1. Recommendation letter

Often recommends a person to apply for school or work. The content should include your relationship with the other person, the length of time you have known the other person, and use examples to illustrate His characteristics, for example, if you want to say that this person is diligent, then give an example to illustrate this point. Before I leave my job, I always ask my boss or my colleagues who work with me to write a letter of recommendation. A personal recommendation or nomination letter is a powerful tool in winning your next job.

2. Letter of compliment

If you are satisfied with the other party’s product or service, write a letter of compliment. Although many people will not do this, it is the beginning of a healthy relationship with the other person. If you are very satisfied with the service of the restaurant manager, then write a letter of praise to his boss. On the one hand, you will be of great help to his career development. On the other hand, you will establish a good relationship with him and continue to accept his high quality in the future. Serve. Therefore, everyone should be willing to write such letters that benefit oneself and others, and write them frequently, because it can bring a win-win situation.

3. Complaint letter

First, the complaint letter should be written to the top leader of the organization. Secondly, avoid using emotional words and be specific to the situation rather than the person. In the first paragraph of the complaint letter, first make an objective summary of the cause so that the other party can understand the purpose of writing the letter. Then tell some specific facts, such as the invoice number, when and where it happened. The complaint letter should also try to maintain an encouraging attitude towards the other party, for example, "I know that your restaurant is famous for its service. I often come to dine because of the restaurant's service. I think the service of this waiter does not represent the service of the entire restaurant." "Level" and other words. Complaint letters are the most difficult to write, but if you write "service level", the other party will handle the complaint more calmly. The last paragraph is your suggestion for solving the problem. Don't be outrageous or greedy, but be reasonable. If the product the other party sells to you breaks down after a week of use, you can offer to return it, exchange it for a new one, or have it repaired within the specified time. The last sentence should be encouraging, such as "I believe that your company's service is of a high level, and I hope that this matter can be resolved reasonably and that we can continue to cooperate in the future."

4. Resolve business disputes

For various reasons, after we purchase a product, we often need to negotiate with the other party for a price reduction, or ask for compensation or return. A copy of the receipt for the purchased goods should be attached to the commercial dispute letter so that the other party can trace it in their own files. The content of a business dispute letter should be simple and clear.

5. Request letter

The content of the request letter includes asking the other party to issue a ticket, or send you a certain document, etc. This type of letter mainly contains the most basic information that the other party needs, and does not require much other text.

6. Rejection letter

Rejection letters in business dealings are an opportunity to build your own brand and promote yourself.

The point to emphasize is not that the other person is not suitable for you, but that both parties are not suitable for each other. We also need to keep an open mind and express that we are still interested in cooperating with you. If there is an opportunity in the future, we can continue to explore the possibility and method of cooperation.

Advantages of written communication

1. Clear at a glance: Black and white can make all participants clearly understand the topics discussed, the factual basis and conclusions, and the conclusions reached, and keep them up to date. Continue until the work is completed. When the results of the discussion are recorded, discussed in detail, and finally written down on paper, there is no room for opportunists to exert their influence.

2. Written follow-up: It can accurately and timely record the progress of the matter, discussion content and action details, and serves as a historical file for each work project. For example: I need to coordinate a team to complete a sales task. The time is very limited and the specified completion date is not far away. At this time, preparing a written memo to my team members, supervisors and partners will make it clearer what steps to take. How to follow up with everyone. It forces everyone to focus on the same thing, speak the same language, and know what has been done and what needs to be done. Finally, written follow-up ensures that you will be rewarded on merit. Make sure you know who delivers on their commitments and who gets credit for completing their work in a timely manner.

3. Serve as proof when there are disagreements or disputes: no one is perfect. There is no doubt that every work project faces unique challenges, whether those challenges are operational or interpersonal. A written record can help people focus on facts rather than feelings or other differences in personality and work styles, and resolve disagreements and disputes in a reasonable manner.

Specific principles for writing social letters

Social letters are letters that are frequently used in the business field. Because in the entire field of business circulation, emotional connections and exchanges are very important to enhance friendship and promote trade. The etiquette essentials and format of this type of letter are basically the same as those of ordinary letters. Social letters generally consist of two parts: the official letter and the cover letter. Writing a letter is the use of words to speak to the recipient. To make the other party feel friendly, natural, civilized and courteous, and to achieve a good communication effect, the letter must comply with the etiquette standards of writing format and letter language. Otherwise, it will make a joke, affect the communication effect and even cause trouble.

1. The title must be appropriate.

The title is the title, which should conform to the specific relationship between the sender and the recipient. Generally speaking, what you usually call the other party should be written at the beginning of the letter. In terms of format, the title should be written at the beginning of the first line of the letter, on a separate line, to show respect. It has a strong etiquette effect. When writing to elders who are not related to each other, usually add the title after the last name, such as Manager Li, Principal Zhang, or a certain elder; when writing to an elder you admire, you can add the word "respected" before the title, try to avoid Call them by name; for peers or juniors, you can call them by their first names, or call them brother or brother, or "Xiao Wang" or "Xiao Li", or "comrade".

After the title, a title is usually added, that is, words used to improve the title, such as "Zunjian", "Cijian", "Junjian", "Chongjian" for the elder; For ordinary people, use "Taijian", "Dajian" and "Huijian"; for juniors, use "Qingjian" and "Collection"; for ladies, use "Fangjian", "Shujian" and "Yijian" (for the New Year) The higher one); for couples, use "Lijian", "Tongjian", "Junjian", etc. When using this kind of honorific in letters, be careful to match it with the title.

2. Greetings should be warm.

The Chengqi language (social language) after raising the head plays the role of opening remarks. Whether you communicate frequently or have not contacted each other for a long time, greeting the other person is an essential etiquette. Therefore, the letter should begin with a greeting. For example, "Reading a book of benefits is like meeting an old friend!" or "Greetings after a long time, I wonder how you are lately?" The greeting can be long or short, even if it is as short as "hello", it should be from the heart and reflect The writer of the letter is sincere, not an "occasionally written article". Greetings should be in line with the relationship between the two parties. It is better to be simple and natural than to talk deeply.

3. The content must be accurate.

The text is the main body of the letter, that is, what the writer wants to say, the reason to discuss, and the emotion to describe.

The main text usually starts from the second line of the letter, leaving two spaces in front. Although the contents of the letters are different and the writing methods are also diverse, they must be expressive, accurate and straightforward. In addition to being meaningful, reasonable, fluent in writing, and neat in handwriting, the words must be worded appropriately, that is, wording should be based on the characteristics of the recipient and the specific relationship between the letter writer and the recipient (including the choice of honorifics and modest words, Control of intonation, etc.); Generally speaking, you should first talk about things about the other party, express concern, attention, or gratitude and respect, and then write what you want to state. After the main text is written, if you find any omissions in the content, you can add them after the end; and add "youji" and "youqi" before the supplementary words as reminders. The complement should not be too long.

4. Congratulations must be sincere.

Although the greetings and congratulations after the main text are only a few words, they express the writer’s wishes, admiration, and comfort to the recipient, and they also have a etiquette role that cannot be ignored. There are standardized requirements for the format of the congratulations. They are generally written in two lines, with two spaces in front of the upper line and a top space in the next line. Congratulations can use conventional sentence patterns, such as "Best regards", "Wish you good health", etc., or you can find a new way to express your best wishes to the recipient. For example, for elders, you can write "I wish you good luck", "I wish you good luck", "I wish you peace", "I wish you peace"; for letters to ordinary people, you can use "Song of Shi Qi", and in spring you can write "This "Ode to Spring Festival", you can write "I wish you a happy New Year" and "I wish you a happy New Year" every year, and usually use "Ode to Shi Sui"; in letters to juniors, you can just use "I wish you a good year", "I wish you a good year", "Happy Spring" and so on. By the way, please" and so on, without "please".

In addition, the words of congratulations can also be different according to the situation and occupation of the recipient. For example, for newlyweds or couples, use "Congratulations on Yanxi", "Congratulations on Yanxi", "Congratulations on Li'an" , "Song of Shuangqi", "Wish you a safe journey from afar" when the other party is traveling far away, and "Wish you peace of mind" when the other party is sick. According to the other party's occupation, you can choose "Wen'an", "Ji'an", "Jiao'an", "Hai'an", "Bian'an", "Shang'an", "Chou'an", "Caiqi", etc.

At the end of the letter, the name of the writer and the date of writing should be signed. To show courtesy, add the corresponding self-identification before the name, that is, the self-identification of the recipient, such as writing to a teacher. At that time, he called himself "student", "disciple" and "student". Under the name, appropriate salutations should also be used. For example, for elders, after the signature, "kowtow", "kowtow", "kowtow", "pay your respects", "respectfully express", and "revere" should be added. "Your Excellency" and so on; for ordinary people, add "Yours sincerely", "Yours sincerely", "Blessed", etc. after the signature.

5. Use honorific titles in the seal.

In addition to clearly and accurately stating the address and postal code of the recipient, the name of the recipient, the sender's address, postal code and name, the main content of the cover letter (letter cover) must also be appropriately selected. Polite words in a cover letter. First, pay attention to the title of the trustee. The envelope is for the postman, so it is not appropriate to use relative titles such as "father", "husband" or "son" after the recipient's name. Instead, write "professor" based on the recipient's title, age, etc. , "doctor", "sir", "comrade", "ma'am", etc. Secondly, we must pay attention to the choice of "unsealing words" and "sealing words". "Opening speech" is a polite word to ask the recipient to open the envelope. It expresses the sender's feelings and attitude towards the recipient. Generally, "Anqi" and "Fuqi" are used for senior elders, and "Junqi" and "Ciqi" are used for other elders; for ordinary people, "Xunqi" can be used according to the identity and gender of the trustee (for soldiers) ), "Wenqi" (for teachers), "Fangqi" (for ladies); for younger generations, use "handqi", and for children, you can directly write "handqi", "collection" and "collection". The usage of the word "篆" is also particular. It is appropriate to use "Xin Xi" when writing letters to elders, "Xin Xi" when writing to juniors, and "Xin Xi" when writing to juniors. Postcards, New Year cards, etc. do not have envelopes, so there is no such thing as "opening" or "sealing".

6. Reply to letters in a timely manner.

After receiving the letter, the recipient should read and reply promptly. This is one of the most basic communication etiquette. In the reply letter, you should state the time when the other party's letter was received. For letters and business correspondence asking for help, you should give timely and clear replies; even if you are temporarily unable to help or cannot meet the requirements, you should inform the other party so as not to miss them. For very few letters that are not suitable for replying, such as love letters and so-called "lucky ring" letters, you can ignore them, but it is not appropriate to deliberately publicize and expose their contents.

7. Dos and don’ts of writing letters.

As a communication etiquette document, letters also have their taboos:

In terms of pen type, brushes and fountain pens are suitable, and pencils are avoided; in terms of ink color, black and blue are preferred. , avoid using colored ink, because in many Western countries, red means breaking off diplomatic relations, and green means courtship; to protect the freedom of communication, private letters should be kept secret, and you cannot hide or open other people's letters privately. Even if you meet others to read the letters, Nor should you get closer to listen or watch.

Business letter layout etiquette

① Oblique or indented form (Indented Form).

The key to this arrangement is that the letterhead, conclusion, signature and sender's name are all on the right or to the right, while the address and title inside the cover are on the left. If any of the above elements are to be arranged in separate lines, the last Each line should be indented by two (or three) English letters than the previous line; each paragraph of the text should be indented by five English letters, and a blank line should be left between paragraphs. This form pays attention to symmetry and beauty, and is a traditional arrangement paradigm. Currently, only a few British people like to use it.

②Front type or vertical type or flush type (Blocked Form).

The key to this arrangement is that each element is arranged from the left, and each line is not indented to the right. Therefore, the left side of the entire letter forms a vertical line and the right side is uneven. Although this form is convenient and trouble-free when typing, and there is no need to consider the indentation on the left side, it is not symmetrical and beautiful, so not many people use it.

③Improved or mixed form (Modified Form).

This arrangement combines the best of the above two forms. The letterhead, conclusion, signature and sender's name are arranged on the right, and the address and title inside the cover are arranged on the left. However, each element is divided into separate lines. Neither is indented to the right; five English letters are indented at the beginning of each paragraph of the text, and there is no need for blank lines between paragraphs. This form takes into account both convenience and trouble-freeness as well as symmetry and beauty. Therefore, it is currently an extremely popular paradigm for English correspondence.

Things to note

① Because handwriting is sometimes difficult to read, it is best to print English letters.

② When writing an envelope, the recipient's name and address are generally written in the center of the front of the envelope, while the sender's name and address can be written on the upper left of the front or on the back of the envelope. The writing form should be consistent with the style of the letter.

③The folding of letters should also be particular.

Email Etiquette

Email, or e-mail, is the most convenient tool in the 21st century, and it is also the tool that is most likely to give a bad impression to the other party. A few years ago, the general manager of a well-known multinational company wrote a harsh email to his secretary, criticizing the secretary for being late when he came to the company to open the door for him on Sunday (the general manager temporarily asked the secretary to open the door for him on Sunday), and he also criticized the secretary for being late. Dismissed. Not to be outdone, the secretary forwarded the letter to everyone in the company, as well as the media. The matter was so big that the general manager was fired. Of course, no other company dared to hire this secretary. From this incident, we can see that although email is communication between two people, when you write an email, you must also be aware that the email may be made public in the future.

Next, let’s talk about the process of writing emails.

First, before sending an email, you need to clearly identify the recipients and carbon copy recipients to avoid useless mass mailing. If I want to send to a group, I will write my own email address in the recipient column and other people’s email addresses in the BCC column to prevent anyone from sending spam to these email addresses.

Second, before sending an email, ask yourself whether it is necessary to send it; whether the content is accurate; if the attachment is large, inform the other party first and ask if it is convenient to receive the attachment (because it is inconvenient for some people to receive attachments) .

Third, pay attention to the time when you send emails to ensure that the sending time is accurate.

In terms of content, there is one biggest principle - KISS: Keep It Short and Simple. That is to ensure that the content of emails in business correspondence is short, simple and clearly expressed.

In terms of tone, basically a business email is still a business letter, so the tone should be as formal and respectful as possible.

The content and format should be consistent, and avoid writing too much emotional stuff. Because emails are less formal than formal letters, many people feel comfortable writing casually, even sending them without thinking carefully, and then later regret sending them too quickly.

Taboos

1. Grimaces: Various expressions make people feel unprofessional and mature.

2. Complaints without focus.

3. Forward a lot of jokes, as well as popular and promotional information.

4. Express your suggestions via email. Because the other person cannot see your tone of voice and body language, misunderstandings can easily occur.

5. Off topic. It's better to send two or three short emails than a long one.

Principles for replying letters

After sending the letter, give the other party a chance to reply within 2 to 3 days. Here are some principles for replying:

1. Read the entire email before replying; avoid replying when you are emotional.

2. When replying to group emails, avoid sending them to irrelevant people.

3. Write the topic clearly and mark the urgency. There are many levels of urgency: FYI - not very important, Urgent - urgent.

4. In terms of content, sometimes you should avoid being too simple, because when the other person reads it, it will be easy to misunderstand that you have an impatient attitude.

5. Is it necessary to reply by email: If the other party’s content contains emotions, it is best to respond face-to-face.

6. It is best to respond within 24 hours. If you are very busy, it is best to send a simple email to the other party to indicate that you have received it, but you need more time to prepare or process it, and tell the other party A time to give him proper expectations.

7. If you are going on vacation, it is best to list the contact information of other people in the automatic reply.

8. If you receive a group email that requires everyone to discuss a certain issue, it is best to read all the email content before replying to avoid duplication.

Notes

Finally, when sending an email, pay attention to avoid the following problems to avoid inconvenience to the other party:

1. Signature file that is too long.

2. Send irrelevant letters.

3. Forward the curse chain message.

4. Forgot the attachment.

5. Emails containing viruses.

6. Forgot to check whether your mailbox is full.

7. The recipient’s name is spelled incorrectly.

8. Personalized letters (personalized letters such as jokes sent in groups, large-capacity PPT inspirational stories, etc. are best sent to private mailboxes).

Whether it is a formal business letter or an email, it is a tool for communicating with others, so try to maintain an attitude of respect for the other person. If you maintain this attitude throughout the process of writing letters and responding to emails, you will avoid many problems. ;