上外+外贸函电02+Business+Letters.ppt

1、Trade Related Business Communication,Lesson 2 Business Letters,Classification of Business Letters,General Communication: “Let it be!” attitude Sending News: the POSITIVE & negative side Complaining: Never write in angerB2B V.S. B2C,Modern business English is.,“The writing of information in a way tha

2、t gives a reader a good chance of understanding the document at the first reading.“ Martin Cutts, The Plain English Guide, Oxford ,1995,The Readers Expectations,clear and easy to read short and “to the point“ polite and respectful action-oriented（国际快递）In summary, they want to receive documents that

3、are “reader-friendly“.,How?,State why he (or she) is writing and what he (or she) wants the reader to do. Separate the information into short paragraphs. Use short sentences. Use simple and clear words. Use polite expressions.,Busy Business,Remember, most readers are busy people. They want to know t

4、he main pointsof your message quickly.,Your readers expect to find：,a clear statement of your purpose for writingall necessary information (maybe more than that) for them to take actionthe specific action to take,To meet your readers expectations and get results, your reader needs to:,Understand you

5、r document easily and correctly.Respond to your document appropriately.,The 5Cs Principle,CompleteCohesiveClearConciseCourteous,Grammar Guide,Active voiceModern wordsFewer (noun) PhrasesBrief Sentences,Language Style,You-attitudePositive EmphasisReaders BenefitTone, Power and Politeness,How to Creat

6、e You-attitude,Talk about the reader, not about yourself. Refer to the readers request or order specifically. Dont talk about feelings, except to congratulate or offer sympathy. In positive situations, use you more often than I. Use we only when it includes the reader. In negative situations, avoid

7、the word you.,Reader Focus,I have negotiated an agreement with Apex Rent-a-Car that gives you a discount on rental cars. As our VIP customer, you can now get a 20% discount when you rent a car from Apex. We are shipping your order of September 21 this afternoon. The two dozen Corning Ware starter se

8、ts you ordered will be shipped this afternoon (and should reach you by September 28).,Readers Concern,Your orderTo individual:The desk chair you orderedTo a Company:Your invoice #783329,Your Feelings,We are happy to extend you a credit line of 500.You can now charge up to 500 on your ICBC student cr

9、edit card.Congratulations! Your application for ICBC student credit card is approved.,The Readers Feeling,Youll be happy to hear that our products meet OSHA requirements. Our products meet OSHA requirements. OSHAthe Occupational Safety and Health Administration, a U.S. federal agency Youll be happy

10、to hear that your scholarship has been renewed. Good news! Your scholarship has been renewed.,You, I and We,We provide insurance to all students.You receive health insurance as a full-time SISU student.Avoid “We” when it excludes the reader.,Negative Situations,You must get approval from the adviser

11、 for your private affair leave. Students must get approval from the adviser for their private affair leave. You made no allowance for inflation in your estimate. No allowance for inflation has been made in this estimate. This estimate makes no allowance for inflation.,Beyond Sentence Level,Be comple

12、te, prepare an appendix for details the reader may need. Anticipate and answer questions the reader is likely to have. If you include information the reader didnt ask for, show why it is necessary. Show readers how this subject affects them.,You-attitude in Structural Organization,Put information re

13、aders are most interested in first.Arrange information to meet your readers needs, not yours.Use headings and lists to help the reader find key points quickly.,Positive Emphasis,Avoid negative words and words with negative connotations. Focus what the reader can do. Justify negative information by g

14、iving a reason or linking it to a reader benefit. Omit the truly unimportant negative. Put the negative information in the middle and present it compactly.,Negative Words to Avoid,Derogatory TermsSome dis- wordsMany in- wordsSome mis- wordsMany un- words,Options,Substitute two negatives with one pos

15、itive term: Never fail to back up your data. Always back up your data. Use the least negative word that is accurate if necessary: Your balance of 500 is delinquent. Your balance of 500 is past due.,Hidden Negatives,I hope this is the information you want. Enclosed is a brochure about the teapots you

16、 want. The new flavor of our biscuit tastes better. The new flavor of our biscuit tastes even better. I hope that you are satisfied enough to place future orders. Call Mercury whenever you need computer chips.,Accuracy,The exercycle is not guaranteed for life. The exercycle is guaranteed for life. T

17、he exercycle is guaranteed for 10 years. Customers under 60 are not eligible for the Prime Time discount. You must be over 60 to be eligible for the Prime Time discount. If youre 60 or older, you can save 10% on all your purchases with Prime Time discount.,Can-do Focus,State what you (or the reader)

18、 can do rather than what you cannot do. A. Our office closes at 4:00 pm. B. Our office stays open until 4:00 pm.Use the “if-contract“, which states what you (or the reader) can do if a specific condition is met. The “if-contract“ emphasizes what is possible.,Practice,You need a reference before you

19、can open an account. If you give us a reference, you can open an account. Settle payment immediately or you will be charged an additional $15. If you pay immediately, you will not incur any additional charges.,Reason & Reader Benefit,We cannot sell computer disks in lots of less than 10. Compare: To

20、 keep down packaging costs and to help you save on shipping and handling costs, we sell computer disks in lots of 10 or more.We sell computer disks only in lots of 10 or more.,Omit negatives only when:,The reader does not need the information to make a decision. You have already given the reader the

21、 information and he or she has access to the previous communication. The information is trivial. The negatives will fade away with time goes by.,Negative Treatment in Organization,Put negative information in the middle of the message. Give negative information only once in the message. Start to talk

22、 about negative information from the middle of a paragraph. Avoid to put negative information at the bottom of the first page.,Good Reader Benefits,Adapt reader benefits to the audience. Stress intrinsic as well as extrinsic motivators. Prove reader benefits with clear logic and explain them in adeq

23、uate detail. Phrase reader benefits in you-attitude.,Create Reader Benefits,Identify the feelings, fears, and needs that may motivate your reader. Identify the features of your product or policy that could meet the needs youve identified. Show how the reader can meet his or her needs with the featur

24、es of the policy or product.,Cultural Difference: Chinese V.S. English,Sample Inquiry 3-2, p62 V.S. Sample Inquiry 3-3, p63,Filing of Business Letters,Physical copies Digital copies Management of files,Classification and Indexation,Criteria: Ref code.Principle: Neither too many nor too few in one fi

25、leBoth for in-coming and out-going letters,Reference Code,Keep every incoming and outgoing letter in a file composition Properly coded: e.g Transaction code/No. eg. 2004年向威廉父子公司出口茶壶的第七封去信/第三封来信I. TP/W-2004/O7 TP/W-2004/I3I. -W/TP2004/O7 W/TP-2004/I3,File and Find,Put in order preservation Paper stan

26、dardization Supplementary materials Samples Fax paper,Digital Files,E-mails: Use of “reply” button Preservation Other files (name & directory design) The “latest version” For filings sake-make your digital materials easy to be filed,Management of Files,Actual possession Rules and framework of filing Accessibility of files Place Entry code Personnel adjustment,Homework,Read the letters replying to the complain of garden plants and make comments.,