BUSINESS ENGLISH

UNIT 1

A. Formal and Informal Invitation

FORMAL INVITATION
PJ Party
22 Yew Street, Cambridge, Ontario
Tel: 416-223-8900
April 7th, 20-Dear Valued Customer:
Our records show that you have been a customer of PJ Party Inc. since our grand opening last
year. We would like to thank you for your business by inviting you to our preferred customer
Spring Extravaganza this Saturday.
Saturday's sales event is by invitation only. All of our stock, including pajamas and bedding
will be marked down from 50-80% off.* Doors open at 9:00 AM sharp. Complimentary
coffee and donuts will be served. Public admission will commence at noon.
In addition, please accept the enclosed $10 gift certificate to use with your purchase of $75 or
more.
We look forward to seeing you at PJ's on Saturday. Please bring this invitation with you and
present it at the door.
Sincerely,
Linda Lane
Linda Lane
Store Manager
pjpartyinc@shoponline.com
*All sales are final. No exchanges.
Enclosure: Gift Certificate #345 (not redeemable for cash)

INFORMAL INVITATION
Dear Anshul,
I am very glad to inform you that my birthday falls on 26 December. I am planning to
celebrate it with you. Our school will be closed for winter break. There is no problem in
visiting our place.
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We have arranged a small tea party in the evening. There will be some refreshments there.
There will be dance and music programmers. I have invited all my friends and relatives there.
I wish that you should come on my birthday and grace the occasion with your presence.
I hope you will come here to attend the party and add to my pleasure. Eagerly waiting for a
confirmed reply from you.
Sincerely yours,
Nishant

Confirming Invitation (Acceptance Invitation)

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Whitehead,
Thank you for the invitation to the wedding of Janet and Roger. Mr. Wainwright and I accept
the invitation, but unfortunately Kate will not be able to attend.
We are looking forward to a beautiful and joyous celebration for the happy couple.
Please advise if there is a wedding gift registry.
Yours Sincerely,

Formal and Informal Letter Language

FORMAL AND INFORMAL LETTERS

FORMAL

INFORMAL

Name

Dear Mr/Mrs/Ms Dupuis

Dear Mary

Hi/Hello Mary
Mary,....(or no name at all)

Previous
contact

Thank you for your e-mail of...

Further to your last e-mail,...
I apologise for not getting in
contact with you before now.

Thanks for your e-mail.

Re your e-mail,...
Sorry, I haven't written for
ages,but I've been really busy.

Reason for
writing

I am writing in connection with... Just a short note about...

I am writing with regard to...
I'm writing about...
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Here's the...you wanted.

In reply to your e-mail, here are...
Your name was given to me by...
I got your name from...
We would like to point out that...
Please note that...

Giving
information

I'm writing to let you know that...

We are able to confirm that...
I am delighted to tell you that...
We regret to inform you that...

Just a note to say...

We can confirm that...
Good news!
Unfortunately,...

Attachments

Please find attached my report.

I'm sending you ... as a pdf file.

I've attached...
Here is the...you wanted.

Asking for
information

Could you give me some

information about...
I would like to know...
I'm interested in receiving/finding
out...

Can you tell me a little more

about...
I'd like to know...
Please send me...

Requests

I'd be greatful if you could...

I wonder if you could...
Do you think I could have...?
Thank you in advance for your
help in this matter.

Please could you...

Could you...?
Can I have...?
I'd appreciate your help on this.

Promising
action

I will...
I'll investigate the matter.
I will contact you again shortly.

I'll...
I'll look into it.
I'll get back to you soon.

Offering help

Would you like me to...?

Do you want me to...?
If you wish, I would be happy
Shall I...?
to...
Let me know whether you would Let me know if you'd like me to...
like me to...

Final
comments

Thank you for your help.

Do not hesitate to contact us
again if you require any further
information.
Please feel free to contact me if
you have any questions. My

Thanks again for...

Let me know if you need anything
else.
Just give me a call if you have
any questions. My number is...
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direct line is...

I am looking forward to...(+ -ing)

Give me regards to...
Best wishes
Regards

Close

Looking forward to...(+ -ing)

Best wishes to...
Speak to/See you soon.
Bye (for now) / All the best

B. Opening and closing phrases for different kinds of letters

The opening and closing phrases are important as they establish the tone of your
letter. The following examples would appear in a formal, impersonal letter.
Dear Madam,

Note that the writer does not know the addressees name nor has he
taken the trouble to find it.

Unless we hear from .. Unless is sometimes followed by a threat.

Yours faithfully,

Yours faithfully is only written when the salutation is

Dear Sir or Dear Madam. It is formal and distant.

B.1 Establishing the tone of a letter

Look at the beginnings and endings of the following four letters and fill in the
answer below. When you have decided the main purpose of the letter place a tick (,)
Purpose of the letter:

to
inform
apologize
threaten
sympathize

1. Dear Mr. Craig,

I am writing to advise you that your account is now . so that the
situation can be rectified
Yours sincerely,
Note the formal language which creates distance even though the recipients name is
used.
2. Dear Mrs. Ghosh,

We were very sorry to receive your letter about in the meantime,

please accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience we may have
caused.
Yours sincerely.
Note how this letter is formal but an effort has been made to sound friendly. (very
sorry please accept we may have caused)
3. Dear Mr. Alexis,
Are you aware that your car has been parked in front of .. I shall have
to take the matter further
Yours truly,
Starting with a question makes this very blunt. The writer ends with a threat. By
signing Yours truly, even though he knows Mr. Alexis, makes the letter very cold
and formal.
4. Dear Mrs. Klein,
Ive only just heard the sad news . Please let me know if there is
anything I can do to help. Ill phone you next week.
With our best wishes,
By the use of contraction (Ive Ill) and the ending, the letter is informal and
friendly.
B2. Example of Letter Format
(date line)
LETTER OF CREDIT (GENERAL)
(name of bank)
(address)
(city, state, zip)
(country)
Sir:
We hereby agree to accept and pay at maturity any
draft or drafts on us, at day's sight, issued by
(name of individual) of your city, to the extent of
(amount of limit) ($ ) Dollars, and negotiated
through your bank.
Most respectfully yours,
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_____________________
(Signature)
DATED: _____________________
____________________(ADDRESS)
I hereby guarantee the due acceptance of payment of
any draft issued in pursuance of the above credit.
________________________
(SIGNATURE OF GUARANTOR)
C. Memo
Memorandum (also more commonly memo) is a brief written record of
communication, used in office, whether business, government, education institution or
legal office. Memorandum or inter-office memos differ from ordinary letters. They are
written to people within one company. They follow the basic principles of letter-writing.
They usually more direct, consise and less formal than letters. The opening and closing
phrases are omitted.
The usual structure for a memo includes some or all of the following :
MEMORANDUM
TO

: the person or group receiving the memo (recipient).

FROM

: the person writing the memo (sender).

C.C (Carbon Copy) : The person or group who should be informed about the memo.
DATE

: Usually a formal manner of writing the date (month/day/year).

SUBJECT

: a short specific topic discussed in the memo. This should be in bold.

Introduction : Explains why the memo has been written and what topic will discuss. You
can start your idea of this introduction by responding this sentence, Im writing
because ........ When the memo is long, the introduction is in a single paragraph as an
executive summary of the memo itself.
Body
: Discusses the topic in detail. It explains a thing exactly and list items when
possible. In a long memo, the body contains discussion of background information. You can
use this phrase the facts are..... to develop the body part a memo.
Conclusion : Explains what will or should happen next, when the follow up will occur and
why date is important. In most memos, the conclusion is in form of actions. The main idea of
this part is that I will or I propose that you ...
Points to remembering writing memos :
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 In short, begin your memo by stating the purpose and end it by letting the recipient
know the action.
Memos are concise and focus on a single purpose. Its usually not more than one
page. If you have an attachment, put it separate sheet of paper.
Use bullets in listing to highlight the items.
Use 1 inch margins all around.
Use block style paragraphs (left justified).
Single space your memo, useless the memo is very short.
Dont use complementary close (e.g. sincerely) and dont sign a memo at the bottom.

The example of memo

MEMO
TO

: Sales Staffs

FROM

: Mr. Charles Chavez

DATE

: December 1, 2008

SUBJECT

: Annual Meeting

Im writing to remind you that our annual meeting will be

on Tuesday, December 1. I want everyone to be ready with
ideas, strategies, and sales forecast for next year. I will be
out of town attending a conference on the new product of
LCD projectors in Osaka, on Wednesday and Thursday of
this week. Remember that next Monday is a holiday.
Therefore, if you have something urgent to discuss, please
see me on Friday, December 5.

Introduction
Body

Conclusion

D. Telex
Telex is one of the most efficent forms of business communication. It provides a
written record, it is immediate, economical and can be sent even when the receiving
office is shut. Rates are calculated according to the time taken to transimit the message.
*HINTS*
1. When you wish to write a telex, make a draft of what you wish to say and underline
the important words which carry the main points.
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2. Group questions together.

3. Start a new line or a new paragraph when you change the subject.
4. Do not abbreviate if you doubt the recipients knowledge of English.
ATTN C IOANNOU
THIS IS TO CFM DET IN YR LTR 18TH AUG. TKS FOR YR
OFFER OF HOSPITALITY. WE ACCEPT WITH

References
Beresford, Cynthia. 1984. Business Communication Practical Written English For The
Modern Business World. London : BBC English.
Eri, Kurniwan & Arief Kurniawan, 2008, Communication Builder English for Vocational
School;For Intermediate Level (grade XII) . Jakarta : Pusat Perbukuan Departemen
Pendidikan Nasional
http://www.alternative.hu/formal_and_informal_letters
http://www.preservearticles.com/201107159124/sample-letter-to-your-friend-inviting-him-toattend-your-birthday-party.html
http://www.whitesmoke.com/how-to-accept-a-formal-invitation.html
Suhermawan,dkk. 2008. English For SMK 1. Jakarta : Pusat Perbukuan Departemen
Pendidikan Nasional.

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