How to Format a Business Letter: Elements, Fonts, Examples, Templates, Tips

Most business communications today occur in digital format. Yet, it is essential to understand how to write a business letter. Governmental bodies, conservative non-profit organizations, and diverse businesses still stick to conventional paper format. They use it for job offers, employment verifications, and reference letters.

The readers of this article will discover smart tips on writing this type of correspondence. They will get to know about the optimal formal letter format and will be able to memorize these rules quickly. But this review which our admission essay help team has prepared will not focus on the specific language of business correspondence. It will deal only with the layout.

Parts of a Business Letter

The professional letter format suggests that the following elements should be present:

• sender’s contact information;
• date;
• recipient’s contact information;
• salutation;
• body;
• closing;
• signature.

Below, each of these elements will be described in detail by our do my assignment for me team. 

When young specialists prepare for their first job, they rarely think of how to write a formal letter. Instead, they try to get ready for top interview questions and find out about the office dress code. When they need to compile their first business correspondence, they might want to hire experienced writers for that. 

Such services as write my essay help their clients create top-notch documents of any style. So, you can take advantage of professional assistance or try to handle it on your own first.

Sender's Contact Information

When in doubt about how to start a business letter, senders can either use a letterhead or do without it. In case they use the letterhead, they should include their address in it. Alternatively, they might mention this information at the top of the letter one line above the date.

The Date

Sometimes, a sender might need a few days to finish a formal business letter. In this case, they should indicate the date when they completed it. 

When writing business letters to American recipients, people should mention the name of the month first, then the date, and finally the year. For example, indicate “July 5, 2021”. The distance between this information and the top of the page should be two inches.

In some formats, a sender needs to tab to the center point to insert the date. Then, they should mention their address on the letterhead. Otherwise, the date needs to be left-justified.

Recipient’s Contact Information

When writing a formal letter, people plan to send it to an organization and not to a private address. Yet, it would be wise to know the name of the person who will read it. A sender can either look for this information online or call the company’s representative to ask about it.

Now, learn valuable insights on how to address a business letter. A personal title is vital for business correspondence. When a sender is not sure about a recipient’s title, they should indicate a higher one. This would flatter the recipient. When they doubt how to address a woman, they should opt for Ms.

The international format for business letter suggests that a recipient’s address should start one line below the date. Regardless of the letter format, it should be left-justified. A sender should indicate the name of the country on the last line, using all capital letters.

The Salutation

In proper business letter format, the name in the salutation should coincide with the one in the recipient’s address. It should include the personal title too. The sender can omit the recipient’s last name if they know them well.

When writing a business letter, the sender might not know the recipient’s gender. Yet, in certain environments today, it would be inappropriate to mention it. The sender can replace it with the job title and the name of the recipient. For the lack of a title, the full name will do. The word “Dear” before the name would be quite acceptable.

The Body

To separate paragraphs in a business format letter, the sender uses a blank line. They need to left-justify the paragraphs and leave a single space between the lines.

The official letter format implies that the text should be concise. It should start with a friendly opening in the initial paragraph. Then, the author should focus on the main point.

In the second paragraph, they need to justify the importance of the main point. Further on, they should provide details and background information.

In the last paragraph, the sender summarizes the essence of the letter and asks the recipient to react.

The Closing

When formatting for a business letter, the sender should shorten the closing paragraph. Ideally, it should contain two sentences. In the first one, the sender summarizes the reason why they contact the recipient. In the second, they express their gratitude for the attention that the reader pays to their text.

Your Signature

In a professional business letter, the signature always goes just beneath the closing. The signature needs to be handwritten. Below, the sender should type their full name, title, phone number, email address, and any additional contact data. The distance between this information and the closing should be four single spaces.

Business Letter Format and Font Notes

Block Format

Normally, senders should stick to the block letter format. It is the most widespread layout of this type of documents (but not the only possible one). It suggests that there should be a double space between paragraphs and a single space between the lines. All the text should be left-justified.

Modified Block

In modified block format, start typing the date and closing from the center points. The body of the letter, as well as the recipient’s and the sender’s addresses, should be placed on the left. There should be a single space between the lines. This format is used less frequently than the previous one.

Semi-Block

This is the least obvious recommendation on how to format a business letter. This one largely resembles the modified block. But instead of left-justifying the paragraphs, the sender should indent them. 

These three formats were given as examples. Each company might have individual templates and letterheads.

In Microsoft Office 2000, there is the Letter Wizard feature. It often comes in handy for business letters. To launch it, press the Tools button and opt for Letter Wizard. It contains templates for semi-block, modified block, and block format letters. Once the sender indicates their and the recipient’s addresses, as well as the data, the Wizard will format them. 

But this tool is not too precise. It can help newbies, but it might be not enough for experienced professionals. When compiling a blocked style business letter or another type of letter, it would be wise to rely on other guidelines too.

Font

One of the wisest tips on how to format a formal letter is: it should be readable. Tip number two is: to produce a favorable impression on the recipient, the font should meet their expectations. Conservative people tend to stick to Times New Roman. A younger audience might be ready to experiment with Arial or other fonts unless they are too intricate. For all fonts, the ideal size is 12.

Punctuation

The open punctuation format suggests that there should be no punctuation after the salutation and the closing. Yet, this approach is not widespread. A typical correspondence letter features a comma after the closing and a colon after the salutation. It is incorrect to use a comma instead of the colon.

How to Write a Business Letter?

These days, business communication plays a crucial role in the professional world. Thus, regardless of your professional level or industry, knowing how to write a business letter can have a significant impact on your career and this article is here to help.

As you may already know, a business letter should consist of a contact information section, a formal salutation, a short introduction, a body with more specifics, a complimentary closing paragraph, and a professional signature. Our 'write speech for me' experts have identified steps you need to take to create a solid business letter with ease:

1. First of all, you should find a standard template to understand how to format business letter and organize your document correctly.
2. Identify a specific purpose why you are writing this letter and keep it in mind throughout the entire process.
3. Include your and your recipient’s full contact information at the top of your letter.
4. Write a formal salutation.
5. After the salutation, write a short and to-the-point paragraph introducing yourself to the recipient and explaining the reason for writing.
6. Use the body of your letter to delve into more details concerning your purpose.
7. Write a concise closing paragraph in which you recap why you are writing, thank the recipient for time and reading, and, where appropriate, mention follow-up plans.
8. Add a professional signature.

Following these steps, you should be able to write a compelling letter yourself. Now, let’s move on to business letter formatting.

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How to Format a Business Letter?

Although writing this type of document is not really hard, when it comes to choosing the right format for a business letter, that’s where it can get tricky. As a formal document, a business letter should have a very professional-looking and solid structure. Thus, it can be hard to get things right, especially if you are writing such a letter for the first time.

To help you get started, here is a step-by-step instruction to a formal business letter format:

1. Pick the right font style and size

First of all, a proper business letter format requires using the right font style and size in order to ensure readability and cleanliness. When choosing a font, one needs to make sure that it is readable, clean, and looks professional. Thus, it is not a good idea to opt for fancy or creative fonts. Traditionally, the most widely used fonts for professional documents are Arial, Helvetica, Calibri, Times New Roman, Avenir, Roboto, etc.

When it comes to the size, consider picking the smallest font size in which the document still remains readable. As a rule, picking font sizes of 10-12 points will be the best option.

2. Keep an eye on margins and spacing

Apart from the font, a correct format for business letter implies using professionally-looking spacing and margins. Just like fonts, these two formatting elements are used to add cleanliness and readability to your document.

Here are a few tips to help you get things right:

• Include spaces to divide different elements at the top of the document (i.e., your contact details, date, and the recipient’s information);
• Add a space before the beginning of the letter;
• Keep the body of the letter single-spaced;
• Also, put additional space before and after the closing paragraph.

These tips will help you create a readable and good-looking document. And, as for other recommendations, align the text to the left side and set all margins to one inch.

3. Pay attention to the contents

Finally, to keep the format of business letters easy to follow and clean, you should pay attention to the contents. Namely, you should ensure that you have included all the necessary sections and elements.

Be sure to begin and end the document right. Go for formal greetings such as “Dear Mr./Ms.”, “Dear (Name),” or general greetings. And also choose a proper closing for your letter like “Respectfully,” “Sincerely,” “All the best,” etc.

Business Letter Template

Here is a business letter template, which might be useful before starting writing.

Sender’s first and last name

Job title

Address

Phone number

Email address

Month day, year

Receiver’s first and last name

Job title

Address

Phone number

Email address

Dear Mr./Ms. [Name],

First of all, let me introduce myself [a concise introduction, telling who you are]. I’m writing to you to [the purpose of your letter].

[Body paragraphs going deeper in the detail of your matter and explaining what exactly you are hoping to achieve by writing this letter].

Thank you for taking the time to consider my appeal. If you wish to know more details or have any questions concerning [reiterate the purpose and main subject of your letter], don’t hesitate to contact me and I will be happy to answer all your questions and discuss all the related nuances. I can be reached via [relevant contact details].

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Sender’s name

Job title

Signature

Business Letter Example

Here is a business letter format example. If you need to do your essay urgently, our team of essay writers can do it for you.

Martin Gomez

Sr. Sales Manager

55 Black road

Whitehall, WI

+1 715-538-9121

martin.gomez@gmail.com

July 10, 2021
‍

Jill Sanders

CEO

101 Michigan Street

Springfield, MI

+1 734-681-1020

jill.sanders@gmail.com

Dear Jill Sanders,

It is my pleasure to recommend Mike Black for the Jr. Sales Manager role with Neogen. I am Martin Gomez, a senior sales manager at Komro Sales & Service. I have 10+ years of experience in sales and had the pleasure to work with many young specialists. However, Mr. Black is one individual who truly stands out.

Throughout the time that we have worked together, Mike has demonstrated a huge talent in sales, customer acquisition, and customer retention. For over 5 years at our company, he has significantly outdone the rest of the team in terms of meeting sales quotas and was subject to numerous promotions up to the role of the junior sales manager.

Apart from hard sales skills, Mr. Black has impressed me with his outstanding soft skills, such as a strong work ethic, positive attitude, and the ability to communicate effectively not only with customers but also with other teams within the company.

I am absolutely confident that Mike Black can become a valuable asset for Neogen. Not only has he proven a strong ability to leverage his soft and hard skills for the benefit of the company, but he also perfectly corresponds to the requirements and expectations stated in your job opening for a Jr. Sales Manager. That is why I am writing to refer him for this position.

Thank you for your consideration. In case you need more information, please don’t hesitate to reach me via phone at +1 715-538-9121 or email at martin.gomez@gmail.com. I will gladly discuss any further details.

Sincerely,

Martin Gomez

Sr. Sales Manager