Tiếng anh thương mại Content and style

Commercial correspondence Vũ Thị Diễm Phúc Khoa Tiếng Anh Thương Mại CONTENT AND STYLE Parts of a Business Letter  The next four slides illustrate basic information on proper placement and formatting of business letters inches from top or blank line below letterhead – 10 lines between dateline and inside address blank line (double space) blank line (double space) Single-space paragraphs; leave blank line (double space) between paragraphs blank line (double space) Hit ENTER four times after complimentary close to allow space for signature blank line (double space) Disorganized message Consider the following letter from Jill Saunders, the office manager at Boswell & Son, mapmakers Disorganized message Our president, Mr Boswell, was in an accident last year, and he hasn’t been able to work full-time His absence has affected our business, so we don’t have the budget we used to His two sons are working hard, so we aren’t bankrupt by any means, and soon Mr Boswell will be coming back full-time Boswell & Sons has been doing business with Computer Time since I was hired six years ago Your building was smaller then, and it was located on the corner of Federal Avenue and 2nd N.W Mr Boswell bought our first laser printer there I still remember the day It was the biggest check I’d ever written Of course, over the years, I’ve gotten used to larger purchases We have seven employees Although all of them aren’t directly involved in producing the maps we sell, they all need to have their computers working so that they can their jobs The CD-ROM drive we bought for my assistant, Suzanne, has been a problem We’ve taken it in for repairs three times in three months to the authorized service center, and Suzanne is very careful with the machine and hasn’t abuse it She likes playing interactive adventure games on lunch breaks It still doesn’t work right, and she’s tired of hauling it back and forth We’re all putting in longer hours to make up for Mr Boswell’s not being here, and none of us has a lot of spare time This is the first time we’ve returned anything to your store, and I hope you’ll agree that we deserve a better deal Including irrelevant material What’s wrong? Taking too long to get to the point Our president, Mr Boswell, was in an accident last year, and he hasn’t been able to work full-time His absence has affected our business, so we don’t have the budget we used to His two sons are working hard, so we aren’t bankrupt by any means, and soon Mr Boswell will be coming back full-time Boswell & Sons has been doing business with Computer Time since I was hired six years ago Your building was smaller then, and it was located on the corner of Federal Avenue and 2nd N.W Mr Boswell bought our first laser printer there I still remember the day It was the biggest check I’d ever written Of course, over the years, I’ve gotten used to larger purchases We have seven employees Although all of them aren’t directly involved in producing the maps we sell, they all need to have their computers working so that they can their jobs The CD-ROM drive we bought for my assistant, Suzanne, has been a problem We’ve taken it in for repairs three times in three months to the authorized service center, and Suzanne is very careful with the machine and hasn’t abuse it She likes playing interactive adventure games on lunch breaks It still doesn’t work right, and she’s tired of hauling it back and forth We’re all putting in longer hours to make up for Mr Boswell’s not being here, and none of us has a lot of spare time Getting ideas Leaving out necessary This is the first time we’ve returned anything to your store, and I mixed uphope you’ll agree that we deserve a better deal information CREATING EFFECTIVE SENTENCES Creating effective sentences    Three types of sentences Sentence styles Some tips on creating effective sentences Three types of sentences types - Simple E.g Profits have increased in the past year - Compound E.g Wage rates have declined by percent, and employee turnover has been high - Complex E.g Although wage rates have declined, labor turnover did not increase last year   Which type to choose: Depend on the relationship of ideas  - - Complex sentence If you want to emphasize the idea  put it at the beginning/the end of the sentence Downplay the idea  put it in the middle Example: - Most emphatic: The handbags are - manufactured in Mexico, which has lower wage rates than the US Emphatic: Because wage rates are lower there, the handbags are manufactured in Mexico Least emphatic: Mexico, which has lower wage rates, was selected as the production point for the handbag Creating effective sentences    Three types of sentences Sentence styles Some tips on creating effective sentences Sentence styles Tips to create effective sentences Rely on active voice Emphasize key thoughts Vary sentence length Use bullets and lists Rely on active voice  Passive: - make sentence longer - deemphasize the subject  Should use active  Use passive: - Maintain diplomacy E.g.: You lost the shipment  The shipment was lost - Create objective tone E.g Criteria have been established for evaluating capital expenditure Emphasize key thoughts  Put them at the beginning/end of the sentence  Break into short, separate sentences  Use extra words to describe them E.g The manager  the manager who was recently promoted  Make them the subject of the sentence E.g The computer enables me to write letters much more quickly  I can write letters much more quickly using a computer Vary sentence length Use bullets & lists  Sequence is important  use number  Sequence is unimportant  use bullet  Tip: Present the items in list in parallel form Example:  To reduce business expenses, the directors voted to: + Cut salary by 10% + Close the employee cafeteria + Reduce travel expenses DEVELOPING COHERENT PARAGRAPHS What is a paragraph ?   A cluster of sentences all related to the same general topic Consists of  A topic sentence Reveals the subjects of the paragraph  Indicates how the subject will be developed  Related sentences  Transitional elements  Five ways to develop a paragraph      Illustration: giving examples that demonstrate the general idea Comparison or Contrast: showing similarities and differences among thoughts Cause and effect: focusing on the reasons for something Classification: breaking a general idea into specific categories Problem and Solution: presenting a problem and then discussing the solutions Paragraph length and Headings  Short paragraphs are easier to read than long ones  Heading is used to grab the reader’s attention and divide material into short sections (only use headings where appropriate) ... part Style and language   Style is the way you use strong and lively words or phrases to achieve a certain tone or overall impression Style must be clear, concise and grammatically correct Style. ..2 CONTENT AND STYLE Parts of a Business Letter  The next four slides illustrate basic information on proper placement and formatting of business letters inches... figures and words Prepositions Accuracy      Spelling Titles, names, and addresses References Prices, measurements, etc Enclosures and attachments Write concisely Eliminate unnecessary words and