202 / Types of Writing
use Gentlemen, Ladies, or Ladies and Gentlemen. The salutation should agree
with the inside address.- The body of the business letter, arranged in paragraph form.
- A closing, such as Yours truly or Sincerely yours, followed by a comma.
Note: Use the following closings for the following purposes:
a. Yours truly (with or without very) when the salutation is the impersonal
Gentlemen or Dear Sir and when the tone of the letter is cold and formal, or
when you are in doubt about what to use.
b. Sincerely or Cordially yours (with or without very) when the addressee’s name
appears in the salutation and the tone of the letter is personal and friendly.
c. Respectfully yours (with or without very) when the letter is addressed to a
person of high rank. - The writer’s signature, written (not printed) in ink, followed by the type-
written name.
Other Elements
The business letter may include the following items:
- An attention line, used when a letter is addressed only to a company or to
a department rather than to an individual. Note: The attention line appears
immediately after the inside address and before the salutation. It begins with the
word Attention (or the abbreviation Attn) followed by a colon and the name of the
specific department to which the letter should be forwarded, such as Attention:
Sales Department. Never use a person’s name in the attention line. If you know
the person’s name, use it in the inside address and omit the attention line. - A subject line, which appears immediately after the salutation. The subject
line begins with the word Subject followed by a colon and a few words or a
phrase to state the subject of the letter, such as Subject: Past-Due Payment. Use
initial capital letters to name the subject. - A writer’s identification, which appears immediately below the typewritten
signature and identifies the writer’s title or position. Note: The writer never
signs his name with a title or position preceding or following his name. - Reference initials, which appear at the left margin below the typewritten
signature line and identify the typist, such as kjs for Kirsten Joo Seng. Of
course, if you typed the letter yourself, reference initials are unnecessary. - Enclosure notation, which appears immediately below any reference initials
and indicates something is enclosed with the letter. Note: If you have more
than one item enclosed, use one of the three appropriate messages: Enc.,
2 Enclosures, or Enc. 2.