Writing for Business Courses
Business Letters
Remember to check the business homepage for strategies for successful writing in business classes, curated by business professors.
In business classes, students are given scenarios and told to craft a letter that responds to or addresses that scenario. This type of assignment helps build student confidence in their ability to communicate under varying circumstances. Take a look at an example business letter writing assignment:
CHAPTER 6 LETTER.docAs you can see, a scenario is outlined, and the student is meant to respond using formal language and and proper formatting, covering the scenario concisely and clearly. You'll also notice the option to write the letter as inductive or deductive.
Inductive vs Deductive Business Writing
Inductive Business Writing in letters is where the first paragraphs give support statements, and the last paragraph is the action item or the statement that is a conclusion to the supporting statements. For example, using the above scenario, the writer may reiterate the value of their company and terms of their Standard Contract, and end by letting the receiver know that InfoSearch has been approved for credit.
Meanwhile, Deductive Business Writing flip-flopped. In this type of business letter, the information is presented (or the statement is made) in the opening paragraph and then the remaining paragraphs support the statement that was made. In the above example, that means that the writer would let InfoSearch know they were approved for credit, then reiterate the terms of that agreement.
(I have not created an example of each of these, mostly because I'm not 100% this is correct. Is it? Would you like to send me an example of each of these? or it may not be that important.)
An excellent business letter...
Uses a concise, formal tone and appropriate word choice
Shows understanding of the audience
Has proper formatting, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and sentence structure. These basics are far more important than students often realize.
A positive tone, using a problem-solving approach.
Common errors in business letters are...
Use of passive voice
Use of colloquial phrasing (slang)
Statements unsupported by research
Improper Formatting
Redundancy
Example Business Letter (Scenario: Letter to the Editor)
See the example below, paying particular attention to the formatting, formal tone, and concise wording.
BUS 2017-Letter to the Editor - Mya.pdf