Components of a Business Letter - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

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The Opening

The opening of your business letter is made up of three parts. It includes the heading, which includes the writer’s address and the date, the recipient’s address, and the salutation.

For the heading, you include your own address in the U.S. Post Office format with your street name on one line and your city, state, and zip code on the next line. Then, skip a line between your address and the date. Next, write the date formally with the month written out followed by the day, a comma, and then the year in four digits. Skip another line after the heading.

Next, include the recipient’s address. Use a proper salutation of the person if at all possible, whether it is Dr., Mr., Ms.,or Mrs. If you are not sure of the salutation, you can use the person’s full name along with his or her official title. Include the street address, city, and state in the U.S. Post Office format. If the address is an international one, write the country in all capital letters on the line directly underneath the address. Skip another line after the recipient’s address.

Now, include the salutation. The salutation begins with ‘Dear’ along with the recipient’s name. Include the same Dr., Mr., Ms., or Mrs. that you used in the recipient’s address. Unless you’re on a first name basis with this person, use their last name only. If you don’t know how to address them, then include their first and last name. End the salutation with a colon and then skip another line between this salutation and your message.

The Body

The body of the business letter includes the message. In your message, talk about the purpose of your letter and why you are writing it. Provide convincing evidence that justifies your purpose. Then say what you would like your recipient to do with this information. Be sure to skip a line between each of your paragraphs. After your last paragraph, skip a line to separate the body from the closing.

The Ending

The ending of a business letter includes the complimentary closing, the writer’s signed name, and the writer’s typed name along with title. Optionally, you may include enclosures if there are any.

The complimentary closing is a phrase such as sincerely, thank you, or some other formal saying. After typing your closing phrase, skip three lines and then type your name. Having three lines in between leaves room for your signature after you print out the letter. After your typed name, include your title if you have one.

If you have enclosures, such as a pamphlet or a resume, skip a line after the last line of the typed name and write ‘enclosures’ followed by names of the documents included.

Now, we are done, and you have your formal business letter. You can now use it to help you get that job you’ve always wanted.

Lesson Summary

Now, let’s review. A business letter is a formal letter used to communicate with a specific individual or group. Business letters are usually typed using 12 point Times New Roman or Arial font. The margins are one inch all around. Everything is aligned to the left.

There are six parts to the business letter: the heading, the recipient’s address, the salutation, the message, the closing, and the signature. The heading includes the writer’s address and the date, and all addresses are written following the U.S. Post Office format. After the salutation comes the body, where you talk about the purpose of your letter, why you are writing it, and what you want the recipient to do. The ending of the letter includes the complimentary closing, the writer’s signed name, and the writer’s typed name along with title. If there are enclosures, skip a line after the last line for the typed name and write enclosures.