In general, signatures in English are handwritten samples of first names, but a formal letter should contain as well full typewritten name (name and surname) which is followed on the next line by the persons position in the company or by the name of the department he represents.
Traditionally the signature has been typed in the middle of the page, but it is becoming more and more common for firms to place it on the left. It often happens that in a large company it is impossible for the head of the business to deal with all the correspondence and certain employees are authorized to sign for the company; they are said to sign per procurationem (per pro, p.p.) that means by acting as an agent or for and on behalf of. Example:
A. Smith and Co., Ltd.
p.p. D. White
Export Department
Initials of Persons in Charge
Large companies have to keep record of the staff members composing and typing letters. Their initials are typed after the signature. The initials of the persson who composed are capitalised and the operators are lower- cased: MF:af or MF/af.
Enclosures
The section Enclosures is optional: it should only be added if you have enclosed anything else within the envelope (leaflets, price lists, bills, etc.). For example: Enc: price list.
If you wish to enclose documents, you can either list all enclosed documents separately or just write the word Enclosure below the signature.
Copies
If you need to send the letter to more than one person make an indication with the abbreviation c.c. (carbon copy):
c.c.: Dr. Thomas Brake
16. PostScript (P.S.)
This sectiongives any additional information.
Practice
Ex. 1 Below you will see common situations that people encounter when they are writing a business letter. Choose the sentence or phrase (A, B or C) that would be most appropriate in each situation. Comment on the answer.
1. You are writing a letter to the head teacher of a school or college, but you don't know their name. How will you begin your letter?
A. Dear head teacher.
B. Dear Sir / Madam.
C. Dear Sir.
2. You have received a letter from the manager of a company which buys computer components from your company, and you are now replying. What will you say?
A. Thank you for your letter.
B. Thanks a lot for your letter.
C. It was great to hear from you.
3. You recently stayed in a hotel and were very unhappy with the service you received. You are now writing to the manager. What will you say?
A. I had a horrible time at your hotel recently.
B. I would like to say that I am unhappy about your hotel.
C. I would like to complain about the service I received at your hotel recently.
4. You have sent a letter of application to a college, together with your CV which the college requested. What will you say in the letter to explain that your CV is enclosed?
A. You asked for my CV, so here it is.
|
|
|
B. As you can see, I've enclosed my CV.
C. As you requested, I enclose my CV.
5. In a letter you have written to a company, you tell them that you expect them to reply. What will you say?
A. Write back to me soon, please.
B. Please drop me a line soon.
C. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
6. In a letter you have written, you want the recipient to do something and are thanking him in advance of his action. What will you say?
A. Thank you for your attention in this matter.
B. Thanks for doing something about it.
C. I am gratified that you will take appropriate action.
7. The company you work for has received an order from another company and you are writing to them to acknowledge the order and let them know when you can deliver. What will you say?
A. About the order you sent on 12 January for....
B. I would like to remind you of the order you sent us on 12 January for....
C. Referring to your order of 12 January.
8. In a letter, you explain that the recipient can contact you if they want more information. What do you say?
A. Give me a call if you want some more information.
B. If you would like any more information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
C. If you would like any more information, why not get in touch?
9. You began a letter with the recipient's name (e.g., Dear Mr. Smith). How will you end the letter?
A. Yours faithfully.
B. Yours sincerely.
C. Best wishes.
10. You did not begin the letter with the recipient's name. How will you end the letter?
A. Yours faithfully.
B. Yours sincerely.
C. Best wishes.
11. You are writing a letter to the company, which is a partnership. How will you begin your letter?
A. Dear Mr Smith & Co.
B. Dear Messrs Smith & Co.
C. Dear Sirs.
