商务英语写作教案Business English WritingChapter 1 Business English Writing: Classifications and Principles●Business Communication●Writing Principles——8C PrinciplesI.Business Communication●What is Communication?●What is Business Communication?●Objectives of Business Communication●Classification of Business Communication1. Definition of CommunicationCommunication is the sending and receiving of information, ideas, attitudes and emotions―either verbal or nonverbal―that produce a response between people. 2. Business communication is the communication which takes place in the business field.3. Objectives of Business Communication1) To be understood exactly as we intended;2) To secure a desired response to what we communicate;3) To build up and develop goodwill between the sender and receiver of the message.4.Classification of Communication1) Downward Communication is from superiors to subordinates, from bosses to employees, from decision-makers to operating personnel.2) Upward Communication is the opposite flow of downward communication. Messages from the bottom move up through many stages until they reach the top.3) Horizontal Communication is the exchange flows between or among organizational units on the same hierarchical level.internal horizontal communication external horizontal communicationII. Writing Principles——8C Principles●Completeness●Concreteness●Conciseness●Clarity●Correctness●Consideration●Courtesy●Creditability1. CompletenessA complete letter should include whatever details are needed to produce the response you want.To achieve the Completeness, you should consider the following suggestions:1) Try to list all essential points in your letter;2) V olunteer something extra which, you think, may be of some use to your reader now or in the future;3) Offer alternatives you are able to give. Maybe you will get a new transaction.4) Check for the five Ws (who, what, where, when and why) and the H (how).2. Concreteness1) Use specific rather than general language to give specific information.Compare:This copier saves you both money and time.BH200 Copier makes 60 copies a minute at a cost of one fen a copy.But sometimes generalizing is necessary or preferable for being diplomatic.Compare:Our firm sells clothes for women weighing over 200 pounds.Our firm sells fashions for women with generous figures.2) Use concrete rather than abstract words when possible.Compare:I am interested in your vehicle.I am interested in your brown 1997 Ford Sedan.3. ConcisenessConciseness is saying what you want to say in the fewest words possible without sacrificing the other C qualities.1) Avoid wordy expressions and statementse.g. “I wish to take this opportunity to thank you for your sincere cooperation.”“Thank you for your sincere cooperation.”2) Avoid triteness.3) Eliminate redundancy (repetition of language elements)Mr. Li will be here at 8 A.M. in the morning.4) Leave out irrelevant materialCompare:If you had not informed us of damage so promptly, we should/would be unable to do anything for you. However, in your case, we are glad to tell you…Because you were so prompt in informing us of the damage, we are glad to tell you…4. Clarity1) Write on the level of the reader’s u nderstanding.2) Avoid ambiguityAn ambiguous word is one that has more than one meaning in the same context. Compare:The L/C must reach us for arranging shipment not later than 8 October.The L/C must reach us not later than 8 October for arranging shipment3) Avoid needless jargon (special language in one field of business)If possible, try to include examples, illustrations or other visual aids for clarity, such as pictures, diagrams, simple tables, samples and printed materials.5. CorrectnessCorrectness means a message must be united (grammatically and mechanically correct) and coherent (logically organized).To achieve this aim, the writer should:1) Use the right level of language (formal, informal, substandard).2) Include accurate facts, figures and words.3) Maintain acceptable writing mechanics or structure.6. ConsiderationConsideration means to think of the reader first and write from the “you-attitude”. “You-attitude” is a style of writing that looks at things from the reader’s poi nt of view, emphasizing what the reader wants to know, respecting the reader’s intelligence and protecting the reader’s ego (self-esteem).1) To emphasize the “you” and “your” and deemphasize the “I” and ”my” in positive situations and to avoid the word “you” in negative situations and use passive words/verbs and impersonal expressions to avoid assigning blame.Compare:We provide health insurance to all employees.You receive health insurance as a full-time P&G employee.Compare:You made no allowance for inflation in your estimate.No allowance for inflation has been made in this estimate.This estimate makes no allowance for inflation.2) To emphasize the reader’s interests rather than your own concerns.Compare:The large scale of sales of our products will make our company more profitable.You will find that our product will sell rapidly and afford you a profit margin.3) To emphasize what you can do, not what you cannot do .Compare:We won’t be able to send you the brochure this month.We will send you the brochure next month.Try to use positive words to replace negative words.Improve:We hope you won’t be dissatisfied with the new range of our electric products.4) To express your sincere desire to be of help.7. CourtesyA courteous message, like a courteous person, is polite, considerate and emphathic. Courtesy is a major contributor to goodwill. By courtesy we mean treating people with respect and friendly human concern. It can be a key factor influencing our success in the business world.1) Be polite.2) Be equal to each otherCompare:How can anyone question our ability to repay the loan when we are such a large, reputable firm?Our qualification for the loan is a well established credit rating.3) Avoid mistrustCompare:We have received your letter in which you claimed that ten tea sets were damaged in shipment.We have noticed in your letter that a damage to ten tea sets in shipment was found.4) Avoid angerCompare:You obviously made a mistake by sending me the wrong goods.Thank you for your prompt delivery. However, the goods reached us were not the ones we ordered.8. CreditabilityCreditability means being honest and fair in all our business dealings.The observation of the 7Cs will ensure the achievement of last C– Creditability. Before doing business with others, one businessman should learn how to be a man. HomeworkRead the text and answer the question:How do you analyze the 8Cs from the pragmatic perspective?Chapter 2 The Structure and Layout of a Business LetterI. StructureII. LayoutIII. HomeworkI. Structure1. Standard Parts of Business Letters2. Optional Parts of Business LettersI. Structure1. Standard Parts of the Business Letter(1) Letter-head 信头It is the heading at the top of a letter and shows where the letter comes from. It usually consists of the name, address, telephone number and fax number and also the company logo, web site, e-mail address, etc.The letter-head is usually printed on the company’s stationery.e.g. OMNICORP INTERNATIONAL17 Bunder Hill RoadShrewsbury MA 01545Tel 03-345 6788 Fax 34567(2) Date 日期The format of date differs from country to country.e.g．①Friday, 10th, March 2006;②10th (or 10) March, 2006(U.S. military, Europe, Latin America);③March 10th(or 10), 2006(American business);④10, 3, 2006 or 10/3/2006(causing confusion).(3) Inside name and address 封内姓名和地址It should duplicate the address on the envelope. It should also include the reader’sname, title and address and is placed at the left margin about 2 or 3 spaces below the date and above the salutation.(4) Salutation 称呼It is your friendly greeting to the reader and agrees with the inside address.*Gentlemen (American) / Dear Sirs (British)/ Ladies and Gentlemen (Customary Salutations to a firm)*Dear Mr. /Mrs./ Miss / Ms (marital status unknown)*Dear +first nameIt is addressed to an individual you know well.*Dear Sir & Dear MadamThey are used in formal and impersonal situations or when you do not know the reader’s name.*Dear Director (Manager, Supervisor, Owner, Department Head)Neutral titles are preferred by many office managers.*Dear CustomerIt is used for messages that omit an inside address as in sales letters or announcements to more than one person.(5) Body 主体The body is the message and the most important part. It is difficult to discuss how to write in a few words because there are many purposes of letter writing. But do remember 7C Principles.(6) Complimentary close 礼貌结束语It is a polite way of closing the letter. It must agree with the salutation in the degree of formality.*Formal 正式Dear Sir / Gentlemen ——— Faithfully yours /Yours faithfullyLadies & Gentlemen ———Yours very truly (very truly yours, your truly)—no longer popular*Semi-formal 半正式Sincerely yours or yours sincerely(very popular between businessmen who have already established a business contact with each other)Cordially yours or Very cordially yours (used when you may or may not know the reader well, but wish him to feel the relationship is friendly).*Informal 非正式Dear David ——→sincerely, cordially, best regards, take care, thanks(7) Signature 签名Every business letter must be signed. It usually includes three or four parts:①the name of the company,②the signature of the writer,③the typed name④the business title.Page 37 Examples2) Optional Parts of the Business Letter(1) Reference 参考号The reference may include a file number or departmental code or the initials of the signer of the letter to be followed by the typist’s initials.e.g. Our ref: Dep. B/4LW/PB 524;KLM: tr orTR;KL Morning—tr;K.L Morning: trK.L. Morning: TR/tr (Identification Marks) 识别标记(2) Attention Line 经办It is used to direct the letter to a specific person or department when the company name is used in the addressee line. It is usually placed between inside address and the salutation.e.g. Attention: Purchasing Manager.(3) Subject Line 事由It helps both the writer and the reader identify the subject matter,e.g. Subject: Order No. 123;Re: Invoice No. 123;(4) Enclosure Notation 附件It tells the receiver that something is included in the envelope along with the letter. It also reminds the sender and the reader of checking for enclosures.(4) Enclosure Notation 附件e.g. Enclosure: Sales Contract;Enc. 3: Sales Contract;Commercial Invoice;Bill of LadingEncl. 3Enclosures 33 Enclosures:(5) Copy Notation 抄送It indicates a copy of the letter is being used to some other business people.It is placed below the signature at the left margin.●cc: (carbon copy) xc: (Xerox copy)●pc: (photo copy) c: (copy)e.g. cc: Mr. Taylor(6) Postscript 附言When you finish the letter and happen to think of something else, you may add it at the end of the letter.P.S. (p.s.; PS): ***If there are two things, use P.P.S. But this is a poor/bad habit and should be avoided.II. Letter style (Layout)1. Indented style (缩格式/ 传统格式）Page 422. Full block form齐头式This form begins each line at the left. This is the fastest to type because typists do not have to set and use tab stops for indenting. Page 433. Modified block style改良齐头式It is currently one of the most popular styles. To most readers, this style isappealing because it achieves the best visual balance on the page.The letterhead, date, complimentary close and signature are just to the right of the center. Page 444. Modified block style with indented paragraphs 混合式(Semi-block style)Many business letters use this style. Although the full block style is widely used, the indented style is also popular, probably because its paragraphs are indented in the same way of books, newspapers and magazines. Page 45Homework1. Give the names of the parts in the letter on Page 43.2. Study the forms of envelope addressing by yourself.3. Translate the sentences into English on Page 54.Chapter 4 Credit Inquiry and Establishing Business Relations●Letters of credit inquiry●Letters of establishing business relationsI. Credit inquiry——a kind of consultancy letter●Consultancy is the business of offering specialist professional advice including market research, credit standing investigation, market trend research and other services providing business information.●Consultancy service is usually provided by banks or professional consulting companies or individuals. As a business person, you should learn to write a consultancy letter to seek needed information.●In international business, an exporter may ask his new customer to give the name of his bank(er) or the name of firms which the customer has previously dealt as a reference.●Reference:1) a piece of written information about sb’s character, ability, etc. 证明书，证明材料2) a person who provides such information. 资信证明人●There are two kinds of reference: ba nks’ (bankers’) reference—banks银行证明人and trade reference—companies商业证明人.How to Write a Consultancy Letter for Credit Standing1. The name of the company to be investigated and why you are writing to the receiver.e.g. 玛丽兰公司提出要当我公司的代理，销售我们的缝纫机，并介绍我公司向贵行了解该公司的信用、业务能力和声誉的详细情况。
