Return Address or Letterhead?
Introduction to written business English: 1. Below are the main sub-groups of the functional style generally known as the style of official documents. a) private correspondence with a stranger; b) business correspondence between representatives of commercial and other establishments; c) diplomatic correspondence, international treaties & other documents; d) legal documents (civil law – testaments, settlements, etc.; criminal law – verdicts, sentences, the Criminal Code, etc.); e) personal documents (certificates, diplomas, etc.) Besides, business discourse can proceed orally: business appointments, telephone talks, meetings, etc. The oral forms of discourse are, naturally, less formal than written ones. Today we shall focus on the skills of translating commercial correspondence. A formal business letter to an unknown person is composed in accordance with certain rules: a) you must use the proper variety of direct address and of the “complimentary close”; 2) there must be nothing superfluous in the text; c) no subjective emotions should be expressed; d) it must be reserved in tone; 5) it is rich in terminology related to business; 6) it uses accepted formulas of politeness. Look through the following business letter, written in a very formal style. Define its purpose and explain which of the characteristics mentioned above manifest themselves in this or that part of the letter. 23 Convent Street Newcastle March 21, 1992 Mr.Slatty & Sons, Inc. 12, Lark Lane, London Gentlemen, We acknowledge receipt of your favour of 18 inst. By the present we beg to remit you two bills of £ 3410 together requesting you to get them accepted. If the drawees, contrary to all probability, should refuse acceptance, please return the bills without protest debiting us for your expenses. Awaiting your reply we are, Yours very truly, Johnson and Co. 2. Translate the above letter, making use of the hints below. favour = used for “letter” as trite metonymy of euphemistic and flattering nature inst. (short for “instant”; means “of the current month”); ult. (Latin “ultimo”) = “in the month preceding now current” remit = transmit money; bill – here: order to pay; drawee = “person on whom bill is drawn”; “debit” =here: charge with sum of money 3. The most typical types of business letters are inquiries ( запросы ), offers, orders, contracts, execution of contracts ( исполнение контрактов ), claims and adjustments ( претензии и их урегулирование ), advertising. Below is a sample of an enquiry. Analyse its terminology and practice back translation from Russian into English. Dear Sirs, We have seen your advertisement in “The Metal Worker” and we are interested in aluminium screws and fittings of all kinds. Please quote us for the supply of the items listed on the enclosed inquiry form, giving your prices c.i.f. Odessa. Will you please also state your earliest delivery date, your terms of payment, and discounts for regular purchases. As our annual requirements in metal fittings of all kinds are considerable, also send us your catalogue and details of your specifications. Yours faithfully, …… Уважаемые господа! Мы прочитали ваше объявление в журнале «Метал Уоркер». Нас интересуют алюминиевые болты и другая арматура различного рода. Пришлите нам, пожалуйста, ваши цены на поставку указанных в прилагаемой форме запроса изделий, при этом желательно получить цены на условиях СИФ – порт Одесса. Укажите также кратчайшие сроки поставки, условия платежа и и возможную скидку при многократных заказах. Так как наша ежегодная потребность в различного рода креплениях достаточно велика, то не могли бы вы также прислать нам свои каталоги и подробные технические инструкции. С уважением, …… 4. Practice back translation of the following utterances in pairs. to be in stock быть в наличии to place an order разместить заказ to settle an invoice оплатить счет freight charges транспортные расходы We are pleased to have your inquiry of May 15. Мы рады, что получили от вас запрос от 15 мая. We thank you for your enquiry about our hand-made shoes. (= Many thanks for your …..) Благодарим Вас за запрос в отношении производимой нами обуви ручной работы. Replying to your enquiry of 2nd May we are pleased to inform you that …. В ответ на Ваш запрос от 2 мая мы рады сообщить, что … We have pleasure in confirming that we can effect delivery within two weeks. Мы рады подтвердить, что можем осуществить поставку в пределах 2 недель. We thank you for your inquiry and are pleased to inform you that we hold stocks of all our products. Благодарим Вас за запрос и рады сообщить, что имеем достаточный запас всей произведенной нами продукции. In reply to your enquiry we are enclosing full particulars of our export models. В ответ на Ваш запрос направляем подробную информацию о тех моделях, которые мы экспортируем. We have pleasure in offering you the following goods … Мы можем предложить Вам следующие товары We have pleasure in quoting as follows for the bicycles we produce. Мы высылаем вам расценки на производимые нами велосипеды. We have pleasure in submitting the following quotation. Мы с удовольствием направляем Вам следующее предложение Prices are subject to variation without notice, in accordance with market fluctuations. Цены могут быть изменены без нашего предварительного уведомления, в соответствии с колебаниями на рынке. As a result of the favourable supply situation we are able to offer you firm for immediate delivery Благодаря удачному положению с поставками, мы можем предложить Вам твердую цену с немедленной поставкой Our prices are quoted f.o.b Odessa (c.i.f. London) (f.o.b. = free on board) c.i.f. = cost, insurance, freight;) Наши цены – фоб Одесса (= Франкоборт Одесса) /(сиф Лондон) The price includes freight and packing in special export cases. Названная цена включает фрахт и упаковку в специальные экспортные ящики. Our prices are subject to 2 % discount for cash. Наши цены могут быть уменьшены на 2 %, если оплата производится наличными. The prices quoted are net. Названные цены являются нетто-ценами. Owing to the slump in commodity prices we can offer you these goods at below market price. Благодаря снижению цен на товар мы можем предложить вам товар по цене ниже рыночной. We can offer a discount of 12 % on price lists. Мы можем предложить 12%-ную скидку с прейскурантной цены. Our terms are spot cash (cash within 7 days, cash on delivery, cash with order) Наши условия – платеж наличными на момент заключения сделки, (в течение семи дней, по поставке, при заказе). We offer these goods subject to their being unsold on receipt of your order. Предлагаем данный товар при условии, что он не будет продан до получения вашего заказа. This is a special offer and not subject to our usual discounts. Это особое предложение и к нему не применяются наши обычные скидки. Please let us have your order by 30 June as this price as this price concession will not apply after this date. Просим направить Ваш заказ до 30 июня, так как после этой даты данная скидка действовать не будет. 5. Give the following in English. Благодарим за Ваш запрос от 26 марта в отношении производимых нами товаров. Рады сообщить, что имеем достаточный запас всей произведённой нами продукции. Мы с удовольствием направляем Вам следующее предложение. Мы готовы продать наши пылесосы по 50 долларов за штуку и предоставить пятипроцентную скидку, если вы разместите заказ на, как минимум, двести штук. Наши цены включают упаковку и перевозку. Наши условия – платёж по получении счёта. К сожалению, вынуждены сообщить, что в данный момент на складе не имеется указанного вами вида товара, однако мы рассчитываем, что сможем обеспечить поставку в следующем месяце. Благодаря снижению цен на товар, в апреле мы сможем предложить вам товар по ценам ниже рыночных. Однако в дальнейшем цены могут быть изменены без нашего предварительного уведомления, в соответствии с колебаниями на рынке. При этом наши цены могут быть уменьшенными на 5 % при условии оплаты наличными. 6. On separate sheets of paper write to business letters – one in English and one in Russian for back translation in class. HANDOUT: Rules of writing business letters (URL: http://www.savvy-business-correspondence.com/BusinessLetters.html) Business letters are the main way businesses officially communicate with their customers and other businesses. To a lot of people business letters are still synonymous with business correspondence, though nowadays the phrase “business correspondence” has a much broader meaning. Some rules established for writing business letters are strict, some can be ignored, sometimes breaking some of the rules can even make your letter more effective... and some rules with regard to business letters are obsolete and should be broken. A full block business letter format is the most popular business letter layout nowadays.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Return Address or Letterhead?
The letter starts with the return (or sender’s) address without a letterhead. Such letters are usually sent by individuals; business to business letters are written on Return address can be substituted with a letterhead like here:
Date : The return address (or the letterhead) is followed by the date. If you are using a letterhead, type the date of your letter two to six lines below it depending on the length of the letter. If you are an individual using your return address in the business letter, leave just one line between the return address and the date.
It is better to type the date in full: do not use figures as they can be confusing (Europe versus the US).
In the US the date starts with the month and in Europe, with the day. Whether you start with the month or not, do not abbreviate it – this rule stands.
Inside Address : If you know the person’s name, write it on the first line of the inside (or receiver’s) address. It can be preceded by the courtesy title (Mr., Ms., etc.). Try to put the full name: Margaret Edwards or at least M. Edwards. Here the courtesy title is used but it is more often omitted than not lately. The receiver’s name can be followed by his/her position in the company or the name of the department. Here you can see the name of the company which is also acceptable.
Punctuation of Addresses : It has become common to use open punctuation, especially in a full block business letter. It means no punctuation at all at the end of the address lines. If you prefer to use punctuation, follow by a comma each line of the address except the last one.
Attention Line : You can put the position of the person you are writing to in the attention line, which is also optional. Attention line can be skipped in a business letter, your choice.
Salutation : Salutation depends on whether you know the name of the person you are writing to. If you do, you use “Dear Ms. Edwards”. Initials or first names are usually not included in salutations. On the other hand, you could write “Dear Margaret Edwards” and skip the courtesy title.If you don’t know the name use either of the following:
| Dear Sir Ladies and Gentlemen Gentlemen (US)/Dear Sirs (UK) | Dear Madam Ladies Dear Sir or Madam | To Whom It May Concern |
Note: it is recommended to avoid "Dear Sir or Madam" lately.
The Body of the Letter Write the body of your letter keeping it brief and to the point. Leave a line space between the paragraphs, it is essential for the full block business letter format.
Complimentary Close The most common complimentary close accepted in the US and UK is “ Sincerely”
If you insist on using some other ones, try the following depending on your situation:
Respectfully yours (very formal)
Yours faithfully (UK for business letters that begin with Dear Sir, Dear Sirs, Dear Madam, Dear Sir or Madam)
Very truly yours (polite and neutral for the US)
Cordially yours (quite informal)
Signature Leave four blank lines after the complimentary close to sign your name. This is a rule to stick to unless you have very little space, but three is a minimum. Sign your name between the complimentary close and your printed name. Title is optional depending on relevancy and degree of formality.
A Few Additional Points
About Punctuation: According to the US rules for business letters, you are supposed to use colon (:) after salutation and comma after complimentary close; it is called mixed punctuation. In Europe commas are used in both cases. Open punctuation (i.e. no punctuation) after salutation and complimentary close is becoming common, especially in the US.
About Line Breaks: There used to be strict rules about line breaks between different parts of the letter. For instance, you were supposed to leave two breaks after salutation and two breaks between the body of the letter and the complimentary close. Now these rules are becoming less strict and you can use your own judgement in choosing which rules to follow and to what extent.
Дата добавления: 2018-11-24; просмотров: 465; Мы поможем в написании вашей работы! |
Мы поможем в написании ваших работ!