WRITING BUSINESS LETTERS

Useful phrases

Salutation

Dear Mr Brown
Dear Ms White
Dear Sir
Dear Sirs
Dear Madam
Dear Sir or Madam
Gentlemen


Starting


We are writing to inform you that ... to confirm ... to request ... to enquire about ...
I am contacting you for the following reason.
I recently read/heard about . . . and would like to know . . .
Having seen your advertisement in ... , I would like to ...
I would be interested in (obtaining/receiving) ...
I received your address from ... and would like to ...
I am writing to tell you about ...


Referring to previous contact

Thank you for your letter of March 15 ...
Thank you for contacting us.
In reply to your request ...
Thank you for your letter regarding ...
With reference to our telephone conversation yesterday ...
Further to our meeting last week ...
It was a pleasure meeting you in London last month.
I enjoyed having lunch with you last week in Tokyo.
I would just like to confirm the main points we discussed on Tuesday . . .


Making a request

We would appreciate it if you would ...
I would be grateful if you could...
Could you please send me . . .
Could you possibly tell us/let us have...
In addition, I would like to receive ...
It would be helpful if you could send us ...
I am interested in (obtaining/receiving...)
I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.
Please let me know what action you propose to take.


Offering help


We would be happy to ...
Would you like us to ...
We are quite willing to ...
Our company would be pleased to ...


Giving good news


We are pleased to announce that ...
I am delighted to inform you that ...
You will be pleased to learn that ...


Giving bad news

We regret to inform you that ...
I'm afraid it would not be possible to ...
Unfortunately we cannot/we are unable to ...
After careful consideration we have decided (not) to ...


Complaining


I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with ...
I am writing to complain about ...
Please note that the goods we ordered on (date) have not yet arrived.
We regret to inform you that our order n°--- is now considerably overdue.
I would like to query the transport charges which seem unusually high.


Apologizing

We are sorry for the delay in replying ...
I regret any inconvenience caused
I would like to apologize for (the delay/the inconvenience) ...
Once again, I apologise for any inconvenience.


Orders


Thank you for your quotation of ...
We are pleased to place an order with your company for ...
We would like to cancel our order n°...
Please confirm receipt of our order.
I am pleased to acknowledge receipt of your order n°...
Your order will be processed as quickly as possible.
It will take about (three) weeks to process your order.
We can guarantee delivery before ...
Unfortunately these articles are no longer available/are out of stock.


Prices


Please send us your price list.
You will find enclosed our most recent catalogue and price list.
Please note that our prices are subject to change without notice.
We have pleasure in enclosing a detailed quotation.
We can make you a firm offer of ...
Our terms of payment are as follows :


Referring to payment


Our records show that we have not yet received payment of ...
According to our records ...
Please send payment as soon as possible.
You will receive a credit note for the sum of ...


Enclosing documents


I am enclosing ...
Please find enclosed ...
You will find enclosed ...


Closing remarks

If we can be of any further assistance, please let us know
If I can help in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me
If you require more information ...
For further details ...
Thank you for taking this into consideration
Thank you for your help.
We hope you are happy with this arrangement.
We hope you can settle this matter to our satisfaction.


Referring to future business

We look forward to a successful working relationship in the future
We would be (very) pleased to do business with your company.
I would be happy to have an opportunity to work with your firm.


Referring to future contact

I look forward to seeing you next week
Looking forward to hearing from you
" " to receiving your comments
I look forward to meeting you on the 15th
I would appreciate a reply at your earliest convenience.



Ending

Sincerely, }
Yours sincerely, } (for all customers/clients)
Sincerely yours, }
Regards, (for those you already know and have a working relationship with)

from: Learn English Today