Formatting Business Documents

Letters and Memos

Letter Format

• Typing (Keying)– Single spacing with double-spacing between

paragraphs.– Errors should not be corrected after printing.

• Paragraphing– Breaks should be at logical points in message– EVEN appearance

• White space– Center letter VERTICALLY on page

Letter FormattingParts of a Letter

• Letterhead• Dateline• Inside Address• Attention Line• Salutation• Subject Line• Body• Complimentary Closing

• Signer’s identification (signature lines)• Reference initials• Enclosure reminder• CC Notation

Letter FormattingStyles

• Blocked Style (or Full-Block)– All letter parts begin at left margin. Most common.

Fastest arrangement to prepare.• Modified Block

– Date line, complimentary closing, signature lines begin at center of line (does not mean center horizontally)

– Can have indented paragraphs or non-indented paragraphs

• Simplified– All parts begin at left margin as in block style.– No salutation – Subject line is included in All Caps– No complimentary close– Signature block is All Caps

Letter FormattingPunctuation Style

• OPEN– No punctuation is used after the salutation and

complimentary close.• STANDARD or MIXED

– Punctuation included after salutation and complimentary close.

Be consistent – don’t put punctuation after “Dear Mr. Smith,” but forget to put punctuation after “Sincerely”

Letter FormattingPlacement on Page

• If a one-page letter, center “vertically” on page.– Word: Page Setup, Layout, Page, Vertical

Alignment—Center– A 2-inch top margin may also be appropriate.

• Leave at least 1-inch at the bottom of the page if 2-page letter.

• Spacing– Single-spaced body with double-spacing

between paragraphs.

REFER TO SECTION 13 OF THE GREGG REFERENCE MANUAL FOR MORE INFORMATION.

Memo Formatting

• Traditional Memo– TO– FROM– DATE– SUBJECT

• Simplified Memo– Headings are omitted– Format is more like a simplified letter

The format of a memo is more flexible.

Memo Formatting

• Use 1-inch top margin• Use Plain Paper (not letterhead)• Use 1-inch side margins• Make guide words (TO, FROM, DATE,

SUBJECT) All Caps.• Double-space guide words.• 2 to 3 spaces between SUBJECT and body

of memo.• Set a tab so entries following guide words

will all block at left.

Letters and MemosTemplates

• In Word (and other word processing programs), there are templates that make formatting these documents easier.

Folding and Inserting LettersIn Envelopes

Assignment for Next Week

• KEY letters and memos assignment (for a grade). Handout.

• READ Chapter and DO Checkpoints for Chapter 3: Developing Business Messages.

• Complete Applications:– 1: a through e only– 2: a through e only– 3: All– 5: a, b, c only– 7: a, b, c only– 15: a through e only– 18: use Editing Symbols in Appendix B