| Salutation
| - Dear Mr. Brown
- Dear Ms White
- Dear Sir
- 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
| - Would you like us to ...?
- We would be happy to ...
- We are quite willing to ...
- Our company would be pleased to ...
|
| Giving good news
| - We are pleased to announce that ...
- I am delighted in 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 to ...
- I regret any inconvenience caused (by) ...
- I would like to apologize for the (delay, inconvenience)...
- Once again, please accept my apologies for ...
|
| 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 (two/three) weeks to process your order.
- We can guarantee you delivery before ...(date)
- 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 ...
|
| Referring to payment
|
- Our terms of payment are as follows ...
- 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, ...
- Looking forward to receiving your comments,
- I look forward to meeting you on the (date).
- I would appreciate a reply at your earliest convenience.
- An early reply would be appreciated.
|
| Ending business letters
| | ◊ Sincerely, }
| | | ◊ Yours sincerely,}
| for all customers / clients
| | ◊ Sincerely yours,}
|
| | ◊ Yours faithfully,}
| in more formal letters
|
| ◊ Regards,
| for those you already know and/or with whom you have a working relationship
| |
