SB - BE Email & Business Writing PDF

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E-Mail &
BusinessWriting
®
Berlitz
B1
B2
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E-Mail &
Business Writing
Berlitz Languages, Inc.

Princeton, NJ
USA
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Author: Tay Lesley

Cover Photo: ©1994 PhotoDisc, Inc.
We would like to thank the many Berlitz instructors and staff who have
contributed to the creation of E-Mail & Business Writing.
Copyright© 2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording
or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing
from the Publisher.
Berlitz Trademark Reg. U.S. Patent Office and other countries
Marca Registrada
ISBN 978-1-59104-871-8
Printed in China
Seventh Printing – November 2009
For use exclusively in connection with Berlitz classroom instruction.
Berlitz Languages, Inc.

400 Alexander Park
Princeton, NJ 08540
USA
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Welcome to
E-Mail &
Business Writing!
Do you write a lot of e-mail in English? Do you ever find it
difficult to communicate what you want to say? If you answered yes, we have
good news for you. Our E-mail & Business Writing program is for people like you.
In today’s business environment, we spend more and more of our time in front
of our computers sending, answering, and sometimes grimacing at the flood of
e-mail that passes before our eyes. Just as when you write a letter, e-mail
writing has its own set of rules, its own code of conduct. You will discover them
and much more in this program.
Once you have completed E-mail & Business Writing, you will be able to —
• Greet your recipient appropriately
• End an e-mail appropriately
• Simplify your message
• Use key phrases in specific communication contexts
©2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.
• Distinguish the register and tone that is right for your audience
• Use correct punctuation
• Write e-mail messages with greater confidence
Throughout the chapters, we will challenge you to put into practice the points
you’ve discussed by writing your own e-mail messages and by correcting
problematic messages in our Room for Improvement feature. E-mail Speak
offers insights into the jargon and culture of electronic communication.
Writing is never easy — especially in a language that’s not your own. Don’t
forget that native speakers of English also have trouble finding the right word,
making themselves understood, and getting the tone right every day in e-mail
communications.
We hope that you will enjoy this program and that you will feel greater
confidence writing business communications in English. Happy writing!
The Berlitz Staff

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Contents
CHAPTER / TITLE TOPICS OBJECTIVES KEY TERMS

1 Understanding the Written vs. spoken Distinguishing between subject line
basics communication different types of body (of message)
E-mail subject lines communication effective
Page 1
Greetings/Closings Making the subject clear audience
Knowing your audience sender
Beginning and ending recipient
e-mails
signature
e-mail exchange
2 Getting the message Content of e-mail Starting an e-mail attachment

right messages Writing the main message main message
Page 5 Ways to simplify a Keeping the message Keep It Short and
message simple Simple (KISS)
Ending the message
3 Getting the tone Register and tone Using the right register / register, tone
right Active vs. passive tone angry, unhelpful
Page 9 voice Using the active tactful, constructive
Sensitivity voice suggest alternatives
Using the appropriate
pronoun
4 Getting the details Wording Using the right words wordy, concise

right Punctuation Using correct punctuation repetition
Page 13 Abbreviations Using abbreviations abbreviations
Spelling
5 Handling different Follow-up Following up request

situations Persistence Being persistent follow-up
Page 17 Change Communicating a change push
6 Review
Page 21
Practice Model Messages

Pages 27 - 34 Pages 37 - 39
Answer Key Language Reference
Pages 35 - 36 Page 41
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Chapter 1
Understanding the basics

Topics Objectives Key Terms
Written vs. spoken Distinguishing between different subject line sender
communication types of communication body (of message) recipient
E-mail subject lines Making the subject clear effective signature
Greetings/Closings Knowing your audience audience e-mail exchange
Beginning and ending e-mails
1 Ways to communicate a message

WRITTEN
e-mail: communicates information quickly; often brief and less formal than other forms
memo: communicates a message within a department or company
letter: communicates information; often longer and more formal than e-mail
cover (letter) for fax: accompanies the documents you are faxing (could resemble either a letter,
memo, or e-mail in style and form)
SPOKEN
phone: provides a personal touch when information must be communicated promptly
in person: preferable for first communications, introductions, and to transmit sensitive or
personal information.
e-mail memo letter phone in person
Requesting or setting up a
meeting
Discussing the status of a

project
Providing information about

company products or
services
Introducing a colleague,
your company, or yourself
Dismissing an employee
Summarizing a meeting
Announcing a promotion
E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 1 1

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2 The components of an e-mail message
From: pjohnson@bergmanfox.com Sender’s name

To: msikorski@bergmanfox.com Recipient’s name
cc: dbaxter@bergmanfox.com
Subject: cancellation / April 15 training
cc: used to send
a copy of the e-mail to an
additional recipient
Hi Melissa,
I just wanted to let you know that the training you registered to
attend Thursday, April 15, has been canceled. If you would like to
attend the session scheduled for May 27, please let me know and
I'll add your name to the list. Sorry for the inconvenience. Body of message
Best regards,
Phil
Phil Johnson Signature:

Training Manager Consider using an auto-signature for external e-mail. A good
Human Resources/Training signature includes your full name, title, department, company
Bergman & Fox Inc. name and address, telephone number, fax number,
and e-mail address.
E- M A I L S P E A K
How to say e-mail addresses and URLs

SYMBOL EXAMPLE YOU SAY
@ JoseR@helios.org at
. www.cambridge.edu dot
_ fse_smi@yahoo.com underscore
www www.times.com double u, double u, double u
/ www.bbc/worldservice forward slash
- www.e-business.net hyphen
3 The subject line

The subject line tells the reader what the e-mail is about. Subject lines should be clear and brief.
UNCLEAR, AMBIGUOUS, INEFFECTIVE CLEAR, EFFECTIVE
Subject: Budget Subject: Budget for computer upgrades / marketing

Subject: Cancellation Subject: Cancellation of April 3 meeting
2 E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 1

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Subject lines can convey important information or leave a reader guessing.
From: josephjenkins@kaiser.com From: mitch.nelson@bohrlandusa.com

To: dougfelton@kaiser.com To: tbennett@robertson.com
Subject: new specifications for the ICP Subject: change
Hi Doug, Hi Tom,
I'm attaching the revised specs for the ICP. Could
you take a look at them and send me your comments Mr. Watson has pushed up the deadline for the completion
before the end of the week? of the prototype. August 15 is the new date. Do you think
Thanks. we can make it?
Best, Best regards,

Mitch
Joe
From: ana.hansen@ITC.net From: khobbes@anderselectronics.com

To: james.lewis@ITC.net To: Ipeterson@yahoo.com
Subject: Subject:
Dear Mr. Peterson,

Jim, Thank you for your application for the position of
Your request to attend the Communication and Technology Systems Engineer.
Conference has been approved. Unfortunately, your qualifications do not match our
Please contact Sue Anderson at Travel Link to make your needs at the moment; however, we will keep your
resume on file. In the event that a position opens up
travel arrangements. that matches your qualifications, we will be sure to
Regards, contact you.
Ana Sincerely,
Kevin Hobbes
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

Which greeting and closing work best?
Hi Dennis, / Dear Mr. Cantrell: Dear Ms. Patterson: / Anne, Dear Sir, / Mr. Ramos,
This is to confirm that Lisa Owens I’m dying to hear about your trip. My father is celebrating his 80th
worked as a receptionist at the San When can we get together? I’m free birthday a week from Friday, and
Diego office of Palomar Productions tonight and tomorrow night. Does I’d like to be there for the occasion.
from July 2001 to October 2003. If either one work for you? Is it OK if I take Thursday and
you have further questions about Friday as vacation days next week?
I’m flying to L.A. for a trade show
her employment, please let me I’ll make sure that everything goes
on Thursday. Hope we can get
know. smoothly in the office during my
together before then.
absence.
Talk to you soon. / Sincerely yours,
Sincerely, / Best,
Thank you. / Sincerely,
Margaret Logan Monica
Jay
Director, Human Resources

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4 How to address your audience

Someone you don’t know A client
Dear Sir or Madam: Dear Mr. Monroe:
I am interested in obtaining information about It was a pleasure to meet you last week. As promised
your leadership workshop scheduled for next I am sending you additional information about our
month. Thank you for your help with this matter. new line of products. Please don’t hesitate to
Sincerely, contact me if you have any questions.
Noriko Miasaki Sincerely,
Sarah Quinn
Your direct manager A colleague with whom you are friendly

Robert, Hi Lisa,
I’d like to remind you that I’ll be on vacation How have you been? Haven’t seen you all week.
next month. I leave on March 6 and will be back I hope your project is going well. Let’s get together
in the office on March 12. for lunch next week.
Thanks. Talk to you soon.
Daniela Tom
CULTURE NOTE: In some countries, particularly in the US, it’s quite common
to call managers and supervisors by their first name.
5 Greetings 6 Closings
Dear Sir or Madam: Sincerely yours,
Dear Mr. Monroe: Sincerely,

Ms. Thompson: Best regards, Yours faithfully,
Dear Chris, Regards,
Yours sincerely,
Dave, All the best,
Cheers,
Hello Jonathan, Best,
Hi Carla, Talk to you soon.
In an ongoing, informal e-mail exchange, it is common to omit names, greetings,
and closings after the first exchange.
MESSAGE 1
Hi Carla, could you send me the Redburn report, please? Thanks. Denise
MESSAGE 2
Hi Denise, I need to add a few things to it. Can I send it to you by 3:00 pm? Carla
MESSAGE 3
Sure. No problem. Thanks.

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Chapter 2
Getting the message right

Content of e-mail Starting an e-mail Keeping the attachment
messages message simple
Writing the main main message
Ways to simplify a message Ending the message
Keep It Short and
message Simple (KISS)
1 The opening paragraph

There are several options for your opening paragraph:
• thank your reader for a visit, a phone call, an inquiry, etc.
• refer to an exchange of information or other shared communication
• mention the name of someone your recipient knows (a colleague, a client, a friend, etc.)
• get right to the point of why you are writing (an inquiry, information you want to communicate, etc.)
A recent meeting
It was a pleasure meeting / seeing / talking with you ...
I enjoyed meeting you at ...
Thank you for taking time out of your day.
expressing interest in …
sending me your brochure
A recent communication
Thank you for your call / e-mail / fax.
I received your voice-mail message / e-mail / fax.
When I attended the London fair, I visited your stand.
We met at the LIS meeting in Chicago last month.
Third-party referral
My colleague, Ross Taylor, speaks very highly of you.
James Kelly from our Dublin office suggested I talk to
you regarding ...
The main point

I’m writing to ask ...
I’m pleased to announce ...
I regret to inform you ...

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Your reasons for writing

TO MAKE A REQUEST TO ANNOUNCE A CHANGE OF PLANS
Alice, Marina,
Could you please let me know when we will be Mr. Ikeda’s visit to our office has been
interviewing candidates for the marketing postponed until next month. I’ll send the new
position? date later this week.
TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASK THE STATUS OF SOMETHING

Dear Ms. Nelson: Ken,
Attached is our current price list of office I’d like an update on the Continuous
equipment and furnishings. Improvement Project (CIP).
TO VOICE A COMPLAINT TO CONFIRM SOMETHING

Dear Mr. Hall, John, Larry, and Mike,
We’re not at all happy with the service we’ve I’d like to confirm the time of next Friday’s
been receiving from your company. conference call.
2 The main message

1. The Newport project will not begin until February. We are still missing several critical pieces of
information, without which we cannot move forward. I am attaching our newest schedule. Please review
it and let us know if you foresee any conflicts with your other projects.
2. Just wanted to make sure that we were still meeting on Thursday at 3:00. Let me know if you need to
reschedule.
3. I plan to visit Ireland in April, and I would very much like to receive some brochures about what to see
and do. I would also like to have some information about rental car agencies in the Dublin area.
4. I’m very disappointed in the way your company is performing on our project. You assured us that we

would receive your complete attention, but the work you’ve submitted so far suggests otherwise. I’d
like to hear from you today to find out what you plan to do to fix the work you’ve submitted to date
and, going forward, what you will do to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
5. Could you send me an update on the Martinson negotiations? I promised Mr. Hoffmann that we would
go to contract before the end of the month.
6. Please find enclosed our current catalogue and an updated price list. We look forward to continuing to
serve you in the new year.
LANGUAGE OF REQUESTS LANGUAGE OF ANNOUNCEMENTS

We’re interested in … I’m delighted to announce …
I would be grateful if you could … Branford & Co. is proud to announce …
We would appreciate it if you could … It gives me great pleasure to inform you …
LANGUAGE OF CONFIRMATIONS LANGUAGE OF COMPLAINTS

This is to confirm that … I’m very disappointed that …
Please let me know if you have … We’re very dissatisfied with the way …
Just checking in to see if you received … I am very upset about your handling of …

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3 The KISS rule = Keep it short and simple

A. Short paragraphs
FROM: J.F. Richardson
ONE LONG PARAGRAPH

TO: All employees
I am pleased to announce that John Chung has joined us as the new director of information
technology. John worked as computer specialist and senior computer analyst at the Singapore
branch of Granger Enterprises for over 6 years. During his time at Granger, he helped implement
a major upgrade in the company’s computer systems. John studied at MIT and at Columbia
University, where he received a master’s degree in computer science. Please join me in
welcoming John to Kent Labs.
FROM: J.F. Richardson
SEVERAL SHORTER
TO: All employees PARAGRAPHS
I am pleased to announce that John Chung has joined us as the new director of information
technology.
John worked as computer specialist and senior computer analyst at the Singapore branch of
Granger Enterprises for over 6 years. During his time at Granger, he helped implement a major
upgrade in the company’s computer systems.
John studied at MIT and at Columbia University, where he received a master’s degree in
computer science.
Please join me in welcoming John to Kent Labs.

Scott,
I hope your work on the Downtown Renewal project is going well. Things here are crazy, as usual. Are
we going to be able to meet at the Pan-Pacific conference in August? I'll be there from Tuesday the 3rd
through Friday the 6th. It would be great if we could have lunch one of those days. Let me know. On a
completely different topic, I'm going to Hawaii on vacation next month. Any recommendations for
restaurants in Honolulu?
Best,
Anthony

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B. Short sentences
Are these paragraphs identical? Look closely …
After seven great years at Datatek, I have decided to move on and, therefore, have accepted an
executive position at P & R Systems, a new data management company, which is offering me the
opportunity to advance my career and manage development of a line of exciting new products.
It’s been a great seven years at Datatek, but it’s time to move on. I’ve accepted an executive position
with P & R Systems, a new data management company. The new job will give me the opportunity to
advance my career. I’ll also be managing the development of a line of exciting new products.

We regret that as a result of an increase in the cost of construction materials — especially steel — and in
employee compensation we have been forced to raise our prices by ten percent starting July 1; however,
we will honor prices on all current contracts even if work is not completed until after that date.
4 The closing paragraph
Thanking someone
Thank you again for your attention to this matter.
Thanks again for looking into this for me.
Thank you in advance for …

Requesting action
Please notify me if anything changes.
Please confirm our meeting date.
I would greatly appreciate your feedback on this proposal.
Offering to provide assistance

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
If you have further questions, please don’t hesitate to call.
If you need more information, I’m available at 617-555-0317.
Apologizing
Again, we’re very sorry for the inconvenience.
Once again, we regret this delay / not being able to provide ...
Looking ahead
I look forward to our meeting next week.
I hope that you will be able to attend the conference.
We look forward to serving you in the future.

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Chapter 3
Getting the tone right

Register and tone Using the right Using the register, tone
Active vs. passive register / tone appropriate
angry, unhelpful
voice pronoun
Using the active tactful, constructive
Sensitivity voice
suggest alternatives
1 Find the right register

It is important to consider register when we write.
We don’t talk to our managers or colleagues the
TIP!
same way we talk to our friends. Our choice of
register: the level of formality used in writing
words tends to be more or less formal depending
and speaking
on who we are speaking or writing to and what
tone: the manner or style of expression; it com-
the subject is. When using more formal language
municates the attitude or mood of the writer
we communicate respect for the age, stature, or
position of our audience.
How formal should it be?

TOO DIRECT, INFORMAL FRIENDLY BUT APPROPRIATE FOR BUSINESS
How neat! You’re going to be in Tokyo during I’m looking forward to seeing you in Tokyo next
my visit. It’s been way too long. week. It’s been a long time since our last meeting.
FORMAL, RESERVED INFORMAL, FRIENDLIER

MTA, Inc. takes pride in offering its clientele the We’re proud of our excellent products and
best products and the highest level of customer tradition of superior customer service at MTA.
service.
I’d be pleased if you would be able to meet with Could we meet on Thursday to go over the bid
me on Thursday to review our bid on the mall on the mall project?
project.
Your input regarding our organization’s We’d like to know what you think about our
performance on earlier contracts would be performance on the last project.
much appreciated.
Use contractions to make your message more informal. Compare:
We would appreciate your help. / We'd appreciate your help.

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Dear Ms. Roth, Dear Manager,
We are in receipt of your letter dated January 19. I just heard about this really cool course called
Please be advised that we are no longer in a position “Reaching the Hidden Customer” being offered at the
to extend insurance privileges to persons in your local university next semester. Does that sound great
particular risk category. or what? What do you say I sign up for it?
John!! To all Staff:

I can’t believe you didn’t come to the group meeting Starting January 1 everyone gets one floating holiday
yesterday. Why don’t you pay more attention to your each year. Just ask if you have questions about this.
memos? Everyone was there except you. Bob wasn’t
too happy that you missed it.
2 Find the right tone

Use positive rather than negative language
NEGATIVE POSITIVE
You claim that you never received our invoice. It appears that you didn’t receive our invoice.
You failed to inform us about your price We didn’t receive your notice about the price
increases. increases.
You forgot the attachment. Your e-mail arrived without the attachment.
Your lack of communication skills is com- We’ll be offering a class on communication skills.
Would you like to attend?

pletely obvious.
You never finish your work on time. What’s Are you having trouble with the schedule?
the matter with you?
Your presentation was bad. You must have I got the impression that you may not have had
been so embarrassed. enough time to prepare your presentation.
This report is simply unacceptable. I’m used to seeing better work from you. What
do you think happened?
Writing in ALL CAPS or using too many exclamation marks to emphasize a point is the written
equivalent of shouting.
Writing in red often expresses anger.
If you write an e-mail when you are angry, DON’T SEND IT. Put it aside, read it later, and then
decide if you still want to send it.

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Why didn’t you turn in your report on Wednesday as you promised?
A monthly newsletter would be a bad idea.
Our customers don’t like fancy clothes at ridiculous prices. They just want cheap, everyday clothing.
I have not received payment for the work that I did for you. I know you're starting the main part of the
project in January, but I don't feel I have to wait for my money until then. I did the work when you needed
it. I did it in a timely fashion. And I expect to be paid that way. So please get a check in the mail to me.
It's not that much money. I'm sure the company can afford it. Thank you very much.
Control your emotions

ANGRY, UNHELPFUL TACTFUL, CONSTRUCTIVE
I really don’t understand why we keep using Our group has worked with several consultants
Global Consulting. We’ve brought them in from Global Consulting, but we haven’t been
several times, and they haven’t helped us at satisfied with their work. I suggest that we check
all. If anything, they’ve made things worse. with the Chicago office for their recommendations.
This new marketing strategy doesn’t make any Have you had a chance to look at the new
sense. Whose idea was this, anyway? I really marketing strategy yet? I’m surprised at the new
don’t feel like trying to convince the team that direction. I’d really like to know what you think
this is the way to go when I don’t believe in it. about it before I share it with the team.
3 Use the active voice

In writing, it is preferable to use the active voice. The active voice is clearer and more direct than the
passive voice.
PASSIVE VOICE ACTIVE VOICE
The status of your order will be checked. I will check the status of your order.
Your business is appreciated. We appreciate your business.
The company’s finances were discussed by the The president discussed the company’s finances
president at the annual shareholder’s meeting. at the annual shareholder’s meeting.
Use the passive voice when:

• you don’t want to blame someone
Your payment has not been received. (rather than: You have not sent in your payment.)
The contracts were not signed until it was too late. (rather than: The CEO did not sign the
contracts until it was too late.)
• the person doing the action is not known or it’s not important to know who does the action
The Employee of the Year will be given a $500 bonus.
The package was sent out last night for delivery this morning.

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1. The new employee was introduced to the department by our manager.
2. The e-mail system is being upgraded by the IT department.
3. A copy of our proposal will be sent before the next meeting with the client.
4. Your report has been reviewed and we would like to discuss it with you.
5. My letter of resignation was given to HR last Monday.
4 Be sensitive to your audience: using gender-specific pronouns

GENDER-BIASED NEUTRAL
An employee is responsible for his own Employees are responsible for providing their
transportation to the work site. own transportation to the work site.
If you call one of our computer specialists, she Call one of our computer specialists for help
can help you with your data entry problem. with your data entry problem.
Each and every franchise owner will be working All the franchise owners will be working for
for himself. themselves.
5 Accentuate the positive

When giving both good and bad news, give the bad news first.
GOOD NEWS FIRST BAD NEWS FIRST
Our new shipper offers faster, more dependable Although our new shipper charges slightly higher
service. Unfortunately, it’s also more expensive. prices, they offer faster, more dependable service.
Our plan to allow direct deposit of employee Our plan to allow direct deposit of employee

paychecks into personal checking accounts will be paychecks into personal checking accounts has
fully operational February 1. There were problems been delayed by one month. However, the
that prevented us from getting the program program will be fully operational beginning
started this month as we had hoped. February 1.
Useful words for connecting ideas: downplaying bad news, emphasizing good news
I won’t be able to complete the report by end of day; however, I will be staying late to finish it
and will have it for you first thing in the morning.
We cannot agree to the partnership under these terms, but we are more than willing to meet
with you again to discuss areas of possible compromise.
Although we cannot offer you a promotion at this time, I assure you that you are a strong
candidate and will be considered for advancement before the end of the year.
Even though the entire team is working overtime, it will not be possible to deliver the final
audit on time.

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Chapter 4
Getting the details right

Wording Using the right words wordy, concise
Punctuation Using correct punctuation repetition
Abbreviations Using abbreviations abbreviations
Spelling
1 Choose the right wording

Verbs and noun phrases: Verbs communicate action and are more direct than noun phrases.
Replacing noun phrases with verbs cuts down on wordiness and makes a message friendlier.
WORDY NOUN PHRASE CONCISE VERB
We have come to an agreement on the price. We agree on the price. Can we meet tomorrow?
Can we have a meeting tomorrow?

Dear Customer,
Have you given consideration to our recent cash-back offer on our quality new and used cars and trucks? We have
knowledge that you have a preference for the very best in quality and service, which is why you have made
purchases of vehicles at our dealership before. If you take action now, you will realize savings of hundreds of dollars.
Repetition weakens the message: Avoid repetition by using synonyms and pronouns, condensing
sentences, and omitting unnecessary words.
REPETITIVE CONCISE
Most companies communicate with each other using
Most companies communicate with each other
letters and faxes. These letters and faxes are
using short, concise letters and faxes.
usually quite short and concise.
My first job, that is, my first full-time job, was a
somewhat unusual job. It was unusual both as a first My first full-time job was somewhat unusual for a
job and as a job for a teenager. My job was feeding teenager. I fed the sharks at Sea World.
the sharks at Sea World.
Self-confidence is one essential quality of good Self-confidence and assertiveness, which come
salespeople. Assertiveness is another quality. These from within, are essential qualities of good
qualities come from within salespeople themselves. salespeople.

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Dear Ms. Frazier:
Thank you for your interesting presentation this morning on the marketing campaigns of our
European competitors. I was especially interested in your discussion of Duclerc’s plans to target
our customers in France. I spoke with the other attendees after your presentation and they also
found your presentation of great interest.
Thank you again.
Charles M. Warren,
V.P. Marketing
2 Use the right punctuation

Use commas to:
• separate items in a list
We sell books, audiotapes, and CDs.
• separate an introductory word, phrase, or clause from the rest of the sentence
Unfortunately, we have been forced to raise our prices 10%.
For more information, contact a customer service representative.
Although we have no openings at this time, we appreciate your interest in our company.
• set off added information in the middle of a sentence
You can, as a result, count on our full cooperation.
The Italian leather couch is, I think, a real bargain.
Victor Cuevas, the company director, was unavailable for comment.
• separate two main clauses joined by and, but, or, so, etc.

I know you’re very busy right now, but I have a small favor to ask.
It was a pleasure speaking with you yesterday, and I enjoyed learning more about your organization.

Dear Staff
As you may already know I’m leaving Thursday to visit Kazuo Yamada our new VP of Sales in Osaka.
I won’t be back for two weeks so I’m scheduling a special meeting tomorrow at 2:30. At the
meeting Ken Barbara and Ron will update you on the production problems we’re having in Seattle.
If you can’t attend the meeting please let me know right away.
As soon as the project is completed I will forward all my files documents and photographs to Ed
Richman in New York. There was quite a lot of documentation for this project as you know so it
may take me a few days to get it all together. If you need anything from me in the meantime
please don't hesitate to get in touch with me.

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Use exclamation points to express strong feelings

TIP!
NICE, BUT UNENTHUSIASTIC ENTHUSIASTIC Use no more than one !
We enjoyed the presentation. That was an excellent presentation! in a message. Otherwise it
will look like this:
You did a good job. Thanks. You did a great job. Thanks! How wonderful! Now we can
convert unused vacation
days into extra pay!
lowercase letters Some people choose to write only in lowercase letters. This seems to have
developed from the widespread use of lowercase letters in e-mail and Internet addresses. This
style suggests an informal tone.
Why do we need punctuation?
dear mr sutherland
confirming our telephone conversation of this morning i would like to investigate properties
suitable for a manufacturing facility in south carolina we prefer to buy or lease but would also
consider purchasing land suitable for new construction if we found the right opportunity
as i mentioned we require at least 100000 sq ft of manufacturing space rail access and parking
for about 500 cars ideally the site should be within 5 to 10 miles of a major highway
could you please send me a list of sites meeting these specifications with descriptions of each
please note that for the time being all inquiries should remain confidential
sincerely
jeff martinelli
vice president of planning
3 Use abbreviations sparingly

When writing, be careful not to use too many abbreviations. They are distracting to the reader.
Use abbreviations when:
THE ABBREVIATION IS VERY COMMON YOU’RE SURE YOUR READER WILL UNDERSTAND
– Could you send me the monthly sales figures asap? – How do you like your new job at BNS?
– He works for the UN. – Could you send me a PDF of the file?
– We are planning to hire a new CPA. – Do you have any plans tomorrow p.m.?

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Brevity is at the heart of e-mail communications. Because of this, many shortcuts have been
developed by creative e-mailers, chief among them: abbreviations. You may encounter some
of the following abbrevations in your English-language e-mails. (See page 41 for definitions.)
TIA for your help. BTW, don’t forget the meeting tomorrow.
Got to go now. CUL8R. Thx for the info. You’re a lifesaver.
JTLYK that I won’t be in tomorrow. I’m attaching the latest sales figures. HTH.
That was hilarious! LOL! IMHO if Eric can’t do it, then nobody can.
Explain abbreviations when:

THE FULL FORM IS MORE COMMON (abbreviation follows in parentheses)
We think that computer-aided engineering (CAE) is the wave of the future.
YOU THINK THE READER MAY NOT UNDERSTAND IT (full form follows in parentheses)
The data wasn’t reliable in the first place. It’s the same old story: GIGO (garbage in, garbage out).
4 Check spelling
Correct spelling is extremely important in business writing. Spelling mistakes (including typos) are
distracting to the reader and may leave him or her with a negative impression of the writer. You should
also choose whether you’re going to use British or American spelling, and then be consistent — don’t
use American spelling for some words and British spelling for others.
TIP!

Beware! Spell check will signal spelling errors, but it
can’t tell the difference between words that sound gray grey
the same, like it’s and its or mistyped words that are color colour
correctly spelled but not the word you wanted (such center centre
as red / read, rob / job). That’s why it’s very check cheque
important that you re-read everything BEFORE you license licence
send it.
analyze analyse
favorite favourite
aluminum aluminium

Silvia,
Are you going to Milan next month? I’d love to go, I’ve never bean their. But it look like its not the
best time for me right now. To many deadlines coming up. I have to stay here. Whose going anyway?
Maggie

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Chapter 5
Handling different situations

Follow-up Following up request
Persistence Being persistent follow-up
Change Communicating a change push
1 Following up
In business communications, people expect immediate or nearly immediate follow-up. When you can’t
give a definite answer right away, send an e-mail explaining this.
Initial request
[May 19]
Dear Mr. Schwartz,
It was a pleasure meeting you at the Golf Expo in Denver last week.
As you may recall, I mentioned that I was working on an article for Amateur Golfers magazine about
seniors who play golf as a physical and social activity. I’d love to hear your perspective as president
of the Southern California Senior Golfers’ Association.
Would it be possible for me to interview you sometime within the next two weeks? The interview
shouldn’t take more than an hour.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Tom Anderson
Follow-up 1
[May 20]
Dear Tom,
Nice to hear from you. It would be my pleasure to contribute to your article. Unfortunately, I don’t know if
we’ll be able to find a time to meet in the next couple of weeks: I will be in Scotland next week (for some
great golfing!) and the week after I may be tied up with a business commitment. There is a possibility,
however, that my schedule will change. I’ll let you know for sure by Friday.
Best regards,
Dan Schwartz

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Follow-up 2
[May 27]
Dear Tom,
It looks like we’ll be able to do the interview the week of June 8th after I get back from Scotland. My business
trip has been postponed. Let me know which day is best for you: Thursday the 11th or Friday the 12th.
Best regards,
Dan
WHEN YOU CAN’T DO SOMETHING WHEN YOU CAN DO SOMETHING

– I’m sorry, but I won’t be able to ... – It would be my pleasure to assist you with ...
– I would love to help you, but ... – We’d be delighted to help.
– We are unable right now to ... – I’d be glad to ...
– Because of internal delays, we have – We can assure you that we will do
had to postpone ... everything we can to ...
2 Being persistent
What do you do when someone doesn’t follow up? Sometimes a little push is necessary to get a response.
Push 1
Dear Mr. Preston:
First of all, I wanted to thank you again for giving me the opportunity to show you through our office
space at 1386 Dexter Street last Monday.
You mentioned at the time that the location seemed ideal for your company and that you would
have a decision for us within three days. Since then, however, we have not heard from you, and I’m
afraid we cannot hold the space much longer.

If you are no longer interested in renting the space, could you please let me know as soon as
possible so that we can pursue discussions with other prospects?
Sincerely yours,
Jan Tyler
Reply
Dear Ms. Tyler,
I’m sorry that I did not get back to you on Friday as I had promised. We’re still very interested in the location.
Unfortunately, we’re still in the process of reviewing other locations, and due to an office emergency we were
unable to visit them last week as originally planned.
Would it be acceptable to you if we gave you an answer by the end of the month? In that case, we would need
to extend our move-in date to July 1.
Sincerely,
Phil Preston

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Push 2 (the ultimatum)

Dear Mr. Preston:
Thank you for your response. Unfortunately, when we didn’t hear back from you immediately, we
began to show the space to other interested parties. One of them has expressed a great deal of
interest and has agreed to make a decision by the 25th.
I’m sure you understand that our priority is to lease the space as quickly as possible. If you would
like us to reserve it for your company, we would need a deposit before the 25th.
If you have any questions or would like to visit the space again, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely yours,
Jan Tyler
THE FINAL PUSH YOU MISSED THE BOAT
– Could we hear back from you by ... – We are sorry that ... TIP!
– We need your response before ... – Unfortunately, we had to ...
miss the boat =
– We must insist that ... – When we did not hear back
from you, we ... miss an opportunity
3 Communicating a change in direction

At times, both parties are holding up their ends of the communication quite well, but one of them needs
to re-set expectations or initiate a change of direction. Best-case scenario: The other party assimilates
the change smoothly. Worst-case scenario: The other party doesn’t accept the change.
Initial follow-up
Dear Mr. Jordan,
It was a pleasure speaking with you yesterday. As I mentioned, we are interested in starting up a
telemarketing unit at our company and would like you to submit a bid for the training of the
telemarketers.
In developing your proposal, please follow the guidelines in the attached Request For Proposal (RFP).
As outlined in the RFP, we will be hiring 8–10 people to work in the unit and expect the training
program to last 2–3 weeks, depending on the content. If any of the terms in the RFP are unclear to
you, please contact me directly and I will clarify them for you.
We look forward to receiving your proposal.
Sincerely,
Kelly Flanagan
Director of Human Resources, ENGEN, Inc.
Response 1
Dear Ms. Flanagan,
Thank you for your e-mail and for the attached RFP. We are very excited about the opportunity to develop a
telemarketing training program to meet ENGEN’s needs. We will begin work on the proposal immediately and
submit it by the date indicated in the guidelines.
Sincerely,
Bert Jordan
Top Performance Training, Inc.

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Change of direction
Dear Mr. Jordan,
Thank you for sending your proposal earlier this month. The program you set out for us is precisely
what we were looking for.
In the meantime, however, we have learned that our training budget will be cut by 30%. As a result,
we’ve decided that the telemarketing training program should not exceed 5 days. Would it be possible
to revise the program you outlined to fit within this new time frame?
Sincerely,
Kelly Flanagan
THE CHANGE IN DIRECTION THE REACTION

– Something unexpected has come up. – We’d be happy to …
– We need to make a change … – Of course we can take into account your need to …
– Our circumstances have changed. – We’re sorry, but we're not able to …
– We need you to revise … – Unfortunately, our circumstances don't permit us to …
4 Clarifying one’s position

And then there are times when an e-mail is misunderstood or misinterpreted. Fortunately, with the speed
of electronic communication, a clarification can be sent in seconds.
FYI
Hi Don,
I received the files you sent. Thanks. We’ve been asked to make some changes to the project, so I
don’t think I’ll be able to use the documentation you’ve prepared. I realize you’ve spent a great deal of
time on this. I’m sorry about this latest turn of events.
Elena
Distressed reply
Hi Elena,

I feel terrible. Did I misunderstand what you needed? Did I not put together the documentation in the way you
expected or wanted? I’d be happy to do whatever you need in order to make the material better. Perhaps we
could discuss it over the phone. Let me know what you think is best.
Don
Clarification
Don,
I assure you that there’s absolutely NO problem with the work you did. You executed your piece of the
project perfectly. We received a request from management just a few days ago to rework things, but
by the time I received it, your work on the project was already done.
We’re very happy with your work, Don, and fully expect to approach you for projects like this in the
future. Thanks for all your help.
Elena
REACTION TO THE UNEXPECTED THE CLARIFICATION

– Did I misunderstand what you were asking? – Possibly. Let me explain it another way.
– I didn't realize … – It's not your fault at all. What I meant was …
– Weren't you going to …? – Actually, I thought you were going to …

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Chapter 6
Review
1 Find and correct the errors in punctuation, capitalization, and spelling in the following
messages.
hi everyone
thank you so much for the cards letters and flowers that you sent to the hospital
while I was recovering from my back surgery your a great group of people to
work with you’re good wishes meant a lot to me btw who sent those chocolates
there delicious
thnx again
Brian
David
as you know its my responsibility to prepare the quarterly reports for our
division however i cant complete the reports until i get all the monthly
revenue and expense records from the sales managers youre records are
now too weeks overdue could you send them asap
Roger
to all employees
as a reminder hampton industries officially becomes a non-smoking

establishment as of november 2 from then on smoking will no longer be
permitted anywhere inside the building this includes work areas assigned to
individual use such as offices and cubicles as well as public areas such as the
lunchroom the mailroom hallways and restrooms however smoking will
continue to be permitted outside in the picnic area.

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2 Fill in the blanks in the correspondence below. Several answers are possible.
A. Following up: arranging a face-to-face meeting
UNLIMITED
_________________ Peterson:
CONSULTANTS
It was a pleasure ___________________________.
As I mentioned at the conference, we offer a variety of consulting

services for small businesses. When you described your problems with
_______________________________, I immediately thought of a couple of
ways in which we could help you.
I will be in your area next week and would love to _____________________.

Would it be possible to ________________________?
I look forward to ______________________________.
Sincerely,
Craig Mizuno
Consultants Unlimited
B. Following up: apologizing for an error

UNLIMITED
CONSULTANTS
Subject: order #6708354

Dear Ms. Molinaro:
In reviewing your account, we realized that ______________________________.

_______________ the error and _________________ any inconvenience this may
have caused you.
_________________ your account information to my colleague Alan Drake who

will be ____________________ this error and __________________ with you.
If _____________________________________, please don’t hesitate to _________
______________________.
Again, we ________________ and ________________ your understanding.
____________________,
John Clark
Customer Service Manager

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3 Read the situation and choose the best response.

Situation: Your name is Ken Sabio, and you work at IGB, a manufacturing company. Martin Gibson is a
former colleague of yours. Martin left the company a couple of months ago and has asked you for a
letter of recommendation.
Response 1
Hey buddy,
Great to hear from you. Made me think of the good old days!
I’d be happy to give you a recommendation if we had worked on any projects together, but we
never did. As it is, I don’t see how I can give you one. And even if I could, it wouldn’t mean very
much, would it?
Why don’t you ask Rob for one? I’m sure he wouldn’t have a problem with that.
TTYL
Ken
Response 2
Dear Martin,
I was pleased and flattered to receive your e-mail requesting a letter of recommendation.
I am terribly, terribly sorry that I cannot comply with your request. You see, though you and I did
socialize quite frequently here at IGB, we never actually worked on any projects together. Given
this, I was neither able to gain insight nor draw conclusions as to the type and quality of the work
you performed while employed here.
The most suitable course for you to take would probably be to make application to your former
supervisor.
With kind regards and best wishes,
Ken
Response 3
Martin,
Thanks for your e-mail. It was good to hear from you.
I wish I could write you a letter of recommendation, but I feel that I am not the appropriate person
to ask. As you know, we socialized a lot while you were here, but we never actually worked on any
projects together. Therefore, I don’t feel competent to express an opinion about your work. I hope
you understand my position.
Don’t you think that Rob, as your former supervisor, would be the best person to ask for a
recommendation? He thought very highly of you.
Good luck in your job search.
Best,
Ken

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4 Rewrite these messages to improve register and tone.
From: mcooper@plumbing.com From: glenn.morris@rockwell.com

To: t.holt@bayproperties.com To: All employees
Subject: Request on the matter of our Subject: dress code

proposal
Dear Mr. Holt, Last Friday was casual day again and, I have to say,
I couldn’t believe some of the outfits I saw around
We are in receipt of your letter inviting us to submit the office. Some of you looked like you were
a bid for replacement of the plumbing in your apart- dressed for an afternoon at the beach — shorts,
ment building at 6311 Lincoln Boulevard in Forest T-shirts, jeans! These things just don’t cut it — if
Hills. We would be greatly honored to be given the you know what I mean.
opportunity to avail you of our services.
So for goodness’ sake, please take a look at your-
Regrettably, the individual at our premises who selves in the mirror before you come to work on
oversees the drafting of all our proposal submissions Fridays and then decide if what you’re wearing is
has taken ill and has not been present to perform something you should be wearing at home on the
this function. We beg of you an extension of the weekend or at the beach.
deadline, so that we may prepare all necessary doc-
umentation to comply with your bid requirements. This is the last time I want to talk about this. You
understand?
Thank you for giving your active consideration to
this request. We look forward to reception of your G. Morris
response.
Respectfully,
Mark Cooper
5 Write the e-mail exchanges described below.
Background: Tim Robinson has been working at Software Innovations, a software development company,

for three years. The company has been downsizing and Tim has been worried he would lose his job, so
he applied for a similar job at Microsystems, Inc., and he got it. Now Tim is going to write an e-mail to his
colleagues at SI to let them know that he is leaving.
Message 1 from Tim to all employees: departure from Software Innovations

Main points to include:
• reasons for leaving • thank you

• new place • will miss everyone
Message 2 from Adam Rubio, one of Tim's colleagues: offer your support
• express regret or congratulations • offer support
Message 3 from Tim to Adam: keep in touch
• thank • stay in touch

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Background: Jerome Daly is CEO of Fleetways, a low-fare airline company that has restructured recently
and has become very successful. Because of this success, Jerome is often asked to speak about his
business experiences. He likes public speaking but has many commitments. Stephanie Gibbs, who is
organizing a management seminar entitled “Restructuring: How to take away the pain and come out
ahead,” has asked Jerome to participate in a panel discussion on December 3. The seminar will take
place on December 3 – 4.
Message 1 from Stephanie to Jerome: ask to participate

Main points to include:
• Jerome’s expertise • subject of seminar

• worked together in the past • length of speech
Message 2 from Jerome to Stephanie: would like to, but can’t
• other speaking engagements • busy running an airline
Message 3 from Stephanie to Jerome: regrets

• other events in the future
Message 4 from Jerome to Stephanie: change of plans

• reasons
6 Read the situations and write an e-mail.

Situation 1
Your boss has given you a new project that must be completed in two weeks. The project consists of
developing a plan for establishing a franchising operation overseas. In two weeks you are planning to
take a much-needed vacation. You also have an important project that you need to complete before
then. You feel you don’t have time to complete the project and take on a new one. However, it would
probably be possible for you to complete the new project if the rest of your work could wait until you
came back from vacation.
Situation 2
You are Kate Taylor’s manager. Kate has asked your permission to take a business course at a nearby
university. The course will be held twice a week, and Kate will need to miss two afternoons of work a
week. You are uncertain whether you should give Kate approval to take the course. She has been
struggling lately to get her work done, in part because she has so many professional and personal
commitments. At the same time you realize that the course might help her with her career, and you
don’t want to discourage her.

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Practice
Chapter 1
1 Match the messages with the appropriate subject.
1. ___ announcing a promotion
2. ___ a favor
3. ___ department’s workload
4. ___ meeting request
5. ___ meeting summary
A. A lot of things have changed since we last talked. I thought it would be good to meet and to catch
up with everyone involved on the BP project. Could we meet on Thursday at 10:00 in conference
room #3? Please let me know by the end of the day if that’s convenient for you. Thank you all.
B. As you know, we have a lot of new projects starting next month. I’m attaching a revised schedule.
As you will see, several projects have overlapping deadlines. This shouldn’t be a problem, consider-
ing the help we are going to get from our new hires. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate
to contact me.
C. Just wanted to give you an idea of what we talked about at the meeting with Cifer Co. yesterday:
• budget: was approved by both parties
• deadline: Cifer wants to push it up to Aug. 1; we’re waiting to hear from Bob on that
• background info: Cifer will send us the documentation we requested next week
D. It is my pleasure to announce the appointment of Ralph Vassar to the position of Project Manager
for the Asia Expansion Project. Mr. Vassar will be responsible for our expansion in Asia, with partic-
ular focus on Korea, China, and Taiwan.
E. I’ve been having problems with my computer lately, and it looks like it won’t be fixed today. Since
you’re going to be out this afternoon, could I use your computer to finish my report? Let me know
if it’s OK with you and what time your machine would be available. Thanks.
2 Choose the best subject for each e-mail message.
1. I received your message regarding the overdue payment for your car service. I will check with
accounting and get back to you by the end of the day.
a. accounting b. overdue payment c. cars
2. Thank you for your interest in our company. Wellstone, Inc. is the leading importer of fine Italian
natural stone products in the United States. We are the sole distributors for Gaudino Brothers of
Trento, Italy.
a. Wellstone, Inc. b. rocks c. Trento
3. It looks like I won’t be able to have lunch with you on Tuesday as we planned. I just found out my
boss has scheduled a lunch meeting for that day, and I have to be there. How about lunch on
Thursday instead?
a. a meeting b. my boss c. rescheduling lunch
4. Please reserve the conference room for the week of July 5. The sales department will be meeting
with its international representatives for the entire week.
a. consultations b. international sales c. conference room reservation
E-Mail & Business Writing • Practice 27

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3 Identify the person each message was written for.
1. ___ Hi Will,
2. ___ Dear Pat,
3. ___ Dear Mr. Ramirez:
4. ___ Dear Sir or Madam:
A. Thank you for sending me the sample of the new order form. It’s a better design and is easier to
understand. We still have several boxes of the original form, but I think that by next month we will
run out. We’ll get the new form printed up.
B. I saw your advertisement for hiking boots in New Horizon magazine. Please send me a catalog.
C. How’s everything? Really busy here, and wouldn’t mind a little break. Do you have any plans for
lunch today? Want to get together? Let me know.
D. It’s been a pleasure working with you for the past 3 years. You have contributed so much to the
department with your enthusiasm, sense of humor, and great work ethic. We’re going to miss you.
Wishing you all the best in your new job. Stay in touch.
4 Complete the messages with the expressions below.
a. Best regards, d. Sincerely,

b. Best, e. Dear Sir or Madam:
c. Hi Janet, f. Dear Mr. Van Daele,
1. _______________
I’ve heard about your products and would like to know more about them. Please send me a copy of
your most recent catalog.
______________
Alan Clark

2. _______________
It was a pleasure meeting you at the seminar last weekend.
I will be in Brussels next week and would like to talk with you about areas where we might be able
to work together. Would you be able to meet with me Wednesday or Thursday?
I look forward to hearing from you.
_______________
Felicia Jones
Product Development
KLA, Ltd.
3. _______________
I ran into Carl the other day and he told me you are leaving Ogden. What happened? Did you get
that great job at Pierce that you were telling me about?
_______________
Kathie
28 E-Mail & Business Writing • Practice

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Practice
Chapter 2
1 Choose the correct opening sentence to go with each message.
1. ___ It was a pleasure meeting you at the management training last weekend.
2. ___ Attached is my response to your customer service survey.
3. ___ I’m delighted to hear you’ll be able to visit us while you’re in town next week.
4. ___ In your recent order, you requested that we bill your credit card account.
A. Dear Ms. Thompson:

____________________________________________________________________________________________
Unfortunately, we are unable to process your order because the expiration date of your credit card
has passed. Please submit updated information or send us a check for the amount due.
B. Dear Steve,
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Since the seminar I have been thinking about ways we could work together to improve each other’s
businesses and have come up with a few ideas. Would you be able to meet with me next week so we
can discuss them?
C. Dear Sir:
____________________________________________________________________________________________
As you will see from my comments, I have generally been quite satisfied with your products. On the
other hand, I have sometimes been less happy with the level of service provided by your staff.
D. Dear Mr. Jackson,
____________________________________________________________________________________________
I have made the following arrangements for the time that you will be with us. Upon your arrival at
11:00, we will meet in my office for about an hour. There will be a staff luncheon at 12:00, and at
2:30 the plant supervisor will take you on a tour of our new facility.
2 Match the reasons for writing with the message.
1. ___ Inform about a system upgrade

2. ___ Inform staff about newcomers
3. ___ Remind staff of an event
A. On Thursday we will have an orientation meeting for the interns who will be working with us this
summer. They will be taken to their respective departments following the orientation. Please
welcome them.
B. As you know, we will be promoting the TC300 next week in Dusseldorf. I’m taking this
opportunity to remind everyone in Customer Service that we are expecting an increase in the
number of calls from clients interested in this new item. Please make sure that you have enough
staff available to handle these calls during the next month.
C. The e-mail system will be shut down on Friday, from 11:30 till 11:45. All incoming and outgoing e-mail
will be kept in memory and forwarded to you when the system is back up. Thank you for your
understanding.

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Practice
3 Shorten and simplify these messages.
1. We would like to express our appreciation for the fact that you have continued to do business
with us in excess of 10 years in spite of the fact that we have changed the location of our store
several times during this time period.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
2. At the present time we wish to inform you of our situation which is that we have a great deal
of excess inventory and consequently are inaugurating an end-of-year sale December 31, at
which we will be discounting numerous items as much as 70% off our already low sale prices.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
4 Look back at the messages in Exercise 1 and choose an appropriate closing sentence from the list
below.
1. ___ I hope you find my comments useful.
2. ___ We will ship your order as soon as we receive your payment.
3. ___ I look forward to hearing from you soon.
4. ___ I hope these arrangements meet with your approval.
Chapter 3
1 Rewrite the following sentences according to the instructions in parentheses.
1. It has come to my attention that your department has exceeded its targeted spending goals for

the fiscal year. Please confer with me regarding this issue. (less formal, friendlier)
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
2. It was a blast meeting you at the National Bankers Association conference last week. You guys
really know how to do refinancing. When can we get together so I can pick your brains some
more? (more formal)
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
3. I acknowledge with thanks your e-mail and am most grateful for the full and complete details
which you have supplied about your firm’s products. (less formal)
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________

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Practice
2 Rewrite the sentences using positive language. Be constructive.
1. You haven’t met your sales quota again this month. If you don’t improve your performance,
you’ll have to look for another job.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Your proposal really showed that you have not studied the project thoroughly.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
3. If you can’t arrive at work on time like everybody else, there will be severe consequences.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
3 Write an e-mail in which you express a strong negative reaction and then a second version with a
more positive tone.
SITUATION: You have ordered a camera from a company’s website. You wanted the camera to be
delivered within three business days and have paid extra for the rush shipment. Five business
days later, you still have not received it.
4 Rewrite the sentences in the active voice.

1. Your e-mail was received by me yesterday.
________________________________________________________________________________________
2. The alternatives will be considered by the Board this afternoon.
________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Your proposal is being reviewed carefully by us.
________________________________________________________________________________________
4. The cost-benefit analysis has been completed and the report written by the controller.
________________________________________________________________________________________
5. An important change in the benefits package has been made by our company.
________________________________________________________________________________________

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Practice
Chapter 4
1 Rewrite these messages in a simpler way.
1. I don’t know whether or not Mr. Baker has met any of our recent employees who were hired
last month.
______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Would you please give due consideration to the proposal and respond back to me in a week’s
time?
______________________________________________________________________________________
3. At the meeting Janet repeated her statement that it was absolutely essential that we cooper-
ate together in order to achieve a good final outcome.
______________________________________________________________________________________
2 Add the correct punctuation and capitalization.

Dear
Dear Ms Ms Fletcher
Fletcher
I enjoyed meeting you last week I was very interested in hearing about your new program for
I enjoyed meeting you last week I was very interested in hearing about your new program for elderly people
elderly people living alone it sounds like a wonderful program
living alone it sounds like a wonderful program
As I mentioned during the interview I have applied for jobs at several service agencies one of
As them
I mentioned duringme
has offered the ainterview I have applied
higher-paying forand
position jobstheir
at several
officeservice
is muchagencies
closer one of them
to my homehas offered
I have
medecided
a higher-paying position
to accept their and
offertheir office is much closer to my home I have decided to accept their offer
Thanks
Thanks again
again for meeting
for meeting with
with me me Iyou
I wish wish you success
much much success with
with your newyour new program
program
Sincerely
Sincerely yours
yours
Rebecca
Rebecca Levine
Levine

3 Correct the capitalization errors in the sentences.
1.1. The
Theceo
ceoofofActon
Actonproducts, ltd. ltd.
products, graduated fromfrom
graduated the university of michigan
the university in 1998.in 1998.
of michigan
2. WhenI Iarrive
2. When arriveinin
thethe
u.s.u.s. next
next tuesday,
tuesday, I willI contact
will contact
you. you.
3. Tedgot
3. Ted gotaab.s.
b.s.inineconomics
economics from
from uclaucla
andand
thenthen became
became a cpa.
a cpa.
4. Fyi, our administrative assistant, ms. prescott, is getting married next week.
4. Fyi, our administrative assistant, ms. prescott, is getting married next week.
4 Correct the spelling errors in the e-mail exchange.
Lisa, Lisa,
Denise:
Do youDono
youwhat
no what
timetime
thethe company
company picnic
picnic startstommorow?
starts tommorow? Your
Your going
goingto,
to,aren’t
aren’tyou?
you?
DeniseDenise
Lisa:
It’s atIt’s
2. at
I’ll2.beI’lltheir
be their
but but I maybe
I maybe a little
a little late.
late. –L –L
Denise: Great. See you than!
Great. See you than!

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Practice
Chapter 5
1 Indicate the correct order of messages in the e-mail exchange by writing a number (1-6) in the blanks.
___ Ron,
As long as the client is able to deliver the data according to their latest schedule, I can
complete my work by February 2. As you know, when I originally made my vacation plans,
we expected the project to be completed by January 15.
Judy
___ Ron,
I checked with my travel agent to see if I can change my dates but, unfortunately, the trip is
non-refundable. So I would lose all of my money.
Judy
___ Ron,
Just a reminder that I will be taking a two-week vacation beginning February 3.
Judy
___ Judy,
OK, but as I mentioned I can only authorize your vacation time if your work with the City
Planning project is completed before then.
Ron
___ Judy,
I’m sorry that you’ve gotten stuck in the middle of this crisis. If you’re willing to reschedule, I’m
sure that I can get your trip reimbursed by the company. After all, you are in no way responsible
for the delays. Please let me know how much you have spent on your trip, so that I can get the
reimbursement in the works. I will, of course, need receipts of your expenditures.
___ Judy,
I’ve just been informed that the City Planning project has been delayed. I’m afraid you’ll have to
reschedule your vacation.
Ron
2 Match the messages in Exercise 1 with the following descriptions.

a. ___________ option d. ___________ explanation
b. ___________ first response e. ___________ initial e-mail
c. ___________ change of plans f. ___________ problem
3 Write an e-mail for each of the following situations.

1. Following up
Gerry Morton, an employee at a realty company, has worked with Quickset Inc., a printing company,
for many years. Quickset produces most of the company’s brochures and flyers, and they have
always done a very good job. Gerry’s contact at Quickset is Maria Torres. Maria has e-mailed Gerry
to ask for a testimonial letter (a letter saying that they are very happy with Quickset’s services) that
she will use to advertise their business to new clients. Gerry would be happy to write them a letter,
but he is not sure about the company’s policy regarding testimonial letters. His manager, who could
tell him what the company policy is, is out of town for a week. Write Gerry’s e-mail response to
Maria’s request.

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2. Being persistent
Gina Romani works for a company where some employees belong to a tennis club. Every year
there is a tournament with employees from other companies. This year Gina is organizing the
tournament. It will take place two weeks from now at the Hillcrest Tennis Club. All the members
have been invited, and all but four have responded. Gina needs to finalize the arrangements right
away. Write Gina’s e-mail to the employees who did not respond to the invitation.
3. Communicating a change in direction

Michelle Levine arranges tour packages for Sunset Travel in Los Angeles. She recently arranged for
40 seats roundtrip to Sydney with TransPacific Airlines. As part of the arrangement, TransPacific
offered her a discount of 20% if she could book all 40 seats. However, after advertising the
Australia tour, she has only been able to sign up 35 people. She would still like a discount, but
needs to inform TransPacific that she hasn’t managed to fill all the seats. Write Michelle’s e-mail to
TransPacific.
4. Clarifying one’s position

Dave Poulsen works at an advertising agency. A management position has recently opened up and
Dave’s supervisor, Beverly Blake, asked him if he could recommend anyone. He knows someone who
he thinks would be ideal. Her name is Regina Snyder, and she was a manager at an agency where
Dave used to work. In Dave’s last message to Beverly, he wrote that Regina would be perfect, but
that it might not be a good time for her to change jobs right now, as she has a difficult family situa-
tion at the moment. Beverly e-mails back and asks Dave what he means. Dave is unsure how to say
that Regina takes care of her elderly mother. He really does think Regina would be great for the job
and wants her to have the opportunity to be considered. Write Dave’s e-mail.
4 Refer back to the e-mails on pages 17 to 20 and continue the e-mail exchange with the information
provided below.
1. Following up
a. Tom to Dan: meeting not possible until next month; something urgent at work; apologies.

b. Dan to Tom: no problem.
2. Being persistent
a. Phil Preston to Jan Tyler: 25th not good, but 28th OK; need to change move-in date to
August 1; hope it’s OK.
b. Jan Tyler to Phil Preston: sorry, can’t do that.
3. Communicating a change in direction

a. Bert Jordan to Kelly Flanagan: difficult to do, but will adapt; usually 10 days, 5 is a little short;
will have to make some program changes.
b. Kelly Flanagan to Bert Jordan: submit new program ASAP.

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Answer Key
Chapter 1 Exercise 2
Exercise 1
Answers will vary. Possible answers:
1. D 2. E 3. B 4. A 5. C
1. It’s important for all of us to meet our sales
quota. If you are experiencing problems, please
Exercise 2
don’t hesitate to talk to me about them.
1. b 2. a 3. c 4. c
2. Thank you for your proposal. I think it could
Exercise 3 benefit from additional research.
1. C 2. D 3. A 4. B 3. I would just like to remind you that our
business hours are 8:00am till 5:30pm. If
Exercise 4 there is a reason that you are unable to get
1. e, d 2. f, a 3. c, b to work on time, please notify me.
Chapter 2 Exercise 3
Exercise 1 Answers will vary. Possible answers:
1. B 2. C 3. D 4. A Strong version: Five days and still waiting! You call
that a rush delivery?! I never received the camera!
Exercise 2 Your customer service is the absolute worst.
1. C 2. A 3. B More positive version: It’s been five days since I
ordered a camera from your Website and I still
Exercise 3 haven’t received it. I paid for rush delivery. I’m very
Answers will vary. Possible answers: frustrated and would like to cancel my order.
1. Thank you for your business for the last ten years
at our various locations. Exercise 4
2. We will be having our first end-of-year sale, 1. I received your e-mail yesterday.
starting December 31. We’ll be offering discounts 2. The Board will consider the alternatives this
up to 70% off our current sale prices. afternoon.
3. We are reviewing your proposal carefully.

Exercise 4 4. The controller has completed the cost-benefit
1. C 2. A 3. B 4. D analysis and written the report.
5. Our company has made an important change in
Chapter 3 the benefits package.
Exercise 1
Answers will vary. Possible answers: Chapter 4
1. I’d like to meet with you regarding the targeted Exercise 1
spending goals of your department. Answers will vary. Possible answers:
2. I enjoyed meeting you at the National Bankers 1. I don’t know if Mr. Baker has met our new
Association conference last week. Would you employees yet.
have time to meet and give me additional 2. Could you review the proposal and give me an
information about refinancing? You are very answer next week?
knowledgeable in that field.
3. At the meeting Janet mentioned several times
3. Thank you for the detailed information you sent that in order to get the best results it was
me about your products. important to cooperate.
E-Mail & Business Writing • Answer Key 35

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Answer Key
Exercise 2
Chapter 5
Dear Ms. Fletcher: Exercise 1
I enjoyed meeting you last week. I was very 3, 5, 1, 2, 6, 4
interested in hearing about your new program
for elderly people living alone. It sounds like a Exercise 2
wonderful program. a. 6 b. 2 c. 4 d. 3 e. 1 f. 5
As I mentioned during the interview, I have applied
for jobs at several service agencies. One of them Exercise 3
has offered me a higher-paying position, and their Answers will vary.
office is much closer to my home. I have decided to
accept their offer. Exercise 4
Answers will vary.
Thanks again for meeting with me. I wish you much
success with your new program.
Sincerely yours,
Rebecca Levine
Exercise 3
1. The CEO of Acton Products, Ltd. graduated from
the University of Michigan in 1998.
2. When I arrive in the U.S. next Tuesday, I will
contact you.
3. Ted got a B.S. in economics from UCLA and then
became a CPA.
4. FYI, our administrative assistant, Ms. Prescott, is
getting married next week.

Exercise 4
Lisa,
Do you know what time the company picnic starts
tomorrow? You’re going too, aren’t you?
Denise
It’s at 2. I’ll be there but I may be a little late. –L
Great. See you then!
36 E-Mail & Business Writing • Answer Key

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Model Messages
NOTE: The listings below proceed from more formal to less formal. All are acceptable
in business correspondence.
ASKING FOR INFORMATION

• Please send me any information you have about ...
• Could you please send me any information available about ...
• Please send us detailed information about your ...
• Do you have any information on ...?
THANKING SOMEONE
approach #1
• Thank you for your attention to this matter.
• Thank you for your help with this matter.
• Thank you in advance.
• Thank you for all your help.
• Thanks for everything.
• Thanks a lot.
• Thanks a million!
approach #2
• Our sincere thanks and appreciation for your thoughtfulness.
• I sincerely appreciate everything you’re doing for us.
• I really appreciate your help.
RESPONDING TO A REQUEST
within the e-mail message
• I have tried to respond to your questions below. Please let me know if you need further
clarification on any of the points.
• I have embedded my responses following each of your questions below.
• My responses to each of your questions below —
• See my responses below —
with an attachment or enclosure

• Please find attached the ... that you requested.
• Please find enclosed our most recent ...
• I’m attaching the ... that you requested.
• My responses are in the attached file.
E-Mail & Business Writing • Model Messages 37

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Model Messages
REQUESTING AN APPOINTMENT OR MEETING
• Would you be available to meet on ...?

• Could we meet on ... to discuss this issue?
• If you’re free later today or tomorrow, I’d like to get together with you to discuss this.
• Would you have time to talk about this today?
• I don’t think I would need more than ten minutes of your time. Let me know if you could
squeeze in a brief chat before the end of the day.
CONFIRMING ARRANGEMENTS
• This is to confirm that the next meeting of the XAB Committee will take place on July 7 at 2:30 p.m.
Please be sure to prepare ... in advance of the meeting.
• Could you please confirm the itinerary for next week’s trip?
• Could you double-check the schedule and let me know when ...?
• When you have a sec*, could you let me know what time you’ll be arriving?
* sec = second (very informal)
MAKING A COMPLAINT
• We are very concerned about the way that ... is being handled.
• I’m not at all pleased with ...
• I’m very disappointed about your handling of ...
• This is the third time I am writing to complain about your ...
RESPONDING TO A COMPLAINT

opening paragraph
• Please accept our sincere apologies for the mishandling of ...
• Please forgive our delay in responding to your inquiry of ...
• We are very sorry for the inconvenience we have caused you in our ...
• We are extremely embarrassed about ...
• I’m very sorry that I did not ... in the way you expected.
closing paragraph
• Rest assured that we are prepared to do anything we can to rectify the situation.
• Please accept our assurances that we will do everything we can to correct the situation.
• I want you to know that I'll do everything I can to fix the problem.
38 E-Mail & Business Writing • Model Messages

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Model Messages
ANNOUNCING GOOD NEWS
• It gives us great pleasure to inform you that ...

• We are proud to announce ...
• I would like to take this opportunity to announce ...
• We are delighted to announce the appointment of ...
• I’m pleased to announce the promotion of ...
• I’m happy to say that ...
• Good news! The company is going to ...
ANNOUNCING BAD NEWS
• It is with deep regret that we announce the ...

• We regret to inform you that ...
• I’m afraid I have bad news. Our ...
• I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but ...
OFFERING CONGRATULATIONS
• On behalf of ..., I offer you my sincere congratulations on ...
• Please accept my sincere congratulations for ...
• I wish you every success in your new position.
• Our heartfelt congratulations to you on your ...
• No one is more deserving. Congratulations on your promotion.
• Just a quick note to say how delighted I am for you.
• We just heard the good news. Congratulations and best wishes!
• I’m so happy for you. Congratulations!

• Congrats!
E-Mail & Business Writing • Model Messages 39

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Language Reference
Greetings Abbreviations
Dear Sir: ASAP as soon as possible
Dear Sir or Madam:
BRB be right back
Dear Mr. Austin:
Dear Mrs. Bennett, BTW by the way
Dear Ms. Clark, CUL8R see you later
Dear Richard, FAQ frequently asked questions
Charlotte,
FYI for your information
Hello Steve,
Hi Lisa, GIGO garbage in, garbage out
Closings HTH hope this helps

Sincerely yours, IAC in any case
Sincerely,
Best regards, IMO in my opinion
All the best, IMHO in my humble opinion
Best,
IMOH I’m out of here
Talk to you soon.
IOW in other words
Yours faithfully, (UK)
Yours sincerely, (UK) JTLYK just to let you know
Cheers, (UK) L8R later
Opening paragraph LOL laugh(ing) out loud
It was a pleasure to meet you.
LTNS long time no see
I enjoyed meeting you at …
Thank you for taking time out of your day to … MSG / msg message
Thank you for your e-mail. NRN no reply necessary

I received your message … OTOH on the other hand

We met at the … meeting in …
P.S. postscript
I’m writing to ask …
I’m happy to announce … RE / re regarding
I regret to inform you … TIA thanks in advance
Closing paragraph TNT till next time
Thank you again for … TTYL talk to you later
Thank you in advance for …
Tx / Thx thanks
We’re very sorry for any inconvenience this
may have caused you. AMONG VERY CLOSE FRIENDS / FAMILY:
We apologize for …
XXX kisses
Please let me know if …
Feel free to contact me … XOXOXO hugs and kisses
Please don’t hesitate to call if …
I look forward to seeing you.

That’s all for now.
E-Mail & Business Writing • Language Reference 41

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Author: Tay Lesley

Copyright© 2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.

Berlitz Languages, Inc.

The Berlitz Staff

CHAPTER / TITLE TOPICS OBJECTIVES KEY TERMS

2 Getting the message Content of e-mail Starting an e-mail attachment

©2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.

5 Handling different Follow-up Following up request

Practice Model Messages

Understanding the basics

1 Ways to communicate a message

e-mail memo letter phone in person

Discussing the status of a

Providing information about

E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 1 1

2 The components of an e-mail message

From: pjohnson@bergmanfox.com Sender’s name

Phil Johnson Signature:

©2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.

3 The subject line

UNCLEAR, AMBIGUOUS, INEFFECTIVE CLEAR, EFFECTIVE

Subject: Budget Subject: Budget for computer upgrades / marketing

2 E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 1

Subject lines can convey important information or leave a reader guessing.

From: josephjenkins@kaiser.com From: mitch.nelson@bohrlandusa.com

Best, Best regards,

From: ana.hansen@ITC.net From: khobbes@anderselectronics.com

Dear Mr. Peterson,

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 1 3

4 How to address your audience

Your direct manager A colleague with whom you are friendly

©2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.

4 E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 1

Getting the message right

1 The opening paragraph

sending me your brochure

The main point

E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 2 5

Your reasons for writing

TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASK THE STATUS OF SOMETHING

TO VOICE A COMPLAINT TO CONFIRM SOMETHING

2 The main message

©2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.

LANGUAGE OF REQUESTS LANGUAGE OF ANNOUNCEMENTS

LANGUAGE OF CONFIRMATIONS LANGUAGE OF COMPLAINTS

6 E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 2

3 The KISS rule = Keep it short and simple

FROM: J.F. Richardson

ONE LONG PARAGRAPH

FROM: J.F. Richardson

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 2 7

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

4 The closing paragraph

©2004 Berlitz Languages, Inc.

Offering to provide assistance

8 E-Mail & Business Writing • Chapter 2

Again, we and your understanding.