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Angel Cosmetics Inc.
110 East 25th Street
New York
NY10021
USA
Formatting Business Memos
Memos are short internal business letters, sent to other staff within the same company.
A memo (or memorandum) may also be posted somewhere inside a company for all to see.
Memos are becoming less common as electronic mail becomes more common. In contrast to
letters, memos do not usually contain salutations or closings, and may be typed or handwritten.
The text portion of the memo is generally in block format. Memos should include "From",
"To", "Date", "Subject" and the message itself, like this:
[Company logo]
MEMORANDUM
Form:[name or initials]
[me or initials]
Date
Subject:[short description]
Message starts here...’
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FormatingBusiness Letter
The term "business letter" makes people nervous. Many people with English as a
second language worry that their writing is not advanced enough for business writing. This is
r.ot the case. An effective letter in business uses short, simple sentences and
straightforwardvocabulary. The easier a letter is to read, the better. You will need to use smooth
transitions so that your sentences do not appear too choppy.
Salutation
First and foremost, make sure that you spell the recipient's name correctly. You should
also confirm the gender and proper title. Use Ms. for women and Mr. for men. Use Mrs. if you
are 100% sure that a woman is married. Under less formal circumstances, or after a long period
of correspondence it may be acceptable to address a person by his or her first name. When you
don't know the name of a person and cannot find this information out you may write, "To
Whom It May Concern". It is standard to use a comma (colon in North America) after the
salutation. It is also possible to use no punctuation mark at all. Here are some common ways to
address the recipient:
- Dear Mr Powell,
- Dear Ms Mackenzie,
- Dear Frederick Hanson:
- Dear Editor– in– Chief:
- Dear Valued Customer
- Dear Sir or Madam:
- Dear Madam
- Dear Sir,
- Dear Sirs
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