English Correspondence

1. English Correspondence Meeting 2: Inquiry Letter

2. A letter of inquiry Is a request for information that the writer believes the reader can provide. The objective : to get the reader to respond with an action that satisfies the inquiry.

3. Guidance for Inquiry Letter • Identify your reader • Establish your objective • Determine your scope • Organize your letter • Draft your letter • Close Your Letter • Review and Revise Your Letter

4. Identify your reader Should be addressed to the person who is most likely to respond in a positive and helpful manner. If you are unsure of who that might be, try to make a few phone calls to identify a contact person. That person's name should be placed in the inside heading and the salutation of your inquiry. It should also be included on the top line of your envelope.

5. Establish your objective • The objective : to make a request. It will either ask the reader to provide something beneficial to the writer, or take advantage of something the writer has to offer. • The inquiry should be specific and brief. If there are more than one question , it needs to consider highlighting them in a bulleted list. • The objective is placed in the body of letter by asking the reader for help in compiling information, then outlines the scope of her needs in a bulleted list immediately following her request.

6. Determine your scope • Should provide enough information for the reader grasp your objective, make an informed decision and respond in a timely manner. • Consider your reader and get to the point. Do they have what you want? Can they do what you ask? • If you are to receive some benefit, it may help to explain for what purpose the benefit will be used. If the reader is to receive some benefit, it may help to offer an incentive to respond.

7. Organize your letter • It will establish a logical order in which to present your information. It ha already begun by establishing an objective and determining scope. • Begin by creating a list of relevant points and place them in the sequential order that will best help your reader comprehend your inquiry. • These points will become the backbone of your draft; your outline will become a checklist.

8. Draft your letter • In order that your thoughts and ideas are conveyed in a cohesive manner, write in as natural a sounding voice as possible. Concentrate on communicating your objective to your reader. Make sure that the scope of your letter contains all the relevant information included in your organizational list. • For the moment you can ignore spelling, grammar, punctuation, sentence and paragraph structure.

9. Close Your Letter • Should close in a professional manner. Sign off between a complimentary close such as "Sincerely," or "Thank you," and your printed name. • If you are writing in conjunction with an official duty, place your title below the printed name. • Additional information such as dictation remarks, notification of attachments, enclosures and copies sent to other individuals should be placed beneath the title line.

10. Review and Revise Your Letter • Making sure that your objective is clear and your scope is concise. • Look for the obvious errors first. Check for spelling, sentence structure and grammar mistakes. • Look for accuracy, clarity and a sense of completeness. • Examine your word choices carefully. Ambiguous words lead to confusion. Jargon and abstract terms may not be understood at all and affectations, clichés and trite language serve no real purpose and will obscure your objective.

11. Student’s Assignments • According to the examples of inquiry letter provided, analyze the letter based on the guidance. Are all the things needed complete? Explain in detail. • Write an inquiry letter asking about the details to conduct English Conversation training for your institution. The details include: the program packages of training, the trainer, the price, etc.

12. Practices make Perfect