2 Business Letters and 1 Memo = 3 Pieces
here total
Introduction: Having
now read a few preliminary chapters for ENG 333, you understand that there are
various forms of professional communication such as business letters, memos,
and emails, just to name a few. As your
text makes clear, the clarity, style, and tone
of your communication are of the utmost importance, regardless of which form
that communication takes.
The
first
formal project in this course asks you to keep these concerns foremost in your
mind as you create 2 business letters and 1 memo. You will be wearing three different “hats” for
this assignment, that of a consumer, a manager, and an employee. Here’s
the scoop:
#1: Business
Letter 1
is an unfortunate issue or difficulty letter (sometimes called a “complaint”
letter) of your choice. Search your memory
for time when you purchased something—either a product or a service—that did
not meet your expectations (I’ve provided a sample scenario for you below). Play
the role of a dissatisfied / disappointed consumer who is now asking that the
product be replaced. Address your letter to a specific person (make it up) who
is the Manager of the Customer Service department of the product’s company, and
include each of the following small paragraphs in your “issue” letter:
- Background:
Briefly describe the
situation. (Something
like, “I have been a long-time customer of your print shop and have always
appreciated the great work you do on my keyboard instruction manuals. Now, however, I find it necessary to
contact you regarding my displeasure with my most recent order for manuals.”) - Problem:
Address both the cause of the problem
and its effect.
a. cause (such as, “I have found 16 spelling errors and 4
mis-labelled diagrams in the 25 manuals that I ordered.”) b. effect (such as, “This large
number of errors is unacceptable, and I am therefore unable to include these
manuals with my keyboard sales.”) - Solution: Tell
them clearly what you want them to do.(Something like, “I
have enclosed a copy of the manual with all of the errors highlighted. I would appreciate your reprinting the manuals
and sending them to me by next Friday.”) - Wrap-up: Wind
down the letter in professional way. (Something
like, “I would appreciate hearing from you so that I know the new manuals
will be in production.” - Make up an address / company if
you need to for the inside address, append an appropriate greeting and
closing, and arrange all other facets of the business letter the way your
book shows you. See Chpt. 11. I would also like to see you utilize the
semicolon at least once or twice in your letter. - Pay particular attention to
issues of wording and tone! Your goal is to achieve a positive
resolution here—not to come across as some irate consumer who just wants
to rant and rave. Use your wording
in such a way that invites the reader to want to interact with you—to want
to make things right for you. In
other words, use your diplomacy skills! Be assertive, but in a friendly way. If you alienate your reader, you likely
won’t be getting the solution that you’re seeking.
#2: Business
Letter 2
is an information letter alerting consumers to the recall of a popular but
dangerous dehumidifier. Begin your work
on this letter by reading the following scenario:
The
scenario: You are the
Vice President of Production at Kittness Heating and Cooling Manufacturing Co.
This morning you got the news that your most popular dehumidifier, Tampa Glade,
is being recalled because an internal switch can overheat and cause a fire
hazard. You have received 23 reports of
the dehumidifiers catching fire. One
consumer even had a minor burn on his hand. The design engineers are working on
a new design, and you halted production at the plant in China until a new
design in approved. You hope to get the
new design in production in time for spring sales, but that is not guaranteed. The model number for Tampa Glade is KHC-2023. Customers can return the dehumidifiers to the
stores where they purchased them or ship the humidifier directly to your
warehouse with a form that you will post on your company website.
Okay! So that’s the situation—it’s not a good one
to find yourself in as a vice president, but it’s your job to communicate to
your customers in careful, reassuring terms what needs to happen here.
· Now create an
outline of what you think your paragraphs should be (the basic outline for
Business Letter 1 might work, but you will probably want to add / modify some
sections or two). Also, do not turn in
your outline—that’s just to help you create your letter!
· Supply
consumers with an address (make it up) where they can ship back their current
machines. Add any details you wish to
your letter, but do not go on to the
second page.
· Be succinct but
detailed enough to avoid any confusion.
Remember, tone is everything
here: you want to come across to readers
as concerned and on top of the situation, but you don’t want to scare anyone
(in particular, ask yourself which details from the scenario would be better
off omitted!! You knowing all the dirty
details is one thing, but choosing to disclose those dirty details to your
customers is something else entirely!).
· Be workable and
eager to help your customers with this (annoying) consumer issue, but exude
strength, clarity, and confidence about what you’re asking them to do and why.
Yes, this balance can be hard to strike, but you’ll be fine so long as your
word choice is extremely deliberate. I strongly suggest giving your completed
Business Letter 2 to a few people to read when you’re done. Ask them about the tone of the letter (it is
very difficult to critique your own tone because the writer is frequently too
close to the material to “hear” that tone accurately). Let a friend (or a tutor at the Writing
Center) read the letter and offer some feedback; tweak the word choice
accordingly. Also see pg. 292, the top
for some helpful checklist-type questions. If you have read Ch. 11 thoroughly, you should
be able to navigate this second, slightly technical-in-nature business letter
without too much angst.
#3: The
Memo asks
you to assume the role of a university employee, an instructor in the history
department. A colleague, Adam, has sent
you an office memo inviting you to be a guest lecturer to his African-American
Culture class. The group is in the
middle of their unit on Civil Rights leaders, and you happen to be an expert on
the writings of both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. Unfortunately, you
will be away at a conference on the proposed classroom visit date, so you need
to decline the invitation. You do enjoy talking about this particular facet of
American history, so you would be happy to speak to Adam’s class another time,
perhaps the first week of March. You’d
like for Adam to review his schedule and let you know so that you can lock it
in. Write a memo communicating these
details and any other details you like, and follow the conventions for memo writing
as outlined in Chapter 11.
Pulling it All
Together
For
all three pieces here, use Times New Roman font, 12 point type size with 1-inch
margins (adjust your margins manually if need be!). See the examples of
business letters in your textbook for other formatting issues. Once you’ve carefully crafted all three pieces
using Microsoft Word (only .doc and
.docx files accepted—NOT .wps), complete the other tasks for the week,
and include ALL pieces inside ONE SINGLE
document (you know, just put a different task on each page, clearly labeled).
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