Best Professional Letter Writing Techniques | Improve Formal & Informal Letters Writing Skills – 2023

Best professional letter writing is an art. It is the most common form of communication. It differs from other forms of writing since it intends for a particular reader. 

A letter removes boundaries when something needs to be transmitted to someone sitting away. Writing requires imagination, creativity, careful planning, and organization. The language of the letter must be interactive.

But the question is how to improve letter-writing skills in English. We need to focus on the basic structure of letter writing and regular practice.

Here, I have shared the letter writing skills in English with very easy steps for beginners to the advanced level.

If you want to improve your English writing skills then click the link below

How to improve writing skills in English

Best professional letter writing

First, let me give a brief detail about the types of letters. Letters are mainly two types formal and informal. But based on the content, formalities, and purposes, it could be divided into many forms: 

Formal Letter

It follows specific patterns and formalities and directly focuses on the issues concerned. Any business letter or letter to authorities falls within this given category.

Informal Letter:

These are personal letters. It is not necessary to follow a defined pattern or follow formalities. It contains personal information or is a written conversation. Informal letters usually indicate to friends, acquaintances, relatives, etc.

Business Letter

This letter addresses the business correspondents and generally contains commercial information such as orders, objections, petitions, letters for collections, etc. Such letters are always strictly formal and follow a structure and pattern of formalities.

Official Letter:

These types of letters indicate official events, cultural matters in office premises, rules and regulations, announcements, internal office matters, etc. Official letter writing skills are also formal and follow a specific structure and protocol.

Social Letter:  

If a personal letter indicates a particular event is called a social letter. It can also mean congratulations, invitation, or condolence letter. 

Circular Letter: 

A letter of information conveyed to a group of people is called a Circular letter. The same letter is forwarded to a large group of people to gather some essential information such as a change of address, change of management, the retirement of a partner, etc. 

Profession Letter:  

Any letter that indicates employment matters like an appointment letter, job description, promotion letter, or joining letter is considered an Employment letter. 

Rules of Writing Letters

Compose letters to reach your user expectations.

Once you decide about your audience, then it will be easy for you to start writing effectively. However, penning letters differ on the level of audiences, culture, tradition, and age limitations. 

Give priority to the Central idea.

You always try to keep the main message at the readers’ close notice in your writing which helps them to understand the central idea of the topic. 

 Few writers try to create suspense, burying the main thought in writing from the readers’ close view makes the reader understand the matter properly. 

Therefore they travel to the next page to bring clarity to the thought process. 

Maintain a Sympathetic tone in the opening lines.

Research shows that the tone of a letter affects the readers’ how readable it is. Impressive and polite tongue-in-letter attracts others’ attention to reading. 

It does not mean that we write to a customer the same way we write to a relative. But that means you need compassion and common sense. 

Design your letter with professional, compassionate letter writing.

Several techniques allow you to create a professional and kind tone, depending on the content of your letter: 

• Focus on the reader using you and your active voice.
•  If necessary, use a good opening, excuse me for doing something wrong;  
• Use terms like ‘we lament or unfortunately‘; if it addresses distressing news.

Structure of Tenses in the letter.

Although you should usually write in the present tense while addressing a story in writing you could use different structures based on the situation. 

However, giving instructions in the present tense is the easiest way for your readers to understand. 

Share your letters in short segments.

However, you need to divide your writing into sections that would help the reader to understand the entire concept easily. 

If you maintain lengthy paragraphs, it brings the monotonous reading idea into the reader’s mind. Each paragraph should revolve around one opinion. 

How to write a formal letter

• Mention the writer’s address at the top of the right-hand side of the page.
• You should write the date directly after the address in the same row. 
• The recipient’s name and address should be mentioned below on the left-hand side.
• Use the subject heading immediately after the address.
• Use the correct opening (dear Mr /Mrs. Ferguson, etc.)
•  Use Standard English.
•  The initial sentence should explain the purpose of the letter. 
• Each paragraph should indicate a certain point.
•  Use an appropriate formal tone and register in the text of the letter.
•  Avoid contractions, jargon, and abbreviations. 
• End with a formal ending like yours faithfully and yours sincerely. 

How to write an Informal letter

• We need to write our address at the top of the right-hand corner of the page as a sender.
• Mention the date after the sender’s address in the same row.
• Write a salutation that means- ” Dear/Hi friend, brother, sister” It depends on whom you are addressing on the left-hand side after the date.
• The initial sentence starts with a greeting like “How are you, how have you been?”
• Use standard English.
• Identify your purpose of writing and organize your ideas in the body of the latter in different sections.
• You can ask any question to the reader in the conclusion where the reader would take any action.
•  In the final salutation, you can write “your loving son, daughter, brother, etc.

How to start the Body of the letter:

It has three parts:

a) opening b) message c) closing

point to remember:

The informal letter opening lines/ introduction can be like this:

• Thank you very much for your kind letter.
• Many thanks for your friendly letter.
• What a nice/lovely letter!
• I am so glad to hear from you after a long time.
• You will be pleased to learn that
• You will be sorry to learn that 
• I can not tell you how sad I was to learn of your accident/your mother’s death.
• I can not tell you how happy I was to learn of your success.
• Sorry to trouble you.

The message is the central part of a letter.

• Here we answer a letter or write on a topic of our choice. In writing a letter yous simple language and short sentences. Don’t be pedantic.

The form of closing can be like this:

• Best wishes,
• With love,
• With kind regards,
• Would you mind giving my love to
• Please give my love to 
• Please give my concerns/respect to
• Remember me to
• Thanking you
• Hope to hear from you soon. ( not, hoping)
• I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best format for a formal letter?

• Sender’s address.
• Date.
• Name / Designation of Addressee.
• Address of the Addressee.
• Salutation.
• Subject.
• Body – Introduction, Content, Conclusion.
• Complimentary Close.

This format is highly acceptable for all the business and school sectors.

Which business letter style is most frequent? 

The most common layout of a business letter is known as block letter format. The entire letter is justified and single-spaced using this format except for a double space between paragraphs.

What are the three types of letters?

There are formal, Informal, and semi-formal letters. You could find out a few fundamental similarities between formal and informal letters.  

Which is the most adopted format for writing a letter nowadays?

The most adapted format is block style, where the text of the entire letter is on the left-hand side. 

conclusion 

I hope the given information helps you to understand the concept of formal and informal letters. All the letters have their specific format.

If you doubt how to improve your letter writing skills, I am hopeful that the above information will satisfy you.

However, you must be careful about your reader and their interest while writing a letter. Your polite tone and specific content attract the reader to invest their valuable time in your script. You can also enrich your knowledge by reading how to improve your writing skills in English.

Express your point of view through the comment box and share your journey while writing a letter.