Business Writing Info Blog

Reports are critical business writing documents.  They typically convey your company's value to potential clients (proposals) or convey your product (consulting recommendations).

A business letter is a document you send to a reader outside of your organization. A memo is used internally in business. (Memo format.) Here is a standard business letter format model, based on The Business Writer’s Handbook:

A memo is a business document that communicates information internally in an organization. A business letter communicates information outside of an organization. (Business letter format. Here is a standard memo format model, based on The Business Writer’s Handbook:

As you likely know, Skype had a 36-hour service disruption last week, which was disastrous for business and customer trust. However, instead of dodging the issue, Skype has been very forthright explaining the outage. Additionally, Skype CEO, Tony Bates, sent this letter to all customers, whether or not they were affected. This is a perfect example of a customer apology letter that works:

Forbes. com recently reported that CareerBuilder conducted a survey of 2,534 hiring managers to unearth 10 of the most outlandish statements employers have ever seen on resumes:

(Issue 25: February, 2010)
I Write to Many Areas of the World in My Work.
How do I Shape Documents to Match Differing Standards?

Client Question: What is a “White Paper?” The term “white paper” was originally used to designate government reports, but the term and format are now commonly used in many industries. The term is an offshoot from “white book,” which is an official government publication. Since it has its base in government publications, white papers should reflect authority. The term “white paper” is now used to represent a document that showcases a specific business product or service. Because it needs to have authority, the author should have credibility in the subject. A white paper should engage the audience by showing specific examples and using clear arguments.

This is one of the very best customer complaint letters I’ve ever seen. It is so funny. It was written to Richard Branson, Chairman of Virgin Airlines, by an unhappy customer in a long-winded rant, after a dreadful flight from Mumbai to London.

(Issue 18:May, 2009) by Mary Cullen
I met last week with a technology company group having problems with business reports. The company vice president complained business reports were often "confusing and choppy." When he showed me some typical status reports, I instantly recognized one common problem.

Reports required input from several employees, often in different business units and work teams. Each employee wrote the section of the business report requiring his or her expertise. No one edited the business report for consistency in style and voice, or verified audience targeting and complete content.

This resulted in a Frankenstein-like report composed of strong and clear individual components, which when meshed together, created a disjointed whole. It was an information dump.  

Reader Question: What would be the proper salutation for someone with a II, Jr., Sr., etc. following their last name? (i.e. John Adams, II or John Adams, Jr.)