Inquiry Letter
Inquiry Letter is a letter written to request information and/or ascertain its
authenticity. A letter of inquiry deals with various matters like job
vacancies, funding, grants, scholarships, projects, sales, pre-proposals and
others. The term is common in various business setups as it implies fund
request or pre-proposal information. Owing to this usage, the term may be
considered exclusive to these setups alone. But that is not the case, to this
effect the below definition offers a justified meaning.
- Inquiry Letter Definition
A document requesting information sent on behalf of an individual or an
organisation for their own respective purposes, which can be mutually
beneficial to the recipient and the sender.
The
term ‘Inquiry’ is same as ‘Enquiry’. The former is more commonly used in U.S. and the latter
one is more common in U.K. There are some other terms which represent
the letters; these are Letter of Intent, Letter of
Interest, Query letter, Prospecting Letter, Pre-proposal
Letter and Concept Paper. The term ‘Cover Letter’,
‘Business Letter’, ‘Request Letter’ and ‘Sales Letter’ is also applied to an
inquiry letter especially when the objective is same as that of letter for
inquiry.
A letter of inquiry serves to facilitate business operations and satisfaction
of the sender. Inquiry letters remove any misunderstanding and are time savers,
especially when two parties want to reach an understanding. The communication
towards this effect resolves the issue without any delay. With relation to it
being a ‘Pre-proposal letter’, the inquiry letter is also termed as a ‘Condensed
Version of a Proposal’. It is the outcome of the purpose of the letter
which highlights the points of a proposal instead of a full-fledged proposal.
On an individual’s basis, these letters are sent to companies that are willing
to hire but haven't advertised job openings. It can also be a letter addressed
to editor in-charge of a publication proposing certain literary work. It can be
a letter from a student who is vying for a seat in a college or a business that
provides an internship. So, the objective of an enquiry letter is same but its
projections and audiences are different. Same goes for its method of delivery,
it can be sent via paper mail or electronic mail.
Forms of Inquiry Letter
Forms of
Inquiry letter may take any of the following forms:
- Solicited Inquiry: An
inquiry made in response to the seller’s advertisement and publicity.
- Unsolicited Inquiry: An
inquiry made at the buyer’s own initiative.
- Inquiry for favor: An
inquiry about some other information which may be about some special price
or some favorable terms.
- Routine inquiry: An
inquiry made by an old buyer in the usual course of business so, A letter
of inquiry which asks valuable information from seller or producer should
be:
- Straightforward and courteous
- Positive and confident in tone
- Brief, complete and correct.
Content of Inquiry Letter / Factors to be
considered for drafting an Inquiry Letter
Generally
content of inquiry letter asks information regarding two things which are:
- Price, quality, quantity and
availability of a product
- Business
policy related information such as terms of credit
Keeping
the above two things into consideration an inquiry letter should highlight the
following matters:
- Name: The
product that is going to be purchased should be mentioned clearly in such
letter.
- Description: Information
like quality, quantity, size & share, local or foreign origin and
others of the inquired product should be mentioned clearly.
- Sample: Such
letter should request for sample of the inquired product
- Price list: Such
letter should ask for price list of the inquired product.
- System of Supply: When,
where, how and in what terms the product should be traded must be asked by
such letter.
- Payment system: What
should be the way to pay the price should be sought by such letter.
- Transportation: The
way of shipment of the inquired product should be asked by such letter.
- Provision for Addition or
subtraction of value and quantity: Because
of change in the economy or other events whether there would be any
provision for plus/minus of value and quantity of inquired product must be
sought by such letter.
- Assurance: If
the sales term and other conditions favor the buyer, whether he can go for
bulk purchase or not and in this connection what additional benefits will
be given should be inquired by such letter.
July 2, 2013
Mr. Rodrigo Rivera
Personnel Director
Technote Corporation
3152 Bridge Avenue
Boston, MA 02154
Dear Mr. Rivera:
May I ask a favor of you? Randy del Rosario, a representative of the Leverage Company, recently told me of your success in managing Technote’s training program for the hardcore unemployed. Our firm is presently planning such a program, and we would appreciate information about the mind-set section of your program.
We expect to begin our training sessions on approximately August 1. I believe we are prepared for the remedial-education and job-skills portion of the program, but we need help with mind-set section. Specifically, we would appreciate knowing who you employed to teach that section, the major emphasis in the section, and the length of the section in relation to the entire programs.
I congratulate you on your success in managing Technote’s program, and I believe your ideas would help us solve this long-neglected problem, also. I look forward to hearing from you.
Very truly yours,
Francisco Fortaleza
Managing Director
Mr. Rodrigo Rivera
Personnel Director
Technote Corporation
3152 Bridge Avenue
Boston, MA 02154
Dear Mr. Rivera:
May I ask a favor of you? Randy del Rosario, a representative of the Leverage Company, recently told me of your success in managing Technote’s training program for the hardcore unemployed. Our firm is presently planning such a program, and we would appreciate information about the mind-set section of your program.
We expect to begin our training sessions on approximately August 1. I believe we are prepared for the remedial-education and job-skills portion of the program, but we need help with mind-set section. Specifically, we would appreciate knowing who you employed to teach that section, the major emphasis in the section, and the length of the section in relation to the entire programs.
I congratulate you on your success in managing Technote’s program, and I believe your ideas would help us solve this long-neglected problem, also. I look forward to hearing from you.
Very truly yours,
Francisco Fortaleza
Managing Director
Order Letter
a letter of order is a document that confirms the details of a purchase of goods or services from one party to another. It usually includes more information about what you are ordering, like quantity, model number, or color, the payment terms, and the matter in which the products are to be shipped. When the recipient receives this letter, they will process the order and send the merchandise.
- Order
Letter Definition
An “Order” is an expense for the person placing the order and an income for the one getting it. But this is not all. The company that bags the order has to fulfill lot of commitments to ensure that it has a satisfied customer, which can be an individual or another company. Timely delivery of the order, quality of delivery and after sale service – are all part and parcel of getting an order.
An Order Letter is the one that is written by the person/company placing the request of purchase from another company. This letter comes into action only when a detailed study of the desired product has been done in the market and based on promised service, quality and price of the product, a decision for a purchase has been made.
An Order Letter should be drafted very carefully as it needs to pen down all the terms and conditions of the purchase for the benefit of both involved parties. It should have details such as product specifications, quantities, price agreed upon, delivery date, late delivery clauses, etc. It should be addressed to the person responsible for the execution of the order with a copy to the head of department. Since it is totally an official letter it should be typed.
Subject Matter of Order Confirmation
Letter
According
to L. Gartside, the following five (5) matters should be included by a seller
in an order confirmation letter.
- A
nice compliment for receiving the order
- Pleasure
and gratitude for favorable order
- Assurance
for prompt and attentive effort towards execution of the order
- To
raise attention for other catchy products.
- Desire
for future order.
Babenroth
& Parkhurst have given emphasis on the following two points to be included
in an order confirmation letter:
- Thanking
the buyer for giving order.
- Repetition
of order to avoid confusion.
Furthermore
the following matters are also mentioned in such letter:
- Shipment
date of goods
- Transportation
and packing
- Payment
system.
Factors to Be Considered In Writing Order Letter or,
Contents of Order Letter
Through
order letter, the potential buyers request the suppliers to deliver goods to
them. In modern time, printed order blanks or purchase order forms supplied by
the seller are typically used for placing orders. However, in absence of order
blanks and purchase order forms, order letters are written. Such letters
contain three major categories of information:
§ Information about the items being
ordered;
§ Information relating to shipping;
and
§ Information relating to payment.
DOS
AND DON’T’S OF ORDER LETTER
- An
Order Letter should be addressed to the person responsible for executing
the order
- It
should include all the terms and conditions agreed upon by both involved
parties
- Since
it is purely an official letter it should be typed out
- There
is no need to use too many adjectives in the letter since it is purely for
an order being placed
- The
letter should have all relevant details related to the order, for example,
quantity, price and other terms and conditions
PART OF ORDER LETTER
- The
Heading (The Retern Address) or Letterhead - Companies usually use
printed paper where heading or letterhead is specially designed at the top
of the sheet. It bears all the necessary information about the
organisation’s identity.
- Date - Date of writing. The
month should be fully spelled out and the year written with all four
digits October 12, 2005
(12 October 2005 - UK style). The date is aligned with the return address. The number of the date is pronounced as an ordinal figure, though the endings st, nd, rd, th, are often omitted in writing. The article before the number of the day is pronounced but not written. In the body of the letter, however, the article is written when the name of the month is not mentioned with the day. - The
Inside Address -
In a business or formal letter you should give the address of the
recipient after your own address. Include the recipient's name, company,
address and postal code. Add job title if appropriate. Separate the
recipient's name and title with a comma. Double check that you have the
correct spelling of the recipient 's name.
The Inside Address is always on the left margin. If an 8 1/2" x 11" paper is folded in thirds to fit in a standard 9" business envelope, the inside address can appear through the window in the envelope. - The
Greeting -
Also called the salutation. The type of salutation depends on your
relationship with the recipient. It normally begins with the word
"Dear" and always includes the person's last name. Use
every resource possible to address your letter to an actual person. If
you do not know the name or the sex of of your reciever address it to Dear
Madam/Sir (or Dear Sales Manager or Dear Human Resources Director). As
a general rule the greeting in a business letter ends in a colon (US
style). It is also acceptable to use a comma (UK style).
- The
Subject Line (optional) - Its inclusion can help the recipient in dealing
successfully with the aims of your letter. Normally the subject sentence
is preceded with the word Subject: or Re: Subject
line may be emphasized by underlining, using bold font, or all captial
letters. It is usually placed one line below the greeting but
alternatively can be located directly after the "inside
address," before the "greeting."
- The
Body Paragraphs -
The body is where you explain why you’re writing. It’s the main part of
the business letter. Make sure the receiver knows who you are and why you
are writing but try to avoid starting with "I". Use a new
paragraph when you wish to introduce a new idea or element into your
letter. Depending on the letter style you choose, paragraphs may be
indented. Regardless of format, skip a line between paragraphs.
- The
Complimentary Close -
This short, polite closing ends always with a comma. It is either at the
left margin or its left edge is in the center, depending on the Business
Letter Style that you use. It begins at the same column the heading does. The
traditional rule of etiquette in Britain is that a formal letter starting
"Dear Sir or Madam" must end "Yours faithfully", while
a letter starting "Dear " must end "Yours sincerely". (Note: the
second word of the closing is NOT capitalized)
- Signature
and Writer’s identification - The signature is the last part of the letter.
You should sign your first and last names. The signature line may include
a second line for a title, if appropriate. The signature should start
directly above the first letter of the signature line in the space between
the close and the signature line. Use blue or black ink.
- Initials,
Enclosures, Copies -
Initials are to be included if someone other than the writer types the letter.
If you include other material in the letter, put 'Enclosure', 'Enc.', or '
Encs. ', as appropriate, two lines below the last entry. cc means a copy
or copies are sent to someone else.
|
American Style
|
British Style
|
|
|
Heading
|
According to the format but
usually aligned to the left |
The heading is usually placed
in the top right corner of the letter (sometimes centred) |
|
Date
|
October 19, 2005 (month-day-year)
According to the format but usually aligned to the left (two lines below the heading) |
19 October 2005 (day-month-year)
Usually placed directly (or 1 blank line) below the heading. |
|
Salutation
|
Dear Mr./Ms. Smith:
Dear Sir or Madam: Gentlemen: After the salutation there is a colon (:) |
Dear Mr./Ms. Smith,
Dear Sir or Madam, Dear Sirs, After the salutation there is a comma (,) |
|
Complimentary close
|
Sincerely,
Sincerely yours, Yours truly, |
Sincerely,
Yours sincerely, Yours faithfully, |
Seven
Siblings Limited
17
Sweet Road, West Bandung Tlp. 022-8765432 Post Code 41134
July
9, 2013
Purchase
Order
Toko
Englet
11
Main Street
San
Fransisco, USA
ZIP
CODE 91234
Attention : Miss Kim Jackson
Dear Miss Jackson :
Please accept this purchase order for the following :
|
No.
|
Product
|
Quantity
|
Unit
Price
|
Total
|
|
1
|
Single
Brush Polisher Colombia 400
|
4
|
$
3,000
|
$
12,000
|
|
2
|
Extractor
SX 144
|
4
|
$
2,000
|
$
8,000
|
|
|
|
|
Total
|
$
20,000
|
We require shipment by August 17, 2013 to :
PT Pama
No. 1 Jl. Cileungsi,
Bogor, Indonesia
Post Code 40156
Please refer to this order as "purchase order # SS01234. Should you need more information, please contact me at 62-22-756756 at your earliest convenience or email me at siblings@seven.com.
Sincerely,
Dede Prana
Purchasing Manager
Ref
:
