| Salutation |
- Dear Mr Brown
- Dear Ms White
- Dear Sir
- Dear Sirs
- Dear Madam
- Dear Sir or Madam
- Gentlemen
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| Starting |
- We are writing to inform you that …
to confirm …
to request …
to enquire about …
- I am contacting you for the following reason.
- I recently read/heard about . . . and would like to know . . .
- Having seen your advertisement in … , I would like to …
- I would be interested in (obtaining/receiving) …
- I received your address from … and would like to …
- I am writing to tell you about …
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Referring to
previous contact |
- Thank you for your letter of March 15 …
- Thank you for contacting us.
- In reply to your request …
- Thank you for your letter regarding …
- With reference to our telephone conversation yesterday …
- Further to our meeting last week …
- It was a pleasure meeting you in London last month.
- I enjoyed having lunch with you last week in Tokyo.
- I would just like to confirm the main points we discussed on Tuesday . . .
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| Making a request |
- We would appreciate it if you would …
- I would be grateful if you could…
- Could you please send me . . .
- Could you possibly tell us/let us have…
- In addition, I would like to receive …
- It would be helpful if you could send us …
- I am interested in (obtaining/receiving…)
- I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.
- Please let me know what action you propose to take.
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| Offering help |
- We would be happy to …
- Would you like us to …
- We are quite willing to …
- Our company would be pleased to …
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| Giving good news |
- We are pleased to announce that …
- I am delighted to inform you that …
- You will be pleased to learn that …
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| Giving bad news |
- We regret to inform you that …
- I’m afraid it would not be possible to …
- Unfortunately we cannot/we are unable to …
- After careful consideration we have decided (not) to …
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| Complaining |
- I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with …
- I am writing to complain about …
- Please note that the goods we ordered on (date) have not yet arrived.
- We regret to inform you that our order n°— is now considerably overdue.
- I would like to query the transport charges which seem unusually high.
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| Apologizing |
- We are sorry for the delay in replying …
- I regret any inconvenience caused
- I would like to apologize for (the delay/the inconvenience) …
- Once again, I apologise for any inconvenience.
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| Orders |
- Thank you for your quotation of …
- We are pleased to place an order with your company for …
- We would like to cancel our order n°…
- Please confirm receipt of our order.
- I am pleased to acknowledge receipt of your order n°…
- Your order will be processed as quickly as possible.
- It will take about (three) weeks to process your order.
- We can guarantee delivery before …
- Unfortunately these articles are no longer available/are out of stock.
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| Prices |
- Please send us your price list.
- You will find enclosed our most recent catalogue and price list.
- Please note that our prices are subject to change without notice.
- We have pleasure in enclosing a detailed quotation.
- We can make you a firm offer of …
- Our terms of payment are as follows :
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|
| Referring to payment |
- Our records show that we have not yet received payment of …
- According to our records …
- Please send payment as soon as possible.
- You will receive a credit note for the sum of …
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| Enclosing documents |
- I am enclosing …
- Please find enclosed …
- You will find enclosed …
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| Closing remarks |
- If we can be of any further assistance, please let us know
- If I can help in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me
- If you require more information …
- For further details …
- Thank you for taking this into consideration
- Thank you for your help.
- We hope you are happy with this arrangement.
- We hope you can settle this matter to our satisfaction.
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Referring to future
business |
- We look forward to a successful working relationship in the future
- We would be (very) pleased to do business with your company.
- I would be happy to have an opportunity to work with your firm.
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Referring to future
contact |
- I look forward to seeing you next week
- Looking forward to hearing from you
- ” ” to receiving your comments
- I look forward to meeting you on the 15th
- I would appreciate a reply at your earliest convenience.
- An early reply would be appreciated.
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| Ending business letters
|
- Sincerely, }
- Yours sincerely, } (for all customers/clients)
- Sincerely yours, }
- Regards, (for those you already know and/or
with whom you already have a working relationship.)
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