Use this guidance as an adjunct to the Federal Plain Language Guidelines. Show
Identify your audienceIt is easy to identify your audience in a letter; it is usually the person you are writing to. However, you must also consider any additional readers. For instance, if you write to a member of congress about a constituent problem, the office of the member may attach a cover letter and send it on to the constituent without any further explanation. Therefore, you must write so that both audiences understand your letter. Organize letters to meet your users’ needsOnce you’ve decided who your readers are and what they need to know, the next step is to present the information in an order that will make it easy to understand. Although letters will differ depending on the audience or the subject, your letter should usually have the same basic elements: Start with the main messageAlways start by putting your main message up front. Some people feel that bad news should be buried. But research shows that readers will always look for the bottom line. When you bury the main message, you only make it harder on your readers. Readers at Department of Veterans Affairs gave this example. When the message was buried, readers learned to turn to the second page to search for the old and new rating. If their rating was unchanged, they knew their request was denied:
Letters may need a sympathetic openingResearch shows that the tone of a letter does affect how readable it is. A cold mechanical letter can cause readers to turn off before they read your message. That does not mean that we write to a customer the same way we would write to a relative. But it does mean you should use compassion and common sense. After the main message, use an overview sentenceThe overview sentence is about the content. It’s one sentence that acts as a kind of table of contents. If the main message is “Your benefits have been denied. . .”; the overview sentence might be, “This letter will explain why we denied your benefits, what you can do if you think we’re wrong, and how long you have to reapply.” You should present the information in the letter in the same order as in the overview sentence. Think of your letter as guidance to get from Point A to Point B.
Letter headingsQuestion headings are especially helpful in your letters because they provide the questions that readers are asking and guide readers to the answers. Statement Headings are the next best choice because they are still very specific. Topic headings are the most formal so many times management is more comfortable with them. Use pronounsIt’s especially important in letters to engage the reader by using pronouns. Refer to the reader as you, but not if it sounds accusatory or insulting. That doesn’t mean that you should put your letter in passive voice. Instead, put the emphasis on the agency by using “we”.
Choose the right tone for your lettersMake sure your tone doesn’t turn your readers off and prevent them from responding to your documents the way you need them to. Tone is important in all documents, but especially in letters and notices. The tone of your letter will project your attitude to the reader. Although you can’t hear it, tone in a letter has much the same effect as it has when you speak to someone. What’s your reaction when someone speaks to you in a cold tone? Do you tune out of the conversation; pay more attention to the tone than the content; or walk away? Readers do much the same thing. When the tone of a letter is cold or harsh, many times readers will put down the letter and pick up the telephone. Create a professional, compassionate toneThere are several different techniques that you can use to create a professional, compassionate tone, depending on the content of your letter:
Use you and active voice in your letters to focus on your readerOne of the worst tone offenders in government writing is referring to people as if they were inanimate objects. Nothing turns people off more than being spoken to as if they were just a number. In the example below, the only two changes to the sentences are the use of “you” and active voice.
Can you feel the difference in the tone? Use a sympathetic openingUse a sympathetic opening only when appropriate. For instance, if you are writing to a recent widow who is asking questions about benefits, you may want to start the letter by saying: “We are sorry to hear about the death of your husband.” If, however, this is the fourth letter you’ve sent to the same widow, don’t just add the line by rote. ApologizeIf you are writing to correct a mistake your agency made, you should start out by apologizing for the error. Or, at the least, acknowledge that you made a mistake. And please do it in active voice.
A sympathetic opening should be no more than a line or two. The sympathetic opening is important, but it should not bury the main message. Delivering bad newsWhen delivering bad news, it helps to temper the situation by prefacing the statement with a term such as “we regret” or “we’re sorry” or “unfortunately”. For example, you might write, “Unfortunately, we cannot approve your application.” In each situation, you must determine which term you find more comfortable. Is it necessary to deliver bad news in this manner? No. But it sets a tone that may keep your customer reading. And if you think about it, this is the way we usually handle things in person. In person we frequently say, I’m sorry but you don’t qualify for this benefit. But many times in letters we just jump right in with “You are not qualified for this benefit.” Which version would you rather receive? Tense in your lettersWhile in general you should write using present tense, letters may require you to tell a story in the tense that it occurred. If, however, you are giving instructions, present tense is the easiest for your readers to understand. Expressing requirementsWhile in general we prefer must as the clearest way to express an obligation, in letter we must consider tone. You can use one of the following to convey your message clearly, depending on the attitude you want to convey to your readers. For instance:
The first sentence is the least forceful; the third is the strongest. But even if you don’t use “must” as a requirement, avoid shall_._ Divide your letters into short sections and use lots of informative headingsHeadings will help you keep your sections short, especially if your headings are very specific. Look at your letter when it’s completed. If you see sections that are too long, check to see if everything in that section belongs under your heading. If not, it usually means that either your heading is too general or you’ve chunked information under a heading that does not belong there. Too generalHelpful HeadingsHeadings are helpful because they guide a reader to find information. They are also helpful because they help the writer to organize. Headings come in several types including topic, statement, and questions. All of these headings help outline the document for both the reader and writer. An example of a topic heading is “Benefit Information.” And example of a statement is… Specific and conciseWhy are Headings Helpful?Headings are helpful because they guide a reader to find information. They are also helpful because they help the writer to organize. Headings help outline the document for both the reader and writer. Headings come in several types including:
An example of a topic heading is “Benefit Information.” An example of a statement heading is… Limit each paragraph to one topicLimiting paragraphs to one idea is an important key to clarity. Here’s a segment from a Veterans Administration’s letter. The letter and the rewrite are taken from their ReaderFocus Writing Handbook. In the first example, the original in one paragraph is not only overwhelming, it’s hard to understand just what you are entitled to without reading it several times. One paragraph exampleIn the first example, so much information is given in the paragraph that it’s hard to understand any of it.
Two paragraph exampleIn this second example, the information is broken into two separate paragraphs: one about the type of protection you can receive; the other about how to qualify. Notice that the first paragraph is even easier to follow because it uses a vertical list.
Use lots of lists in lettersVertical lists highlight important topics and make it easy for the reader to identify all elements in a series of requirements or procedures. They can be especially important in letters. In the example below, we’ve created a checklist for the reader. BeforeWhen you come to class you should bring a tablet, a pen or pencil, the form you just completed, two copies of your 171, and a resume if you have one. AfterWhen you come to class you should bring the following:
Which one of the following guidelines should be followed when writing order acknowledgement messages?Which of the following guidelines should be followed when writing order acknowledgement messages? End the message on a goodwill note and appropriate extra information.
Which of the following guidelines should be followed when writing a thankWhich of the following guidelines should be followed when writing a thank-you message? The message should be brief and direct. Claim messages primarily involve: unfulfilled customer expectations.
Which one of the following guidelines should be followed when writing an effective message carrying good news?Which of the following guidelines will help create an effective good-news message? The message should be concluded with an appropriate friendly comment. What is the advantage of closing a message with a tailored ending? It helps in building more goodwill.
Which of the following guidelines should be followed when writing an effective message carrying good news quizlet?Which of the following guidelines should be followed when writing an effective message carrying good news? The objective of the message should be made clear within the first paragraph. When writing a claim that you have good reason to believe will result in an adjustment, you should use the indirect order.
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