CORRESPONDENT (THEORY)

A. DEFINITIONS

Style of writing, (ex: an address), in which each line starts directly

A blocked style
below the one above
Used at the end of the letter or in the header information of an email
C.c (carbon copy)
message to indicate that it is being sent to other people.
Used at the end of copies of a letter or in the header information of
B.c.c (blind carbon copy) copies of an email message to indicate that they are being sent to
other people without the named recipient knowing.
Company in which the shareholders are only responsible for the
Limited Liability (Ltd)
capital they have contributed if the company goes bankrupt.
Public Limited Company Company whose shares can be bought and sold by the public.
(PLC)
Letter of enquiry A letter request information, reply letter.
Method of payment where the seller prepares a bill in the buyer’s
Biil of exchange (B/E) name ordering them to either pay the amount when the bill is
presented, or a specified number of day, example 30-60 days.
Sight draft Bill of exchange that must be paid immediately it is presented.
A reference in which one trader gives an opinion as to the credit
Trade references
worthiness of another.
Percentage of net profit compared to total income (tỉ lệ lời bao nhiêu
Profit margin
% so với số vốn đầu tư và thu lại)
Price of goods without additional costs such as transport, insurance,
Net price
and purchase tax.
It is a letter sent along other documents to provide additional
Covering letter
information of goods or explaining the contents.
The document used for shipping goods, and usually including
Shipping document
depending on the type of transport (Bill of Lading).
- It is a shipping document that gives details of a consignment, its
destination, and the consignee. It entitles the consignee to collect
goods on arrival.
Bill of Lading (B/L) Vận đơn - Including commercial invoice, insurance certificate and any other
customs documents that maybe required in the shipment.
Example: Health Certificate (for food), EUR1 to get preferential
tarrifs, Certificate of Origin
United Kingdom The Chairman (the head of a company), A Managing Director
United States The President (the head of a company), CEO (Chief Executive Officer)
 Book or booklet giving details of goods or services offered by a
Catalogue
company, usually with a price list.
Discount To sell a bill of exchange to a bank at a percentage less than its value.
- Price reduction to a company in the same business.
Trade discount - An amount taken off the usual selling price of goods when they are
sold by a manufacturer or wholesaler to a retailer.
- Price reduction for a large order.
Quantity discount - Amount taken off the usual selling price of goods because the
buyers is purchasing a large quantity.
Amount taken off the usual selling price of goods when they are sold
Loyalty discount
to a regular customer.
Order Request from a customer to supply goods.
Sample A small amount of product offered free to a potential customer.
Terms of trade Details of conditions of sale.
Terms that the buyer and seller agree regarding discounts, method
Terms of payment
of payment, shipment and documentation.
Subsidiary A company or organization that is part of a larger one.
Customer A person who buys items from a shop or a company.
Showroom A room where companies demonstrate their products.
Estimate A prediction of how much an item or service is likely to cost.
Tender A written quotation for a large job such as building a factory.
A kind of magazine giving details about school, college and
Prospectus
university.
Person or company that buys goods from manufacturers and sells
Wholesaler
them to retailers.
Cheque that a bank draws on itself and sells to a customer.
[The customer buys a cheque from the bank for the amount he or she
Bank draft Chi phiếu
wants to pay and sends it to the supplier. Banks usually require two
of their directors’ signatures on drafts, and make a small change.]
Invoice List of goods or services that state how much must be paid for them.
Proforma invoice Invoice sent in advance of the good ordered.
An oultet A store that sells product made by one company.
Document that gives information about goods sent by air, and state
Airway bill
whether the buyer or seller is responsible for insurance.
Container A very large metal box in which goods are packed for transportation.
Quotation Price given for work to be done or a service to be provided.
Shipment Consignment [quantity of goods sent to supply an order]
Trade association Organization that represents and promotes a particular trade.
 Reference in which a person in one company gives their opinions as
Trade reference to the creditworthiness of another company in the same area of
business.
Trade price Price paid for goods by a retailers to a wholesaler or manufacture.
Document issued by a bank on a customer’s request, ordering an
Letter of credit (L/C)
amount of money to be paid to a supplier.
Statement of account List of amount paid and owned sent by a supplier to the customer.
A letter of credit that requires the seller to supply shipping
Document credit
documents to obtain payment from a bank.
Debit Sum of money paid out or owned from a bank account.
Difference between the totals of money coming into and going out of
Balance
a bank account.
A transaction when the agent bank in the buyer’s country, presents
Cash Against Documents shipping documents to the buyer and asks him or her to pay for the
(CAD) shipment before the shipping documents are handed over to the
buyer.
Ceritficate of origin (CO) A document that shows where goods were made.
Condition of sale where customer pays for the transport of the
Carriage forward (CF) goods.
Carriage paid (CP) Condition of sale where the seller pays for the transport of the
goods.
Clean bill Bill of exchange without any accompanying documents.
Cash on Delivery (COD) Buyer must pay immediately the goods are delivered.
Documents against When a bank won’t release shipping documents until a bill of
acceptance (D/A) exchange has been signed by the person receiving the goods.
The number of days within which a bill of exchange must be paid
Days after sight (D/S)
after presentation.
Due date Date by which an account should be settled.
Term established by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
Incoterm
indicating which price is being quoted to the customer.
Price of goods including additional costs such as transport, insurance,
Gross price
and purchase tax.
List of goods being sent. This repeats some of the information on a
Packing list
bill of lading, but is a separate document.
Stock exchange Market where stocks and shares are bought and sold.
Distinctive mark put on the sides of crates and boxes indicating who
Shipping mask
they belong to.
Tariff List of prices charged for goods or services.
VAT (Value Added Tax) A UK purchase tax.
B. POINTS TO REMEMBER
a) Layout of the letter

1. Sender’s address 5. Salutation

2. Date 6. Body of the letter
3. Inside address 7. Complimentary close
4. Attention line 8. Signature

b) Letter
1. The layout and presentation of your letter are important as they give the recipient the first
impression of your company's efficiency.
2. Write both the sender's and the recipient's address in as much detail as possible and in the correct
order.
3. Make sure you use the recipient's correct title in the address and salutation. If in doubt as to
whether a woman is single or married, use Ms.
4. Do not write the month of the date in figures.
5. Choose the correct salutation and complimentary close:
Dear Sir/Madam with Yours faithfully Dear Mr/Ms Smith with Yours sincerely
6. Make sure your references are correct.
7. Make sure your signature block tells your reader what he or she needs to know about you.
c) Emails
1. Email is very fast and effective, but there are areas where it is preferable to use letters, e.g.
personal, confidential, or legal correspondence.
2. Email addresses usually give the name of the person or department, then the @ (at) symbol,
followed by the name of the company or institution, and finally the domain names, which
indicate the type of organization and the country from which the message was sent.
3. The language of emails can be quite informal, but if you do not know the recipient well, it is
better to keep to the usual writing conventions. You can become more informal as you establish a
working relationship.
4. It is possible to use special abbreviations, e.g. TLAs and emoticons, but do not confuse your
recipient by using abbreviations he or she may not know or understand.
d) Faxes
1. Fax is an open system, so it should not be used for confidential correspondence.
2. Write clearly when sending handwritten messages.
3. Faxes are copies, and cannot be used when original documents are required.
4. Prepare your transmission carefully before you send it.
5. In general, the language of faxes is much like that of letters, although faxes can be briefer and
more direct, like email messages.
 e) Style, content
1. Fax is an open system, so it should not be used for confidential correspondence.
2. Write clearly when sending handwritten messages.
3. Faxes are copies, and cannot be used when original documents are required.
4. Prepare your transmission carefully before you send it
5. In general, the language of faxes is much like that of letters, although faxes can be briefer and
more direct, like email messages.
f) Reply a letter of enquiry
1. In salutations, use the customer's name rather than Dear Sir/Madam.
2. Let the customer know early in the letter whether or not you can help them.
3. Make sure that you have supplied all the information you think will help your customer
including, ifrelevant, catalogue and price lists.
4. Thank the customer for contacting you, and encourage further enquiries.
5. When giving a customer a quotation, in addition to the price quote transport and insurance costs,
any discounts, method of payment, and delivery date.
6. Do not promise a delivery date that you cannot keep.
g) Order
1. Even if you use an official order form when placing an order, it is a good idea to send a covering
letter confirming terms of payment, discounts, delivery, and packing.
2. Orders should be acknowledged as soon as they are received. Email is a convenient way of
acknowledging them quickly.
3. When sending an advice of despatch, remember that, if collection requires original documents,
you cannot fax these or attach them to an email message.
4. If there are problems with delivery, tell your customer immediately what you intend to do to
correct them. Apologize for the inconvenience.
5. If you turn an order down, be polite, and generalize the terms you use so that the customer does
not think this refusal only applies to them.
h) Memos

Memos are written internal communications which advise or inform staff of company policies and
procedures.
They are usually quite formal and impersonal in style. Memorandum is the full term, but the abbreviated
form
is usually used.

1. Memos are usually quite formal and impersonal in style.

2. They can be addressed to an individual or to a group of people within a company.
 3. A memo should clearly indicate at the top who it is to, who it is from what it is about, and the
date it was written.
i) Complaint letter
1. A complaint letter is written when the purchaser does not fine the goods up to his satisfaction. It
is
normally written by the purchase or when he receives wrong, defective or damaged goods or
receive incorrect quantity of goods
2. A complaint letter informs the company that the customers is dissatisfied with the good or
services. – How to write a complaint letter.
j) How to respond a complaint letter
- Respond specifically to the issues brought up by the customers.
- Provide a specific apology that acknowledges any mistakes on your end.
- State exactly what you intend to do (or have already done) to make it right.
- Propose how you will improve the customer’s experience in the future.

Sort out the jumbled words below to make sentences typical of business correspondence. Add capital
letters and punctuation as necessary. (2 points)

1. 6,000/ would /to /place/ like/ an/order/ units/ you/ for /with/we

2. allow/ cash/a /within/2%/we/ discount / payment / month/ for/ one

3. pleasure / price list / enclosing /have /a /catalogue/ I/ our /spring/ and/ in

4. further / please/ if /us/ information you / any /contact/ need

5. exceeding give /£15,000 /discounts/ quantity/orders/ on /they ?

Complete each unfinished sentence so that it means the same as the one before it. (2 points)

1. Could you tell us whether we can rely on them to settle their accounts promptly?

Could you tell us whether they ...……………………………………………………………………………

2. I'm afraid that the manager will leave before you arrive.

By the time.……………………………………………………………………………………………….…...
3. I am very sorry that I didn't reply sooner.

I apologize for.…………………………………………………………………………………………………
4. I am not going to apply for a transfer because I haven't got the right qualifications.

If………………………………………………………………………………………………………………