Informal Letter Writing

There are two types of letters. They are formal letters and informal letters. 

A formal letter is considered as an official letter written in professional or important situations. 

It is written in formal language, and it has a specific format. 

Letters to the manager, head of an institution, teacher, authorities, colleagues, government, letters of complaint, letters requesting or providing information, job application, etc., are formal letters. 

Formal letter writing has certain rules and conventions. 

Informal letters are written in non-professional situations. These include letters to our friends and family. 

Difference between an informal letter and a formal letter 

Features of a formal letter: 

1. Sender’s address 

The sender’s address is mentioned in the top left corner. This does not include the name of the sender. Street address, city, and zip code are included in the sender’s address. The address should be left-justified. 

2. Date 

Date shows the date on which the letter is written. Date is written beneath the sender’s address after leaving a line. It should be left-justified. It is usually written by mentioning the month before the day. For example: March 10, 2021. 

3. Inside address 

The inside address is the address of the recipient. It begins one line below the date. If you know the name of the person, it is better to include personal titles like Ms., Mrs., Mr., or Dr. 

4. Salutation 

After the address, we should leave a line and write the salutation. The name in the inside address can be used in the salutation too. If you know the person and address him/her by the first name, you can use the first name in the salutation followed by a colon (For example: Dear Bob:). 

In other cases, you should use the personal title and the last name followed by a colon (For example: Dear Ms. Poppins). You can also use the person’s full name (For example: Dear Matt Winston) if you don’t know the gender or Sir/Madam (Dear Sir/Madam) if you do not know the name of the person. 

5. Subject 

The subject is placed beneath the salutation. It is written in uppercase letters. 

6. Body 

The body of the letter should have a single spacing between the lines. A blank line should be left between each paragraph. A formal letter should be concise. The first paragraph should introduce the matter and reason for writing the letter. The second paragraph should elaborate on the matter. In the third paragraph, we can summarize the purpose and request some type of action. 

7. Closing 

The closing begins one line below the body of the letter. You should capitalize the first letter (For example: Thank you). Closing phrases such as “Yours faithfully” and “Yours sincerely” are followed by a comma. Yours faithfully is used when you do not know the name of a person. Yours sincerely is used when you know the name.  

The closing is followed by a comma (For example: Yours faithfully,). You should leave four lines between the closing and the sender’s name for a signature. After the signature, there should be the sender’s name. It is optional to put your job title and company name below your name.