Application Letters

An application letter is a business document, part of the important correspondence between applicant and organization, firm or company, institution or various boards and committees that publish a vacancy. It is a paper frequently used in all levels of government, commerce, industry, and academia. Students planning to correspond in any undertaking require the understanding of the main points of a job application letter.

Writing a correct job application letter is a useful talent for anyone planning to enter an administrative role in any industry or profession. In order to write a job application letter in the most exact manner, the writer must understand that letters employers are familiar with nowadays were established gradually to become effectual, succinct and workable documents.

A good job application letter addresses all the points stated in the job advertisement. The manner in which a person responds to a commercial announcement alerts recruiters and employers to their capacity, their level of education, personality, and professionalism.

A standard, generic form for the letter of application is (1) to introduce yourself, (2) to state briefly what you want, what position you are applying for, (3) to state clearly why you are qualified for the position, (4) to elaborate as to your special assets, why you are particularly well suited for the job, (5) to highlight your most important training, experiences, skills and accomplishments, and (6) to end with a compelling statement as to why the employer ought to hire you.

Steps for Writing a Job Application Letter

The traditional format of a business letter applies to most job application letters. The layout is the first thing noticed: those who receive business letters such as covering letters for a job application expect them to be set out in a specific way.

If everything is set out appropriately, the employer or recruiter concentrates on the content and meaning. If your arrangement on the sheet of paper seems incorrect, unusual or non-traditional, the prospective employer is distracted from the implicit message.

1. Understand the format, and fill in the content according to that form.

2. Make a list of all the information to go in the letter.

3. Be brief, so the letter can fit onto a single page. Set out the text with wide margins. Position your address, the employer’s address, and the subject of the letter in the correct spaces. The subject must be centered at the top.

4. Start by stating the reason for the letter.

5. Contain the important parts in three paragraphs, to ensure the main points are clear,.

6. Most job application letters have no letterhead, because they originate from an individual. So the message must be placed in the middle, underneath the applicant’s address on the right, between a greeting and a salutation.

7. The greeting starts, “Dear [Name]”. Always address the employer by their formal name. It is “Dear Mr. Jones,” not “Dear Larry.”

8. The salutation must be formal, such as “Yours faithfully,” or “Yours sincerely.”

9. Type your full name in upper case below your legal signature.

10. Job application letters are customarily formatted in block style, without indents, with all lines aligned left. Aligning all paragraphs to the left is more legible than full justification.

Example Application Letter

April 2015

MS. PASSANA PONG

The Administrative Officer

The Royal Thai Embassy in Manila

Dear Ms. Pong:

I am a Communications graduate of the University of the Philippines-Diliman with several years of working experience gained from some of the Philippines’ reputable private firms, a non-governmental organization, and government.

I am writing to apply for the position of Executive Assistant advertised on jobstreet.com.ph on 10 May 2010. This position particularly interests me because it would enable me to make full use of my administrative and organizational skills. I have well-developed written and oral communication skills that can be very useful in carrying out the duties for the above-mentioned position.

On top of these competencies, I adhere to a work ethic and can effectively interact with people across all levels of the organizational structure. I believe I can be an asset to your organization.

My resume is enclosed with this cover letter. It shows my overall expertise and experience in the field. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss my suitability for the position and comply with your other requirements. I can be contacted during working hours at (632) 857-0100 local 1101.

Thank you very much

Inquiry Letter

Be courteous. Remember, by making this request you are imposing on the reader’s time and/or resources. Don’t send an inquiry letter for information you could easily find out by other means, such as with a quick search on the Internet.

Your letter can be fairly short, but it should be long enough to adequately explain what it is that you are inquiring about and what you want the reader to do in response to your letter.

Generally, give at least a couple of weeks for the person, company, or organization to respond to your inquiry before you send a follow-up letter or make a follow-up phone call.

If appropriate, you may want to mention that you will keep confidential any information provided. (This may increase the likelihood that the reader will respond to your inquiry.)

Make it as easy as possible for the person to respond to your request. This might mean offering to pay for any needed photocopies or mailing costs, or perhaps including a self-addressed, stamped envelope; necessary forms, questionnaires, or other documents; and so forth.

Make sure to include contact information so that the person can easily get in touch with you if necessary, such as your cell or home phone number or e-mail address.

When the person responds to your inquiry, it is a good idea to send a quick note of thanks expressing your appreciation and telling how the information helped (or can help) you. If appropriate, you may want to offer to return the favor in the future.

How to respond to an inquiry letter:

Specifically indicate the inquiry that was made, as you understand it.
Express your appreciation for the person’s interest.
If possible, personally respond to the inquiry. You might want to include with your response letter any brochures, catalogs, reports, or other helpful information available.
If appropriate, clearly describe any action you feel the person should take and the reason(s) for such a recommendation. (However, you may want to use caution because of any possible liability you might incur for offering such advice.)
If you cannot personally answer the person’s question, let him/her know that you have contacted the person who can and that he/she will shortly be in touch with the reader. If this is not possible, express your regret for being unable to help the reader, and try to find out for him/her the contact information for someone who can help.
If appropriate, you might want to include additional information about your organization, the products or services you sell, or the subject matter of the inquiry, beyond the scope of the original inquiry.
Close by saying that you would be happy to help the reader in the future if he/she needs further assistance or by wishing him/her well in his/her endeavor or project, etc.

Inquiry Letter Tips:

Begin your letter by stating who you are and giving your status or position (such as student, researcher, interested consumer, etc.), and tell how you found out about the individual or entity that you are writing to.
Clearly state what it is that you are inquiring about and what you would like the recipient of your letter to do. Make your inquiry as specific as possible.
You might want to briefly explain the purpose of your letter or what you hope to accomplish. Such an explanation may prompt the recipient of your letter to act more quickly.
If appropriate, consider mentioning the letter recipient’s qualifications for responding to your inquiry (this may prompt him/her to act when he/she might otherwise be hesitant to do so). For example, you could explain that you are writing to the reader because she is a leader in her field and the accepted authority on the subject you are interested in.
Include the date by which you need the information, services, etc., that you are requesting, and indicate that you await the reader’s response.
Thank the person for his/her time.

Example Inquiry Letters

PT. LESTARI MAKMUR SEJAHTERA

Jalan cinta raya No. 14

MADIUN 11730

August 1st 2012

Dear Sirs,

Our company is a company that specializes in selling various leather products such as leather wallets, leather shoes and so forth. We will soon open several branches in various areas in Java. although we will open branches in various regions, we would like distribution of goods to be shipped for sale in our company running smoothly and the goods we sell good quality goods with prices that can reach the surrounding community.

Some time ago we read a profile of your company, your company produces goods in a newspaper. We are very interested to cooperate with your company. Therefore we are very happy if your company is willing to send the list of goods and price list production. If your company has regional branches in Central Java and East Java, we also ask to include the address of a branch office in your company so that later if your office area is very easy walking distance from our company, we can order the goods from the nearest branch office .

We also hope that your company can provide special offers for our company. We are expecting a reply from you to cooperate with our company.

Yours Faithfully,

Complaint Letter

Include your name, address, and home and work phone numbers.
Type your letter if possible. If it is handwritten, make sure it is neat and easy to read.
Make your letter brief and to the point. Include all important facts about your purchase, including the date and place where you made the purchase and any information you can give about the product or service such as serial or model numbers or specific type of service.
State exactly what you want done about the problem and how long you are willing to wait to get it resolved. Be reasonable.
Include all documents regarding your problem. Be sure to send COPIES, not originals.
Avoid writing an angry, sarcastic, or threatening letter. The person reading your letter probably was not responsible for your problem but may be very helpful in resolving it.
Keep a copy of the letter for your records.

Example Complaint Letters

David Jones
123 Anywhere Street
Best Town, Best State 88888
1/1/2010
Mr. Bill Stevenson
President
Rain Gutters R Us
456 Somewhere Road
Best Town, Best State 88888
Dear Mr. Stevenson:
Your company recently installed rain gutters on my house in Country Meadows. We paid $4545 for new gutters on every face of our two-story home. The work took place on 10/2/2009. Attached is a copy of the invoice showing the work was completed and paid in full.
We were very happy with the service we received and your crew was very kind and professional. Unfortunately, during the heavy snow storm we had last week, our new rain gutters on the north side of our house fell off. While I am not an expert, it appears that several of the fasteners where inadvertently left out during installation.
We ask that you send your crews back out to complete the job that was paid for, replacing the gutters that have detached and inspecting the remainder of the gutters for similar issues.
We look forward to hearing back from you in the next several days to confirm when you will be returning. We expect to see your crew within the next three weeks and will wait until then before contacting the state contractor’s license board.
Feel free to contact me at (123) 456-7890 to schedule or visit or with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
David Jones

Purchase Order Letter

As per the life cycle of a product an enquiry about it does not always end in a sale. Once a customer likes a product it results in a sale but only through a verbal order or a written one. A Purchase Order is the document that initiates the purchase and helps close the sale. In today’s times of multiple companiesavailable for all products, there is some amount of trust in the customer and even a verbal confirmation of an order is acceptable. But most of the times it is only against some advance.

A Purchase Order Letter is a document that confirms to the seller that the customer in a specified time frame requires a particular quantity of the product. Nowadays one company to the other confirming the order, which is generally a bulk order, writes Purchase Order Letters or it is written by an individual to a company again in the case of placing a bulk order.

DOS AND DON’T’S OF PURCHASE ORDER LETTER

A Purchase Order Letter should be written as soon as the decision for the purchase has been made
The company with whom the order is being placed should be given enough time to execute the order
The letter should clearly indicate the product code or item number, the size and the quantities being ordered
The date when the Purchase Order Letter is being generated is very important because that identifies when the order was placed
If the order is being placed by a company then it usually should be in a Purchase Order format
The Purchase Order Letter should also indicate the date by when the order is expected to be executed or delivered
The mode of delivery of the material should also be identified in the letter
The letter should also carry the mode of payment by which the payment will be made
If any advance has already been paid against the order, it must be mentioned in the Purchase Order Letter
The address where the order has to be delivered should be very clearly mentioned in the letter along with any landmarks, if any, to locate the address
The Purchase Order Letter should give the details of the costing of the price including taxes, etc so that there is no confusion while making the payment
The name of the company or dealer with which the order is being placed should be clearly written on the letter to avoid any miscommunication of details
There is no scope for any grammatical or punctuation errors in the Purchase Order Letter
The contents of the letter must be carefully read through to ensure that the order details have been correctly mentioned

Example Purchase Order Letters

Cisitu Lama Street
Bandung
September 7, 2014
Subject: Puchase order for 500 pairs of shoes
Dear Sir or Madam
This is with reference to our meeting on September 3, 2014 when we visited your factory in connection with purchase of shoes for our school children.
We are pleased to place an order for 500 pairs of black shoes item number 555 and size 34. We would appreciate if the order is delivered at the address given below latest by September 26, 2014 so that we can start selling it to children before the holiday.
The terms and conditions of the purchase order as follows:
1. Order for 500 pairs of black shoes with item number 555 and size 34.
2. Delivery will be made at the address mentioned below.
3. The order should be delivered latest by September 26, 2014.
4. 100% payment will be made on delivery.
5. If the order is not delivered by the due date, please consider it as cancelled.
6. The price per pair, as mutually agreed, is IDR. 75,000 inclusive of all taxes.
We hope to have a long business relationship with you.
Please feel free to contact the undersigned for any clarifications or discrepancy in the order details.
Best regards,