Business Correspondence: Meaning & Types of Business Correspondence (2024)

Suppose you are given a course project at your college. There are six people in each respective group. Suppose you and your five other friends decided to go for a topic. How will you contact them? Is it always possible to meet them? Is it always possible to talk to them?

Suppose you want to ask something to your professor. Suppose he is not in the town that time. How will you clear your doubt? Will you wait for him to return? No! You can reach to them by texting them or writing emails.

Business Correspondence

Just as we express our views, opinions, thoughts, and idea through writing. Business persons also feel the need of expressing themselves. It is not always possible for them to remember each and every detail in the business.

They use the simplest way of expressing i.e., written correspondence. A written correspondence in the business world is the business correspondence.

Meaning of Business Correspondence

Any communication in the form of the letter is correspondence. Any person related to a business expresses oneself though business correspondence. One can also ask any doubt or uncertainty through business correspondence.

A businessman writes and receives letters in his day to day life. A correspondence between two organizations or within an organization comes under this category. A letter to a supplier, complaint letters, letter of inquiry, job application letters are some of its examples.

Importance of Business Correspondence

A business correspondence has numbers of importance. Its most important feature is the ease of reaching and communicating with different parties. It is not always possible to meet persons face to face.

A business correspondence helps to meet some organizational goals. One can achieve the objectives through it. Let us study some of them in details.

1. Maintaining a Proper Relationship

It is not always possible for any business or organization to reach to any person in particular. This will cost any business. Here, the business correspondence will be a rescue for any business.

It helps in maintaining the proper relationships between the parties. Business correspondence strengthens the business. It also helps in the internal communication. It makes communication within the organization more clear and precise.

2. Serves as Evidence

Any written form of communication serves as evidence. A business correspondence helps the person in a business to keep a record of all the facts. These written records will serve as evidence.

3. Create and Maintain Goodwill

It helps in creating and maintaining goodwill between a business and a customer. Any letter to enquire, complaint, suggestion or feedbacks helps a company to grow and maintain goodwill.

4. Inexpensive and Convenient

It is a cheap and convenient form of business communication.

5. Formal Communication

A business communication serves as a formal communication between two persons. It may be a seller and a buyer. It can be between an employee and the employer. The language used is formal and logical.

It helps in removing the ambiguity and the doubts of the person involved in the business. The formal communication in business is followed and acceptable.

6. Helps in the Expansion of Business

A business correspondence helps a business to achieve the set goal. It also ensures the expansion of a business. With no waste of time and proper utilization of manpower and resources, a business can expand.

Any information regarding some resources or any product or market can be easily done. Even the news of the expansion of business can be spread by it.

Types of Business Correspondence

A correspondence is of many types. Let us get ourselves familiar with some of them.

1. Internal Correspondence

It refers to the correspondence between the individuals, departments, or branches of the same organization.

2. External Correspondence

It refers to the correspondence between two individuals. These are not of the same organization. Any correspondence outside the organization is external correspondence. Customer and suppliers, banks, educational institutions, government departments come under this category.

3. Routine Correspondence

It refers to the correspondence on routine manners. A correspondence made for inquiries, orders, replies, acknowledgments, invitation, and appointment letters are routine correspondence.

4. Sales Correspondence

It refers to the correspondence related to the sale. Sales letters, sales reports, invoice, and confirmation of orders are sale correspondence. Delivery letters, statement of accounts etc. are also some of its examples.

5. Personalized Correspondence

It refers to the correspondence based on emotional factors. Letters of the request, recommendation, and congratulations are personalized correspondence. Letter of introduction, granting and the refusal of terms are some of its examples.

6. Circulars

It refers to the communication of common matter to a large number of persons or firms. Circulars, notices of tenders, change of address, an opening of the new branch come under this category. An introduction of new products is also its example.

Solved Example onBusiness Correspondence

Which of the followings are not a business correspondence? Why?

• Emails
• Memos
• Written communication
• Telephonic Conversation
• Face to face communication

Solution: Telephonic conversation and face to face communication. A correspondence is a written communication between persons. Any oral communication is not a business correspondence.