The Business Letter

Building an effective business letter requires using he correct form, making sure you aren't misspelling words an using correct grammar. To be taken seriously, you must present yourself as a competent person with a command of the written language. But getting the result you want requires something else entirely. Listen to this story about Anthony Matthews. He's been called the master of the complaint letter.

Answer the following questions:

1. Why do you think Matthews is so effective in his letter writing?
2. Why do you think Matthews chooses to write letters rather than e-mails?
3. Matthews mentions the importance if using the company representative's name. Why do you think this is important?

Listen to the following exchange between a Comcast service representative and Ryan Block, one of Comcast's customers customers.

Read this story about a 7 year old girl who complained about LEGO toys.

Think: How do you think you would have reacted if you were in Ryan's situation? After this recording went viral on the Internet, Comcast was extremely embarrassed.  Do you think writing a letter would have made a difference in the way this situation played out?

Do you think Charlotte's letter to LEGO was effective? Why or why not? 

Assignment 1:

Select one of the following situations:

1. You buy a video game console at Game Stop. After playing the console for 15 days, it will not load the games anymore. You take it back to the store only to be told that the console is only guaranteed for 2 weeks. They refuse to exchange or replace the defective console.

2. You buy a new pair of Nike Air Jordan basketball shoes at a Footlocker at a mall in Memphis. You wear your shoes in your first game and during the game your shoe falls completely apart. You find out that this is not an uncommon occurrence. You take the remains of the shoe back to the store and they refuse to replace them.

3. You just bought a Louis Vuitton handbag at your favorite store. After two weeks of use, the strap comes apart rendering the purse useless. You try to take it back to the store but they refuse to give you a replacement or a refund.

Write a business letter to the company to try to get your issue resolved. Do not simply write to complain but try to state your predicament and how you would like the company to respond. Write the letter in Google Docs and place the letter in a folder labeled Business Letters. Share the folder with me before you leave.

I will be grading your letter based on (1) correct form, (2) spelling and grammar, and (3) overall effectiveness. Use block format for your letter. Your letter is due by the end of class today.

Resources:

Owl Writing Lab - Purdue Unversity

Assignment 2:

Write a business letter to three of the following officials. Send a letter thanking them for their service to our community or country. Be specific with your praise or it will seem like flattery. Use the block format that you used in the first assignment. Place the three letters in your Google Drive folder titled Business Letters.

President Barak Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Governor Bill Haslam

1st Floor, State Capitol

Nashville,  TN   37243   

Rep. Stephen Fincher

1118 Longworth HOB

Washington, DC 20515

Senator Bob Corker
425 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C., 20510 

Senator Lamar Alexander

455 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510 

Brownsville Mayor Bill Rawls

1 N. Washington
Brownsville, TN 38012 

Haywood County Mayor A. Franklin Smith
1 N. Washington
Brownsville, TN 38012 

Teresa Russell, Superintendent - Haywood County Schools
900 E. Main Street
Brownsville, TN 38012 

State Rep. Craig Fitzhugh
301 6th Avenue North Suite 33 Legislative Plaza
Nashville, TN 37243  

State Senator Dolores R. Gresham
308 War Memorial Building
Nashville, TN 37243