10 Differences Between Business Letter & Personal Letter
Written communications are very different from verbal ones. And when it comes to personal and professional writing both are completely different poles. A proper business communication requires being set according to professional courtesy. There are certain predetermined organizational structures that need to be followed. Personal written communication on the other hand does not require following any set rules and can be written with a lesser formal approach.
Personal business letters are written to concern personnel regarding issues where information are exchanged with suppliers, customers, banks, insurance companies and external parties. Whereas in personal letter you exchange personal or family affairs with friends, teachers, students, lovers, family and relatives.
Here are the top 10 difference seen between business letter & personal letter writing etiquette. Read along:
1. Personal business letters are formal written communication between colleagues with the same objective but work for different companies. It helps a great deal in maintaining professional relationships and developing contacts within your network. On the other hand a personal letter is a communication between friends on strictly non-official purposes. In this case, handwritten personal letter is also legible.
2. The format of personal business letters is normally kept formal. They have single spacing, are left justified with no paragraph indentation. They strictly have to be typed. Personal letters on the other hand requires following no set format. It is up to the writer to decide on what and how he wants to write the letter.
3. The language is kept very formal in personal business letters. Salutations and closings are chosen very carefully to the most professional business sentiment. Colons are used more often (for example, RE:, DATE:). Personal letters requires no such formalities. Because of their informal tone, senders often ignore the basic punctuation and capitalization standards.
4. Personal business letter has a lot of business related issues and information to include. Whereas personal letters are restricted only to personal or family affairs.
5. Personal business letter are normally kept short and to the point. One does not go for useless exaggeration in such letters as none has the time to kill in leisure in the business world. Whereas in personal letters, length does not matter. All you need is to convey the right sentiment in the right way.
6. Personal business letter are categorized according to its purpose. However, personal letters do not fall into any set categories.
7. Salutations in personal business letters are kept formal. Examples may be Sir, Dear Sir, and Dear Mr. X etc. In case of personal letter salutations are not at all formal. You may use Dear Friends, My Dear X, Dear X etc.
8. In personal business letters, the language is kept quite easy and simple. Use of professional tone is highly advocated. Whereas on the other hand, the language used in personal letter is poetic, emotional and caring.
9. Whenever any personal business letter is exchanged between organizations, a copy of it is preserves for future reference. In case of personal letter, stocking of the sent letter is not necessary.
10. Personal business letters uses a direct and persuasive method where as personal letters are only direct.