Inquiry Letter
A document requesting information sent on
behalf of an individual or an organisation for their own respective purposes,
which can be mutually beneficial to the recipient and the sender.
The term ‘Inquiry’ is same as ‘Enquiry’. The former is more
commonly used in U.S. and the latter one is more common in U.K. There are some
other terms which represent the letters; these are Letter
of Intent, Letter of Interest, Query letter, Prospecting
Letter, Pre-proposal Letter and Concept Paper.
The term ‘Cover Letter’, ‘Business Letter’, ‘Request Letter’ and ‘Sales Letter’
is also applied to an inquiry letter especially when the objective is same as
that of letter for inquiry.
A letter of inquiry serves to facilitate business operations and
satisfaction of the sender. Inquiry letters remove any misunderstanding and are
time savers, especially when two parties want to reach an understanding. The
communication towards this effect resolves the issue without any delay. With
relation to it being a ‘Pre-proposal letter’, the inquiry letter is also termed
as a ‘Condensed Version of a Proposal’. It is the outcome of the purpose
of the letter which highlights the points of a proposal instead of a
full-fledged proposal.
On an individual’s basis, these letters are sent to companies
that are willing to hire but haven't advertised job openings. It can also be a
letter addressed to editor in-charge of a publication proposing certain
literary work. It can be a letter from a student who is vying for a seat in a
college or a business that provides an internship. So, the objective of an
enquiry letter is same but its projections and audiences are different. Same
goes for its method of delivery, it can be sent via paper mail or electronic
mail.
Order
Letter
An
“Order” is an expense for the person placing the order and an income for the
one getting it. But this is not all. The company that bags the order has to
fulfill lot of commitments to ensure that it has a satisfied customer, which
can be an individual or another company. Timely delivery of the order, quality
of delivery and after sale service – are all part and parcel of getting an order.
An
Order Letter is the one that is written by the person/company placing the
request of purchase from another company. This letter comes into action only
when a detailed study of the desired product has been done in the market and
based on promised service, quality and price of the product, a decision for a
purchase has been made.
An
Order Letter should be drafted very carefully as it needs to pen down all the
terms and conditions of the purchase for the benefit of both involved parties.
It should have details such as product specifications, quantities, price agreed
upon, delivery date, late delivery clauses, etc. It should be addressed to the
person responsible for the execution of the order with a copy to the head of
department. Since it is totally an official letter it should be typed.
