How to address a letter

– As an administrative professional, we do 99% of the correspondence for our executive. This means that you’ll be tasked with addressing letters accurately and professionally. How you address the letters really depends upon who you’re sending letters to. Let’s discuss a few different scenarios. If you’re sending a standard letter, you’ll use a normal format of date, person’s name, company name, address, city, state, zip code, and the salutation. If you’re applying for a visa or passport for your executive, you will need to address the letter per their instructions which normally is a standard format. There will also be very specific instructions on who you address the letter to. If you’re addressing someone of nobility, be sure to use the proper title such as royal highness, your highness, duke, duchess, et cetera. If you work for a global company, how you address the person is key. For example in China, it’s important to note that the last name generally comes first in a greeting which is opposite of how we do in the United States. If you’re addressing the letter from your executive and he or she knows this person very well, a lot of times it’s fine to address them by their first name. If you’re addressing the letter from your executive and he or she is not close friends, then you need to address it as Dear Mr. X or Dear Ms. or Mrs. X. It’s also important to keep in mind that how someone wants to be addressed is often tied to the generation they grew up in. Younger generations may be fine with being addressed more informally by their first names while other generations are used to being addressed as Mr. or Mrs. and dear so and so. As an administrative professional, it’s important to know the person you’re responding to. You can easily offend someone if you don’t address them properly. And since you’re sending something on your executive’s behalf, you want to make sure that it’s correct. There are plenty of resources available online on addressing letters. But remember, a huge asset for you is your experienced assistants. A more experienced team member can easily advise you if you’re not sure exactly which direction to go.