When to Use Attention Line in Business Letters?
- rochaworkmarie
- Nov 19, 2023
- 1 min read
The word "attention" or its abbreviation, "attn," on the front of a business letter tells postal and administrative staff at a company who to deliver your letter. If you send a letter or package to someone's place of work, they may not have their personal mailbox or desk, so the mailroom and administrative staff need this information to sort and deliver it appropriately.
This is especially true if the person you're writing to works in a department with many employees, or if you don't know the individual's name but only their job title (for example, Director of Marketing). In such cases, an attention line can help ensure that your letter gets to the right people without wasting time searching online for the recipient's name or calling the company.
Aside from the standard rules regarding when to write an attention letter and how to place it in your envelope, an attention line can also be used if you know your recipient's name but don't want to include it in the salutation or body of the letter. Instead, insert the attention line between the date and the recipient's mailing address.
This approach also makes sense if you're sending your letter to a supervisor or other higher-level official, since many of these individuals have assistants who read their correspondence. In such cases, an attention line can skip the assistant and reach your recipient directly.
Comments