Writing (Business and Financial Communication)
The Writing domain tests whether you can produce clear, appropriately formal business and financial communication under time pressure: client emails, internal memos, short reports, responses to complaints and summaries of data. Marking focuses on task achievement (every bullet covered), organisation, register, grammatical accuracy and range of structure and vocabulary.
Structure that scores
- Subject line: specific and actionable - "Action required: KYC documents by 30 June".
- Opening sentence states the purpose immediately: "I am writing to confirm...", "I am writing to update you on...".
- Body: one idea per paragraph; for reports use short numbered headings.
- Closing: name the next step, the owner and the deadline.
Register and consistency
- Avoid slang, exclamation marks, emojis and "Hey" in first-contact or formal writing.
- Keep contractions limited in reports; they are acceptable in routine emails to known clients.
- Choose one term per concept ("client" or "customer") and keep it throughout.
- Format dates and figures consistently; state the currency once and then use the symbol.
Worked example
Prompt: write to a client about a delayed settlement and request two missing documents. Model opening: "Dear Ms Chen, I am writing to update you on the settlement of your trade dated 12 May. The trade is currently on hold because two documents - the signed confirmation and the beneficiary bank details - have not yet been received." Reasoning: the purpose is in the first sentence; the reference is precise (trade dated 12 May); the reason and the exact missing items are named; the passive "have not yet been received" reports the facts without assigning blame. The closing would then set a deadline and offer a contact point.
Traps that cost marks
- Covering only one of two required bullets, which caps the task-achievement score.
- Copying the prompt's wording verbatim instead of reformulating it.
- Sentences so long that the main verb is lost; split them.
- No explicit action request or deadline, so the reader cannot act.
- Register slips: slang in a formal report, or heavy legalese in a routine client email.
- Inconsistent figures or dates between the body and the summary line.