You recently organized an all-day meeting for your company, which took place in a local hotel. In their feedback, participants at the meeting said they liked the hotel, but they were unhappy about the food served for launch. Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter: - Say what the participant liked about the hotel. - Explain why they were unhappy about the hotel. - Suggest what the manager should do to improve the food in the future.
Sample Response
Dear Sir,
I am writing this letter to let you know about the feedback we received from our invitees about the full-day meeting I arranged in your hotel last month. I hope you will consider this and do the needful.
Let me tell you in more detail. First of all, our guests really liked the ambiance and sitting arrangements in your hotel. I must mention that they specifically loved the air conditioning of the conference hall. However, many of them complained about the food and beverages. This was an utter disappointment for me as I was told that you had got the best taste in this particular area. It was more embarrassing for me as some of our valuable clients were having stomach infections after having dinner.
It would be great if you, as a manager, could do a quality check before buying vegetables and other grains. Furthermore, your food must be a pleasure for tastebuds. Please get in touch if you require more information on the feedback.
I hope you will be considerate particularly about the food you serve in future.
Yours faithfully,
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use precise wording Original: do the needful Suggested revision: take appropriate action Why it matters: This wording is clearer and more natural in an international formal letter.
- 2. Correct collocation Original: sitting Suggested revision: seating Why it matters: Seating arrangements is the standard phrase for how chairs and places are organized.
- 3. Use correct preposition Original: of Suggested revision: in Why it matters: Use in to identify the location of the air conditioning.
- 4. Correct verb form Original: were having stomach infections Suggested revision: developed stomach infections Why it matters: The simple past describes the illness that occurred after the meal more accurately.
- 5. Improve formal phrasing Original: do a quality check Suggested revision: conduct quality checks Why it matters: Conduct quality checks is a more natural formal collocation for a hotel procedure.
- 6. Correct category wording Original: vegetables and other grains Suggested revision: vegetables and grains Why it matters: Other incorrectly suggests that vegetables are a type of grain.
- 7. Use correct preposition Original: on Suggested revision: about Why it matters: Information is requested about a topic rather than on it in this context.
- 8. Clarify requested action Original: be considerate particularly about the food you serve Suggested revision: pay particular attention to the food you serve Why it matters: This wording makes the requested response to the food complaint more direct.
- 9. Use neutral salutation Original: Dear Sir Suggested revision: Dear Sir or Madam Why it matters: A neutral salutation is appropriate because the manager's gender is not given.
- 10. Use precise wording Original: our guests really liked Suggested revision: the participants particularly appreciated Why it matters: This wording identifies the people from the meeting and uses a more formal verb.
- 11. Make wording concise Original: I must mention that they specifically loved Suggested revision: They particularly appreciated Why it matters: The revision removes unnecessary framing and retains the positive feedback.
- 12. Clarify the reference Original: However, many of them Suggested revision: However, many participants Why it matters: Naming the participants avoids a vague pronoun reference when the focus shifts to complaints.
Suggested Rewrites
- do the needful take appropriate action
- sitting seating
- of in
- were having stomach infections developed stomach infections
- do a quality check conduct quality checks
- vegetables and other grains vegetables and grains
Why this response received Band 7.0
The letter is clearly organised, maintains a suitably formal tone, and addresses all three requested points with relevant details about the venue, the illness, and food checks. Its main limitation is imprecise or unnatural wording, which sometimes weakens the description of the food problem and proposed remedy. The highest-priority improvement is to explain the food defects more specifically and express the recommendations in natural, precise collocations.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The purpose is clear, all three bullet points are addressed, and the formal tone is appropriate, although the food complaint and remedy lack some specificity.
Explain exactly what was wrong with the food and give a more concrete improvement, such as checking freshness and revising preparation standards.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information progresses logically from positive feedback to the complaint and recommendations, with clear paragraphing and generally effective linking.
Use less formulaic transitions and connect each proposed action more directly to the specific food problem it is meant to solve.
Lexical Resource
The letter shows a sufficient range of topic-appropriate vocabulary, but several collocations such as ‘sitting arrangements’ and ‘got the best taste’ are awkward.
Choose natural combinations such as ‘seating arrangements,’ ‘a reputation for excellent food,’ and ‘suffered stomach problems.’
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A variety of simple and complex sentence forms is used with good control, and the few grammatical slips do not impede meaning.
Improve control of tense and aspect in phrases such as ‘were having stomach infections’ and proofread prepositions and article use.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You recently organized an all-day meeting for your company, which took place in a local hotel. In their feedback, participants at the meeting said they liked the hotel, but they were unhappy about the food served for launch. Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter:
- Say what the participant liked about the hotel.
- Explain why they were unhappy about the hotel.
- Suggest what the manager should do to improve the food in the future.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.