There have been several complaints about the reception area where visitors to your company arrive. Your manager has asked you to suggest how the reception area could be improved. Write a letter to your manager. In your letter: - describe the complaints that have been made - say why the reception area is important - suggest how the reception area could be improved
Sample Response
Dear Mr Michael, I am writing with regard to the complaints we have received about our reception area over the past few weeks from our visitors. I have personally looked at the complaint logs and would like to share my suggestions to address the problem. People who had to deal with our reception area mostly expressed their dissatisfaction about the congestion and delay in getting service. They also vehemently complained about the lack of proper sitting arrangements. Finally, many of them were dissatisfied as we do not have a desk and arrangement for filling in forms in the reception room. Needless to say, the reception area and the service provided there represent our company's image. This is the first place where a potential client visits and if we fail to give a good impression, we would surely fail to increase our client base. As a solution, I would suggest that we need to extend our reception area and hire a second receptionist. Perhaps, we can annex the adjacent room to the existing reception area and provide a desk with papers, pens and other amenities so that visitors can easily fill up the forms. Thank you for giving the matter a top priority and I hope you would consider my suggestions to keep our visitors' complaints to the minimum level. Yours sincerely, Christie Barlow
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use concise verb Original: personally looked at Suggested revision: reviewed Why it matters: Reviewed is more concise and professional for examining complaint logs.
- 2. Identify visitors directly Original: People who had to deal with our reception area Suggested revision: Visitors who used our reception area Why it matters: The original phrase sounds negative and does not identify the complainants directly.
- 3. Fix preposition Original: dissatisfaction about Suggested revision: dissatisfaction with Why it matters: Dissatisfaction takes the preposition with in this construction.
- 4. Remove article Original: the congestion Suggested revision: congestion Why it matters: Congestion is used as an uncountable general problem here.
- 5. Use natural service phrase Original: delay in getting service Suggested revision: delays in receiving service Why it matters: The plural delays and receiving service express the repeated complaint naturally.
- 6. Moderate formal tone Original: vehemently complained Suggested revision: complained strongly Why it matters: Vehemently is unnecessarily emotive in a professional summary of complaint logs.
- 7. Use seating term Original: sitting arrangements Suggested revision: seating arrangements Why it matters: Seating arrangements is the standard phrase for chairs provided to visitors.
- 8. Clarify reason link Original: were dissatisfied as Suggested revision: were dissatisfied because Why it matters: Because makes the cause of the dissatisfaction explicit.
- 9. Fix coordinated nouns Original: a desk and arrangement Suggested revision: a desk or suitable area Why it matters: The original singular noun arrangement is incomplete and does not coordinate naturally with desk.
- 10. Fix relative clause Original: where a potential client visits Suggested revision: that a potential client visits Why it matters: That correctly introduces a defining relative clause after place in this sentence.
- 11. Fix conditional form Original: if we fail to give a good impression, we would surely fail Suggested revision: if we fail to make a good impression, we will likely fail Why it matters: A real future consequence requires present simple in the condition and will in the result.
- 12. Clarify room expansion Original: annex the adjacent room to Suggested revision: incorporate the adjacent room into Why it matters: Incorporate into describes combining the two spaces more naturally.
Suggested Rewrites
- personally looked at reviewed
- People who had to deal with our reception area Visitors who used our reception area
- dissatisfaction about dissatisfaction with
- the congestion congestion
- delay in getting service delays in receiving service
- vehemently complained complained strongly
Why this response received Band 7.5
The letter fully addresses all three requirements, with particularly effective detail about congestion, seating, paperwork, and practical remedies. Its main weakness is that several collocations and conditional forms are awkward, while the unbroken paragraph reduces the visibility of the task stages. The highest priority is to separate complaints, importance, and solutions into clear paragraphs and refine formal phrasing so the otherwise professional message sounds consistently natural.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Detailed feedback by IELTS writing criterion after the annotated essay.
Task Achievement
The purpose is clear, all three bullet points are fully developed, and the respectful managerial tone is sustained effectively.
Refine the salutation and closing request so every element of the letter follows conventional professional usage.
Coherence and Cohesion
Ideas progress logically from complaints to importance and solutions, although presenting the entire letter as one paragraph weakens structural clarity.
Use separate paragraphs for the opening purpose, complaints, business importance, proposed improvements, and closing request.
Lexical Resource
A flexible range of formal vocabulary conveys specific concerns and remedies, with occasional awkward collocations such as sitting arrangements and minimum level.
Use more natural combinations such as seating arrangements, a form-filling desk, prioritise this matter, and minimise complaints.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Varied complex structures are generally accurate and easy to follow, but a few conditional and verb-pattern choices are imperfect.
Keep conditional forms consistent, for example if we fail, we will fail, and use I hope you will consider for the closing request.
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