Establish Your Objective
The objective of an informational memo is to reveal new or refresh old information in a manner that benefits or brings the reader up to date. It should be presented in a crisp and clear manner within a contextual framework that is easy to understand.
For an informational memo to be most effective, present the most important items in the opening paragraphs. People are busy; respect their time. Your readers may only have time to scan the highlights and headlines of your memo, let alone get to the end, but they will read your first paragraph.
In the sample informational memo, the writer uses the first couple of paragraphs to build the contextual basis for the information found in the bulleted lists that follow. She waits till the end to make her recommendations and offer further assistance.
Establish your objective. Below the heading, make a detailed list of the information you are providing. Be sure to think about how it is relevant to the reader. Answer the "W" questions. Fragments are O.K. Eventually this list will become part of your opening.
On completion your objective will be clearly outlined. Later, while drafting your memo, this list will be turned into complete sentences and a paragraph.