PART II EVERYDAY LETTERS Writing the Everyday Letter Letters of Inquiry Order Letters Written by the Buyer Order Letters Written by the Seller Adjustment Letters Credit Letters Collection Letters WRITING THE EVERYDAY LETTERS OUTLINE I. Inasmuch as Everyday Letters are written, for the most part, to customers of the firm-to men upon whose future orders the success or failure of the firm in large measure depends-they exert as great, and sometimes a greater, influence upon the total volume of sales as is exerted by direct sales letters and advertisements. II. There is no place, in the Everyday Letter, for any word, or group of words, which does not assist in building up good-will, or in closing the sale, either by: (a) Expressing courtesy. (b) Emphasizing service. (c) Advancing (either directly or indirectly) arguments which result in sales or which cause the prospect to accept your proposal. L WRITING THE EVERYDAY LETTERS ETTERS of "everyday" correspondence are letters answering inquiries, letters collecting overdue accounts, letters answering complaints, letters acknowledging orders, and similar letters. Although these "everyday" letters are, not ordinarily written with a view to effecting an immediate sale, they exert as great, and sometimes a greater, influence upon the total volume of sales as is exerted by direct sales letters and advertisements. They are written, for the most part, to customers of the firm; and thus it is their highly important purpose to build up customer confidence in the product, and in the spirit of courtesy, and in the spirit of service, that characterize the firm behind the product, to the end that the firm's customers will continue to order again and again. In writing the everyday letter, it is essential that you insure a personal tone by avoiding all worn-out, stilted expressions which hark back to the days when correspondence was chiefly for the purpose of record, and letters were, therefore, couched in legal phrases. There is today no excuse for employing such old and antiquated phrases as "Yours of the 10th inst. received, contents noted, and duly filed"; or "I beg to state that your kind order will receive our prompt attention," or "Thanking you for your kind favor, we beg to remain." We do not talk in such a stilted fashion; there is no reason why we should write that way.1 Such antiquated phraseology, besides being so formal and commonplace as to do away with whatever personal tone a letter might otherwise have, causes unnecessary expense in dictation. B. F. Goodrich correspondents saved their concern $22,000 in one year by leaving out all formal, meaningless words and phrases. Another concern made a saving relatively as important after it had discovered that out of thirtythree letters sent in one week to the same dealer, a customer of long 1 For a list of stereotyped words and expressions, see pages 443-446. |