Write Effective Marketing Letters

By Susan Regier

The easiest method to inform potential customers about your business, with the least amount of expense, is to mail out marketing letters to your target market. An effective marketing letter can get the results you need. A large, glossy ad looks great but can you be sure the ultimate decision-maker is reading it? A well-written letter, addressed to the right person, can transform a "prospect" into a "buyer."

Before you write your letter, find out who makes the buying decision for your product or service. A letter addressed "To whom it may concern," will be tossed out as junk mail. But if you’ve addressed your letter to "Ms. Ima Buyer," chances are the letter will reach her.

A marketing letter should be one page in length and consist of four to five paragraphs. With white space on the page, the reader will be more apt to read the content. A full page of text will be put aside for when the reader has more time – which may not happen.

Grab the reader’s attention immediately to keep him/her reading. Your opening paragraph gives the tone of your letter and entices the reader to keep reading onto the second paragraph.

The next paragraph gives a clear indication to the reader of who you are and what you do. In a few words, describe what your business can do for him/her. What are the benefits to the prospect of your service or product?

Give details of your background and experience in short, concise sentences. Keep a conversational tone but watch out for double meaning words. Don’t tell a senior citizen’s travel market that a destination is "hot" as they’ll only think of the heat and look for another enticing spot.

Close with a plan of action. If you state that you'll follow-up with a phone call – do it. Many business owners set aside these letters to see if they actually receive the promised follow-up.

Your marketing letter should provide each prospect with enough information that they understand what your company is all about – without giving away too much information. After all, you need to hold something back to talk about on that follow-up telephone call.

When you’ve finished writing, read your letter out loud and check for spelling and grammatical errors. A well-polished letter could lead your business to new opportunities.

Susan Regier is the publisher/editor of Networking Today and owner of Vantage One Writing, a professional writing service for businesses. (519) 471-8726 Email: susan@vantageone.ca Web site: www.vantageone.ca

Published in Networking Today, August 1999.