Business Letter Examples

The following business letter samples are meant to give you an idea of how to structure a proper business letter. Each example will show you how to format your business letter under the following categories:

• Collection Letters
• Sales and Promotional Letters
• Employment Letters
• Customer Relations Letters

Collection Letters

The sole purpose of a business collection letter is to get the customer to pay up. Writing a collection letter can be difficult because you have to use a certain tone to elicit a response.

Steps to Write Collection Letters

Step 1

Check the spelling of the client's name. Use a gender specific courtesy title only if you are certain of the recipient's gender. Getting a collection letter is bad enough, getting a collection letter that's addressed improperly adds to the irritation.

Step 2

The first part of the letter will state the situation, including the concern, the date of purchase, the amount owed and the due date.

Step 3

The next part of the letter should indicate the deadline for paying the outstanding amount and any resulting penalties if not payed. If your company has any policies regarding late payments such as grace periods and alternative payment plans, you can state it here.

Step 4

The third part of the letter should state the consequences of not paying.

Step 5

This part of the letter has a call to action. It should encourage the client to send full payment or to call you directly to arrange payment. End with goodwill and a positive attitude that this situation will be resolved in a satisfactorily manner.

Example

Sales and Promotional Letters

Sales and promotional letters are used by salespeople to set up appointments, announce sales promotions, congratulate salespeople, announce specials, and introduce new specials.

These types of letters are sales tools and are usually much more creative than other business letters. The sole purpose of a sales letter is not really to sell but to generate interest in the product and elicit a response.

Steps to Writing Sales and Promotional Letters

Step 1

The first part of the letter states your purpose. Depending on the reason for writing the letter, this may vary from requesting an appointment to introducing a new salesperson. Remember, you want to interest your reader. Always identify the benefits to the reader.

Step 2

The second part of the letter backs up the first part. That is, it gives the details or background information regarding the purpose. This is the part of the letter that will stimulate the interest of the reader. If you are making a request, than this part would give the reason for the request.

Step 3

The last part of the letter states a call to action and as a summary of the general nature of the letter.

Example

Customer Relations Letters

There are various types of customer relations letters that may be in the form of acknowledging a complaint to thanking a customer. The main thing to remember is that the customer is always right. Write with this in mind.

These types of letters are very useful at keeping contact with your customer base. If you've been keeping your customers contact information (which you should be doing at all cost!), you can send your customer base a thank you letter and a special offer or buying incentive.

This is a great way to test new marketing ideas. These letters are designed to improve or maintain customer relations. I'd like to point out that you must keep you customer in mind at all times. The laws of good copy writing apply.

However, you want to generate interest and not sell your customer outright with a customer relations letter. You want to thank your customer and let them know how much you appreciate their business. On top of that, you want to thank them by offering a special deal just for preferred customers. It works.

Steps to Writing Customer Relations Letters

Step 1

The first part of the business letter states your purpose. This can be anything from acknowledging a complaint to thanking a customer for their ongoing patronage.

Step 2

The second part of the letter explains the purpose. If you are thanking a customer for their ongoing patronage, you would go into a little more detail here.

Step 3

The last part summarizes the letter. This part can be an added incentive or simply reiterate the customer's value to your business.

Example