How to write a Sales Letter

How to Write a Sales Letter

Writing sales letters is largely, the area of specialists known as copy writers and not just any copy writer but one with a good repute. The reason for hiring them is that they are already proficient in this area and have a wide range of experience. A professionally written sales letter can profit you greatly. It requires a lot of convincing on part of the seller. Having said that, ‘There is what, that is Impossible’. The times have changed considerably, all you need is a flair for writing, good grammar and large vocabulary. There are other assisting factors like the tons of examples available on the internet, not to forget ours as well. With our assistance and your brainwork, you can write a sales letter and even if this doesn’t work you will still gain, the skill to identify a good sales letter from a bad one.

Effective Sales Letters Tips

Preparation – Keeping in mind the competition in the market, you have to prepare your sales letter in such a way that it hits the bull’s eye in the first attempt. So how does one prepare for writing a sales letter?

• Target the audience – Preparation begins with identifying your clients or customers. The product/service that you intend to sell has a target audience. You cannot sell anything to anybody. A woman’s product is to be targeted to the ladies and not gents. Acquire the addresses of potential customers through direct marketing companies which specialise in providing such information. You will also have to target an area and age group. Certain sections of people are rich, some are mediocre and some are from lower strata. Acquire sales figure of any earlier sales campaign and the type of product being promoted.
• Additional Material – Certain aspects of a product/service require graphical presentation to lure the clients. Text alone may not be sufficient enough to highlight your point. For that your may need to prepare brochure, catalogue or any graphical presentation. The paper used may require it to be glossy or matt. The size, colour, pattern etc. all need to be considered. Maintaining a continuum with letter is also essential. Envelopes also need to be eye catching. Collect all essential documents which you will need to write the letter.

Drafting – Drafting is the next step. With list of clients, brochure, hiring firm’s instructions and your own strategic plan, you can begin drafting. All these items will be helpful in composing a sales letter. Drafting allows you to improve and improvise your sales letter. When writing a draft ignore the technical details like grammar, punctuation etc. For the moment, it is the idea that needs to be portrayed in an efficient and simple manner. Refer to the documents for relevant information. You can write just the main points and elaborate them later. Use a natural style of writing that comes easy to you.  

Using AIDA – An important aspect of a sales letter has been introduced to you, now we have to utilise these in letter writing for sales.  

• Headline – The first thing that a sales letter should focus and place is the headline. Headline is the first element that will attract attention of a prospective client. If attention is to be quickly drawn towards the product/service you have to make a strong, luring and compelling headline. This can be done through making the text of the headline bold. Additionally it can be underlined and italicised to make it stand out. The most important thing in a headline is its pull-factor. Use easy to understand but convincing headline. It can be up to three or four sentences long and should incite the reader to read the rest of the letter. You can use some famous phrases albeit they are in tune with your offer.

Some examples of Headlines:

• Keep it Interesting – The second important factor is generating interest of the client. To invoke the interest of the recipient you can use various strategies. One strategy would be to connect with the psyche of the client.  Clients may need a personal service at home so you have to write about their anticipations and how their anticipations can be fulfilled. Write in an active voice. Provide some relevant facts and involve the reader in the letter by bringing it to life with a steady flow of interesting information. You can use certain handwritten fonts to make it appear as if handwritten. You can also use your handwriting itself to insert a handwritten note and highlight certain points through coloured markings. Use certain phrases which are apt to the product/service you are offering. Including a P.S. at the end, it also generates interest.

• Desire – Desire is created through craftily utilisation of words and sentences. Why would someone what to buy a particular product? You have to emphasise ‘How the product/service is beneficial? How does it solve the consumer’s problem? How does it enhance efficiency? How does it save time?  How is it different from others? Why should consumers buy it? When you have provided these answers only then you can make it worthy of desire in the eyes of the client. You have to create a real life example which depicts emotions arising out of the use of product / service you are offering. Mention of technological advancements has to be supported with benefits from a particular product or service.

Some Impressive words used to assist in creating a Desire:

• Call to Action – The last step of the letter is concerned with initiating the purchase. No sales letter is complete without call to action from a client regarding the purchase of the product or service being offered. You have to facilitate the purchase process and you have to do this in a step by step manner so that the buyer doesn’t have any confusion or feel that he is being misled. Offer your contact number so that they can contact you. Invite them to your shop or facility to show that you are genuine. Offer them discounts or special schemes to initiate an action. If the product is in limited quantity mention this as well as it will call for a prompt action on part of the client. Provide full and complete information, any misinformation or incomplete information will result in desertion.

Easy reading – Sales letters have to be easy on the eyes, making them convenient for the reader to understand each and every thing. If the reader has to turn pages again and again or read the text again, it means that you are making it harder for the reader to understand the product/service. People don’t have time for their breakfast, why will they read a complicated sales letter?

Steps for easy reading:

• Use good sized font, neither too small nor too big.
• Don’t use fonts which are hard to come by.
• Write in a conversational style as if you would be talking normally.
• Be informal and use formal tone only when required.
• Keep your sentences short, long sentences tend to confuse as the reader gets lost in maintaining the continuity of the meaning.
• Don’t use long paragraphs, they appear daunting. Compose short paragraphs; this gives the reader breaks in their reading. They can easily retain and understand the information in this way.
• Maintain the flow of the writing. Abrupt ending or sudden stops in the sentences are annoying. They break the flow of information. Be natural and maintain a chronology when separating paragraphs.

Give personal Attention – You must have heard this saying ‘People do business with people’. This saying is applicable here also. To do business with people you have to give personal attention to the recipient. You have to address the reader by the name. Do not forget complimentary gestures in the beginning and the end. Your attention shows that you recognise the individual’s importance and value them.

Personify yourself as a customer – Being the sales representative it is a good practice to imagine yourself as a customer while writing the sales letter. Putting yourself in the client’s shoes will enable you to handle the expectations of the consumer in the most justified manner. Imagine yourself that you are going for shopping, what are the things that you yourself keep in mind before purchasing something? Just detail them out and to do that you can use two pages. On one page you become the seller and on the other you become the buyer. Enact out the buyer-seller interaction as it would happen in real life. Note down all the Q&A’s and you will know what to say effectively.

Use of Graphics – They say ‘A picture speaks a thousand words’ so why not use it? You must have been to bookshops and you must have experienced a pull towards the attractive and glitzy covers of magazines and books. The layout, the flashy images, the colours, the design all are meant to lure you into buying. Graphic artists use all sorts of image editing and techniques to allure you. Similarly, the use of graphics in a sales letter does the same. It is important that you use unique graphics as they will impress the readers as compared to routinely used graphics. In email sales letter everything is almost graphic but don’t overuse these in a conventional mail as it can distract the reader. Graphication is also an important part of the branding. The font, layout, line spacing, paragraph formatting, images, etc. all contribute towards the efficacy of the letter. But don’t forget to use text as it compliment the images and even explains the pictures.

Be Professional – The rules of formal letter also apply here. These rules pertain to the opening and closing of the letter. Using salutations like - Dear Sir/Madam/ Mr./Ms. are good indicators of a professionalism. The letter should also close in a professional manner. After completing the last paragraph, sign off between a complimentary close such as Sincerely or Thank you and your printed name. If you are writing in conjunction with an official duty, place your title below your printed name. Additional information like dictation remarks, notification of attachments, enclosures and copies sent to other individuals should be placed beneath the title line.

Hit and Trial – When sending bulk mail you should consider testing the tastes of the clients. Post a few sales letters to a small section of people and see how they respond. You can also send varied version of sales letter to see which format works the best.

Testimonials – If your product/service is backed by recommendations of certain esteemed authorities and/or certain valued individuals, it gives credibility to your offer. People always evaluate a product with its repute. While brushing your teeth, you must have noticed certain endorsement on the toothpaste like approved by American Dental Association or a certain high profile dentist. These are valued by the customers as the product has something extra to offer. Testimonials of common people can also be provided but testimonials of celebrities are more valued.   

Don’t exaggerate – Never give false claims towards your offering. In desperation or greed, some sales letters pitch for unrealistic features. It is misleading and will ruin the repute of the company and its products. Trust is very hard to earn and very easy to break. Years of repute can turn into dust with one false statement. So stick to the truth and earn the trust of the consumers for a long run.

Proofreading and Revising – Proofreading and revising are meant to discard anything that is not required and hone the textual content. Make sure that you have clearly stated your objective and the reader is easily able to understand the information you have provided.  Ensure that you have been direct, to the point and have used a strong active voice. Check the overall cohesiveness of the letter. See if you have maintained transitions between paragraphs. Check whether you have maintained a consistent style throughout the text. Check for - awkward phrases, grammatical errors, incomplete sentences and spelling mistakes. Read the letter aloud to yourself to figure out mistakes which may have been missed out while writing.

Sales Letter Format