While letter writing may have taken a back seat to social media the letter is not dead. Here are our tips for crafting a letter that gets noticed and creates action. While it’s true that email is an easy and fast way to send information and keep in contact with people, emails are just as easy to overlook or delete on the receiving end. This isn’t to say the email isn’t an important communication tool; the email has changed the face of communication forever. The need to sit down and write a letter tends to correspond with the more ‘weighty’ decisions and points of contact in our lives and for this reason it’s just as important as ever to get the basics of letter writing right. How to get it right the first time? See our 9 tips for letter writing success!

1. Be persuasive: the art
of letter writing
While letter writing may have taken a back seat to social media the letter is not
dead. Here are our tips on crafting a letter that gets noticed and creates action.

2. Be persuasive: the art
of letter writing
The need to sit down and write a letter tends to correspond with the
more ‘weighty’ decisions and points of contact in our lives and for this
reason it’s just as important as ever to get the basics of letter writing
right.
How to get it right the first time?
See our 9 tips for letter writing success
.

3. 1
Your address or company letterhead
A company letterhead should always be used for
business letters.
If you are sending a letter that doesn’t require a letterhead, the
sender’s name and address should be justified left at the top of the
page.

4. 2
The date
Dating a letter is essential and the date should be
positioned just below the company letterhead or
address line.

5. 3
The addressee
The address of the recipient should also be justified left
and be positioned a few spaces below the date.
It is more effective to find out who you are addressing the letter to
rather than just sending a blanket letter, for example Mr John Smith is
better than writing Dear Homeowner.
The address should appear across two lines, one line with the street
address and the second line with the suburb, state and postcode.

6. 4
The salutation
Dear Dr Adrienne Robinson OA
Addressing the reader correctly is an important
step towards having your message cut through
the pack. Consideration for correct title use is
important in the writing of any letter.
MPs, mayors, religious clergy, defence force
personnel and recipients of national or
international awards and recognitions have
formal titles.
Some examples include:
• Hon. Mike Baird MP
• His Eminence Cardinal George Pell AC
• General Sir Peter John Cosgrove AK MC
It is also best to use Ms when addressing a woman in a formal capacity. Miss and Mrs are
titles that are reliant on marital status and can be read as presumptive.

7. 5
The subject line
Consider using a bold text subject line for example,
RE: Administrative Assistant Position.
Or even a question like Do you want to ensure that your family is
financially secure? to draw the recipients attention to the point and
purpose of your letter.

8. 6
The introduction
Be sure to address the subject of your letter
immediately.
The recipient of your letter is most likely a busy person. The opening
sentence is your chance to get straight to the point and secure their
attention.

9. 7
The body paragraphs
After you’ve established your subject, it’s important to
further explain the reason for writing.
It is vital to employ formal language with accurate grammar and
punctuation.
Read the letter back to yourself or have someone else read it to you.
Remember, this is a formal contact and a non-emotive tone is best.

10. 8
The conclusion & call to action
They’ve read this far, or they’ve skimmed to the end. It’s essential here
to sum up your argument in the most concise way possible.
It doesn’t hurt to repeat your main objective and reasons—your
conclusion must make the message stick.
A call to action is important in the case that you would like a response.
Suggest a possible course of action and encourage the addressee to
maintain contact.

11. 9
The sign off
Signing off is simply ending your letter.
There are different sign offs for different
occasions and the correct use for each
depends on context.
For example:
• Yours Faithfully is best used in the request
of something and in the case you don’t
know the addressee
• Yours Sincerely is a good sign off to use
when informing the addressee of an
occurrence or action
• Best Regards is usually reserved for a close
business contact or friend
• Kind Regards, OR Warm Regards is best
used to sign off a letter of thanks or a
more personal enquiry
• And Best, Sincerely and Regards are just
shortened versions of these.

12. It’s best to keep your letter as brief as
possible without losing the context of your
message. One page to two pages is
perfect if that’s possible.
These tips to help make your letter writing more persuasive only
skim the surface of what is possible.
The art of letter writing may have faded into the background a
bit, but the letter and its importance in the business world
certainly hasn’t.
The experts at Infodec Communications can produce persuasive documents for
any audience. Contact us today for more detailed information.
Please click here to view a sample Infodec Communications business letter.