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Title: Business Correspondence, Vol. 1: How to Write a Business Letter

Author: Anonymous

Release date: January 1, 2005 [eBook #7309]
Most recently updated: October 13, 2012

Language: English

Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7309

Credits: Produced by Andrea Ball, Charles Franks, Juliet Sutherland, and
the Online Distributed Proofreading Team

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BUSINESS
CORRESPONDENCE, VOL. 1: HOW TO WRITE A BUSINESS LETTER
***

Produced by Andrea Ball, Charles Franks, Juliet Sutherland,

and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team

BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE
VOLUME I

HOW TO WRITE THE BUSINESS LETTER: 24 chapters on preparing to
write the letter and finding the proper viewpoint; how to open the letter,
present the proposition convincingly, make an effective close; how to
acquire a forceful style and inject originality; how to adapt selling appeal
to different prospects and get orders by letter— proved principles and
practical schemes illustrated by extracts from 217 actual letters

CONTENTS

BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE VOLUME I

PART I Preparing to Write the Letter CHAPTER 1: What You Can Do
With a Postage Stamp 2: The Advantages of Doing Business by Letter
3: Gathering Material and Picking Out Talking Points 4: When You Sit
Down to Write

PART II How to Write the Letter 5: How to Begin a Business Letter 6:
How to Present Your Proposition 7: How to Bring the Letter to a Close

PART III Style—Making the Letter Readable 8: "Style" in Letter
Writing—And How to Acquire It 9: Making the Letter Hang Together
10: How to Make Letters Original 11: Making the Form Letter
Personal

PART IV The Dress of a Business Letter 12: Making Letterheads and
Envelopes Distinctive 13: The Typographical Make-up of Business
Letters 14: Getting a Uniform Policy and Quality in Letters 15: Making
Letters Uniform in Appearance

PART V Writing the Sales Letter 16: How to Write the Letter That Will
"Land" the Order 17: The Letter That Will Bring An Inquiry 18: How
to Close Sales by Letter 19: What to Enclose With Sales Letters 20:

Bringing in New Business by Post Card 21: Making it Easy for the
Prospect to Answer

PART VI The Appeal to Different Classes 22: How to Write Letters That
Appeal to Women 23: How to Write Letters That Appeal to Men 24:
How to Write Letters That Appeal to Farmers

What You Can Do With a
POSTAGE STAMP

PART I—PREPARING TO WRITE THE LETTER—CHAPTER 1

Last year [1910] fifteen billion letters were handled by the post office—
one hundred and fifty for every person. Just as a thousand years ago
practically all trade was cash, and now only seven per cent involves
currency, so nine-tenths of the business is done today by letter while even a
few decades ago it was by personal word. You can get your prospect, turn
him into a customer, sell him goods, settle complaints, investigate credit
standing, collect your money—ALL BY LETTER. And often better than by
word of mouth. For, when talking, you speak to only one or two; by letter
you can talk to a hundred thousand in a sincere, personal way. So the letter
is the MOST IMPORTANT TOOL in modern business—good letter writing
is the business man's FIRST REQUIREMENT.

*****

There is a firm in Chicago, with a most interesting bit of inside history. It
is not a large firm. Ten years ago it consisted of one man. Today there are
some three hundred employees, but it is still a one-man business. It has

never employed a salesman on the road; the head of the firm has never been
out to call on any of his customers.

But here is a singular thing: you may drop in to see a business man in
Syracuse or San Francisco, in Jacksonville or Walla Walla, and should you
casually mention this man's name, the chances are the other will reply: "Oh,
yes. I know him very well. That is, I've had several letters from him and I
feel as though I know him."

Sitting alone in his little office, this man was one of the first to foresee,
ten years ago, the real possibilities of the letter. He saw that if he could
write a man a thousand miles away the right kind of a letter he could do
business with him as well as he could with the man in the next block.

So he began talking by mail to men whom he thought might buy his
goods—talking to them in sane, human, you-and-me English. Through
those letters he sold goods. Nor did he stop there. In the same human way
he collected the money for them. He adjusted any complaints that arose. He
did everything that any business man could do with customers. In five years
he was talking not to a thousand men but to a million. And today, though
not fifty men in the million have ever met him, this man's personality has
swept like a tidal wave across the country and left its impression in office,
store and factory—through letters—letters alone.

This instance is not cited because it marks the employment of a new
medium, but because it shows how the letter has become a universal
implement of trade; how a commonplace tool has been developed into a
living business-builder.

The letter is today the greatest potential creator and transactor of business
in the world. But wide as its use is, it still lies idle, an undeveloped

possibility, in many a business house where it might be playing a powerful
part.

The letter is a universal implement of business—that is what gives it such
great possibilities. It is the servant of every business, regardless of its size
or of its character. It matters not what department may command its use—
wherever there is a business in which men must communicate with each
other, the letter is found to be the first and most efficient medium.

Analyze for a moment the departments of your own business. See how
many points there are at which you could use right letters to good
advantage. See if you have not been overlooking some opportunities that
the letter, at a small cost, will help develop.

Do you sell goods? The letter is the greatest salesman known to modern
business. It will carry the story you have to tell wherever the mail goes. It
will create business and bring back orders a thousand miles to the very hand
it left. If you are a retailer, the letter will enable you to talk your goods, your
store, your service, to every family in your town, or it will go further and
build a counter across the continent for you.

If you are a manufacturer or wholesaler selling to the trade, the letter will
find prospects and win customers for you in remote towns that salesmen
cannot profitably reach.

But the letter is not only a direct salesman, it is a supporter of every
personal sales force. Judiciously centered upon a given territory, letters pave
the way for the salesman's coming; they serve as his introduction. After his
call, they keep reminding the prospect or customer of the house and its
goods.

Or, trained by the sales manager upon his men, letters keep them in touch
with the house and key up their loyalty. With regular and special letters, the
sales manager is able to extend his own enthusiasm to the farthest limits of
his territory.

So in every phase of selling, the letter makes it possible for you to keep
your finger constantly upon the pulse of trade.

If you are a wholesaler or manufacturer, letters enable you to keep your
dealers in line. If you are a retailer, they offer you a medium through which
to keep your customers in the proper mental attitude toward your store, the
subtle factor upon which retail credit so largely depends. If you sell on
instalments, letters automatically follow up the accounts and maintain the
inward flow of payments at a fraction of what any other system of
collecting entails.

Do you have occasion to investigate the credit of your customers? The
letter will quietly and quickly secure the information. Knowing the possible
sources of the data you desire you can send forth half a dozen letters and a
few days later have upon your desk a comprehensive report upon the worth
and reliability of almost any concern or individual asking credit favors. And
the letter will get this information where a representative would often fail
because it comes full-fledged in the frankness and dignity of your house.

Does your business involve in any way the collecting of money? Letters
today bring in ten dollars for every one that collectors receive on their
monotonous round of homes and cashiers' cages. Without the collection
letter the whole credit system would be toppling about our ears.

*****

THE LETTER SELLS GOODS DIRECT TO CONSUMERS TO DEALERS TO AGENTS

INDIRECT BUILDS UP LISTS SECURES NAMES ELIMINATES DEAD WOOD
CLASSIFIES LIVE PROSPECTS

OPENS UP NEW TERRITORY THROUGH CONSUMERS CREATES DEMAND DIRECTS
TRADE

THROUGH DEALERS SHOWS POSSIBLE PROFIT INTRODUCES NEW LINES

AID TO SALESMEN EDUCATES TRADE

CO-OPERATION INTRODUCES BACKS UP KEEPS LINED UP

AID TO DEALERS DRUMS UP TRADE HOLDS CUSTOMERS DEVELOPS NEW
BUSINESS

HANDLES MEN INSTRUCTION ABOUT GOODS ABOUT TERRITORY ABOUT
PROSPECTS HOW TO SYSTEMIZE WORK

INSPIRATION GINGER TALES INSPIRES CONFIDENCE SECURES CO-OPERATION
PROMOTES LOYALTY

COLLECTS MONEY MERCANTILE ACTS - RETAIL ACTS - INSTALLMENT ACTS -
PETTY ACTS PERSUASION EMPHASIZE HOUSE POLICY EMPHASIZE
ADVANTTAGAE OF GOODS ESTABLISHMENT OF FORCED COLLECTIONS COST OF
FORCED COLLECTIONS CASH-UP PROPOSITION EXTENSION OF
ACCOMMODATION

PRESSURE THROUGH THREATS OF SUIT OF SHUTTING OFF CREDIT OF WRITING
TO REFERENCES THROUGH LEGAL AVENUES THROUGH LEGAL AGENCIES
HOUSE COLLECTION BUREAUS REGULAR COLLECTION BUREAUS THROUGH
ATTORNEYS

HANDLES LONG RANGE CUSTOMERS SUPPLIES PERSONAL CONTACT SHOWS
INTEREST IN CUSTOMER WINS CONFIDENCE DEVELOPS RE-ORDER SCHEMES
BUILDS UP STEADY TRADE

HANDLES COMPLAINTS ADJUSTS INVESTIGATES MAKES CAPITAL OUT OF
COMPLAINTS WINS BACK CUSTOMERS

DEVELOPS PRESTIGE GIVES PERSONALITY TO BUSINESS BUILDS UP GOOD WILL
PAVES WAY FOR NEW CUSTOMERS

The practical uses of the business letter are almost infinite: selling goods,
with distant customers, developing the prestige of the house—there is
handling men, adjusting complaints, collecting money, keeping in touch
scarcely an activity of modern business that cannot be carried on by letter

*****

Do you find it necessary to adjust the complaint of a client or a
customer? A diplomatic letter at the first intimation of dissatisfaction will
save many an order from cancellation. It will soothe ruffled feelings, wipe
out imagined grievances and even lay the basis for firmer relations in the
future.

So you may run the gamut of your own business or any other. At every
point that marks a transaction between concerns or individuals, you will
find some way in which the letter rightly used, can play a profitable part.

There is a romance about the postage stamp as fascinating as any story—
not the romance contained in sweet scented notes, but the romance of big
things accomplished; organizations developed, businesses built, great
commercial houses founded.

In 1902 a couple of men secured the agency for a firm manufacturing
extracts and toilet preparations. They organized an agency force through
letters and within a year the manufacturers were swamped with business,
unable to fill the orders.

Then the men added one or two other lines, still operating from one small
office. Soon a storage room was added; then a packing and shipping room
was necessary and additional warehouse facilities were needed. Space was
rented in the next building; a couple of rooms were secured across the

street, and one department was located over the river—wherever rooms
could be found.

Next the management decided to issue a regular mail-order catalogue and
move to larger quarters where the business could be centered under one
roof. A floor in a new building was rented—a whole floor. The employees
thought it was extravagance; the managers were dubious, for when the
business was gathered in from seven different parts of the city, there was
still much vacant floor space.

One year later it was again necessary to rent outside space. The
management then decided to erect a permanent home and today the
business occupies two large buildings and the firm is known all over the
country as one of the big factors of mail-order merchandising.

It has all been done by postage stamps.

When the financial world suddenly tightened up in 1907 a wholesale dry
goods house found itself hard pressed for ready money. The credit manager
wrote to the customers and begged them to pay up at once. But the retailers
were scared and doggedly held onto their cash. Even the merchants who
were well rated and whose bills were due, played for time.

The house could not borrow the money it needed and almost in despair
the president sat down and wrote a letter to his customers; it was no routine
collection letter, but a heart-to-heart talk, telling them that if they did not
come to his rescue the business that he had spent thirty years in building
would be wiped out and he would be left penniless because he could not
collect his money. He had the bookkeepers go through every important
account and they found that there was hardly a customer who had not, for
one reason or another, at some time asked for an extension of credit. And to
each customer the president dictated a personal paragraph, reminding him

of the time accommodation had been asked and granted. Then the appeal
was made straight from the heart: "Now, when I need help, not merely to
tide me over a few weeks but to save me from ruin, will you not strain a
point, put forth some special effort to help me out, just as I helped you at
such and such a time?"

"If we can collect $20,000," he had assured his associates, "I know we
can borrow $20,000, and that will probably pull us through."

The third day after his letters went out several checks came in; the fourth
day the cashier banked over $22,000; within ten days $68,000 had come in,
several merchants paying up accounts that were not yet due; a few even
offered to "help out the firm."

The business was saved—by postage stamps.

Formality to the winds; stereotyped phrases were forgotten; traditional
appeals were discarded and a plain talk, man-to-man, just as if the two were
closeted together in an office brought hundreds of customers rushing to the
assistance of the house with which they had been dealing.

Sixty-eight thousand dollars collected within two weeks when money
was almost invisible—and by letter. Truly there is romance in the postage
stamp.

Twenty-five years ago a station agent wrote to other agents along the line
about a watch that he could sell them at a low price. When an order came in
he bought a watch, sent it to the customer and used his profit to buy stamps
for more letters. After a while he put in each letter a folder advertising
charms, fobs and chains; then rings, cuff buttons and a general line of
jewelry was added. It soon became necessary to give up his position on the

railroad and devote all his time to the business and one line after another
was added to the stock he carried.

Today the house that started in this way has customers in the farthermost
parts of civilization; it sells every conceivable product from toothpicks to
automobiles and knockdown houses. Two thousand people do nothing but
handle mail; over 22,000 orders are received and filled every day; 36,000
men and women are on the payroll.

It has all been done by mail. Postage stamps bring to the house every
year business in excess of $65,000,000.

One day the head correspondent in an old established wholesale house in
the east had occasion to go through some files of ten and twelve years
before. He was at once struck with the number of names with which he was
not familiar—former customers who were no longer buying from the house.
He put a couple of girls at work making a list of these old customers and
checking them up in the mercantile directories to see how many were still in
business.

Then he sat down and wrote to them, asking as a personal favor that they
write and tell him why they no longer bought of the house; whether its
goods or service had not been satisfactory, whether some complaint had not
been adjusted. There must be a reason, would they not tell him personally
just what it was?

Eighty per cent of the men addressed replied to this personal appeal;
many had complaints that were straightened out; others had drifted to other
houses for no special reason. The majority were worked back into the
"customer" files. Three years later the accounting department checked up
the orders received from these re-found customers. The gross was over a
million dollars. The business all sprung from one letter.

Yes, there is romance in the postage stamp; there is a latent power in it
that few men realize—a power that will remove commercial mountains and
erect industrial pyramids.

The ADVANTAGES Of Doing Business By Letter

PART I—PREPARING TO WRITE THE LETTER—CHAPTER 2

Letters have their limitations and their advantages. The correspondent
who is anxious to secure the best results should recognize the inherent
weakness of a letter due to its lack of personality in order to reinforce these
places. Equally essential is an understanding of the letter's great
NATURAL ADVANTAGES so that the writer can turn them to account—
make the most of them. It possesses qualities the personal representative
lacks and this chapter tells how to take advantage of them

*****

While it is necessary to know how to write a strong letter, it is likewise
essential to understand both the limitations of letters and their advantages. It
is necessary, on the one hand, to take into account the handicaps that a letter
has in competition with a personal solicitor. Offsetting this are many
distinct advantages the letter has over the salesman. To write a really
effective letter, a correspondent must thoroughly understand its carrying
capacity.

A salesman often wins an audience and secures an order by the force of a
dominating personality. The letter can minimize this handicap by an
attractive dress and force attention through the impression of quality. The

letter lacks the animation of a person but there can be an individuality about
its appearance that will assure a respectful hearing for its message.

The personal representative can time his call, knowing that under certain
circumstances he may find his man in a favorable frame of mind, or even at
the door he may decide it is the part of diplomacy to withdraw and wait a
more propitious hour. The letter cannot back out of the prospect's office; it
cannot shape its canvass to meet the needs of the occasion or make capital
out of the mood or the comments of the prospect.

The correspondent cannot afford to ignore these handicaps under which
his letter enters the prospect's office. Rather, he should keep these things
constantly in mind in order to overcome the obstacles just as far as possible,
reinforcing the letter so it will be prepared for any situation it may
encounter at its destination. Explanations must be so clear that questions are
unnecessary; objections must be anticipated and answered in advance; the
fact that the recipient is busy must be taken into account and the message
made just as brief as possible; the reader must be treated with respect and
diplomatically brought around to see the relationship between his needs and
your product.

But while the letter has these disadvantages, it possesses qualities that the
salesman lacks. The letter, once it lies open before the man to whom you
wish to talk, is your counterpart, speaking in your words just as you would
talk to him if you were in his office or in his home. That is, the right letter.
It reflects your personality and not that of some third person who may be
working for a competitor next year.

The letter, if clearly written, will not misrepresent your proposition; its
desire for a commission or for increased sales will not lead it to make
exaggerated statements or unauthorized promises. The letter will reach the
prospect just as it left your desk, with the same amount of enthusiasm and

freshness. It will not be tired and sleepy because it had to catch a midnight
train; it will not be out of sorts because of the poor coffee and the cold
potatoes served at the Grand hotel for breakfast; it will not be peeved
because it lost a big sale across the street; it will not be in a hurry to make
the 11:30 local; it will not be discouraged because a competitor is making
inroads into the territory.

You have the satisfaction of knowing that the letter is immune from these
ills and weaknesses to which flesh is heir and will deliver your message
faithfully, promptly, loyally. It will not have to resort to clever devices to
get past the glass door, nor will it be told in frigid tones by the guard on
watch to call some other day. The courtesy of the mail will take your letter
to the proper authority. If it goes out in a dignified dress and presents its
proposition concisely it is assured of a considerate hearing.

It will deliver its message just as readily to some Garcia in the mountains
of Cuba as to the man in the next block. The salesman who makes a dozen
calls a day is doing good work; letters can present your proposition to a
hundred thousand prospects on the one forenoon. They can cover the same
territory a week later and call again and again just as often as you desire.
You cannot time the letter's call to the hour but you can make sure it reaches
the prospect on the day of the week and the time of the month when he is
most likely to give it consideration. You know exactly the kind of canvass
every letter is making; you know that every call on the list is made.

The salesman must look well to his laurels if he hopes to compete
successfully with the letter as a selling medium. Put the points of advantage
in parallel columns and the letter has the best of it; consider, in addition, the
item of expense and it is no wonder letters are becoming a greater factor in
business.

The country over, there are comparatively few houses that appreciate the
full possibilities of doing business by mail. Not many appreciate that certain
basic principles underlie letter writing, applicable alike to the beginner who
is just struggling to get a foothold and to the great mail-order house with its
tons of mail daily. They are not mere theories; they are fundamental
principles that have been put to the test, proved out in thousands of letters
and on an infinite number of propositions.

The correspondent who is ambitious to do by mail what others do by
person, must understand these principles and how to apply them. He must
know the order and position of the essential elements; he must take account
of the letter's impersonal character and make the most of its natural
advantages.

Writing letters that pull is not intuition; it is an art that anyone can
acquire. But this is the point: it must be acquired. It will not come to one
without effort on his part. Fundamental principles must be understood;
ways of presenting a proposition must be studied, various angles must be
tried out; the effectiveness of appeals must be tested; new schemes for
getting attention and arousing interest must be devised; clear, concise
description and explanation must come from continual practice; methods
for getting the prospect to order now must be developed. It is not a game of
chance; there is nothing mysterious about it—nothing impossible, it is
solely a matter of study, hard work and the intelligent application of proved-
up principles.

Gathering MATERIAL And Picking Out TALKING Points

PART I—PREPARING TO WRITE THE LETTER—CHAPTER 3

Arguments—prices, styles, terms, quality or whatever they may be—are
effective only when used on the right "prospect" at the right time. The
correspondent who has some message of value to carry gathers together a
mass of "raw material"—facts, figures and specifications on which to base
his arguments—and then he selects the particular talking points that will
appeal to his prospect. By systematic tests, the relative values of various
arguments may be determined almost to a scientific nicety. How to gather
and classify this material and how to determine what points are most
effective is the subject in this chapter

*****

An architect can sit down and design your house on paper, showing its
exact proportions, the finish of every room, the location of every door and
window. He can give specific instructions for building your house but
before you can begin operations you have got to get together the brick and
mortar and lumber—all the material used in its construction.

And so the correspondent-architect can point out the way to write a letter:
how to begin, how to work up interest, how to present argument, how to
introduce salesmanship, how to work in a clincher and how to close, but
when you come to writing the letter that applies to your particular business
you have first to gather the material. And just as you select cement or brick
or lumber according to the kind of house you want to build, so the
correspondent must gather the particular kind of material he wants for his
letter, classify it and arrange it so that the best can be quickly selected.

The old school of correspondents—and there are many graduates still in
business—write solely from their own viewpoint. Their letters are focused
on "our goods," "our interests" and "our profits." But the new school of
letter writers keep their own interests in the background. Their sole aim is to
focus on the viewpoint of the reader; find the subjects in which he is

interested, learn the arguments that will appeal to him, bear down on the
persuasion that will induce him to act at once.

And so the successful correspondent should draw arguments and talking
points from many sources; from the house, from the customer, from
competitors, from the news of the day from his knowledge of human nature.

"What shall I do first?" asked a new salesman of the general manager.

"Sell yourself," was the laconic reply, and every salesman and
correspondent in the country could well afford to take this advice to heart.

Sell yourself; answer every objection that you can think of, test out the
proposition from every conceivable angle; measure it by other similar
products; learn its points of weakness and of superiority, know its
possibilities and its limitations. Convince yourself; sell yourself, and then
you will be able to sell others.

The first source of material for the correspondent is in the house itself.
His knowledge must run back to the source of raw materials: the kinds of
materials used, where they come from, the quality and the quantity
required, the difficulties in obtaining them, the possibilities of a shortage,
all the problems of mining or gathering the raw material and getting it from
its source to the plant—a vast storehouse of talking points.

Then it is desirable to have a full knowledge of the processes of
manufacture; the method of handling work in the factory, the labor saving
appliances used, the new processes that have been perfected, the time
required in turning out goods, the delays that are liable to occur—these are
all pertinent and may furnish the strongest kind of selling arguments. And it
is equally desirable to have inside knowledge of the methods in the sales
department, in the receiving room and the shipping room. It is necessary for

the correspondent to know the firm's facilities for handling orders; when
deliveries can be promised, what delays are liable to occur, how goods are
packed, the condition in which they are received by the customer, the
probable time required in reaching the customer.

Another nearby source of information is the status of the customer's
account; whether he is slow pay or a man who always discounts his bills. It
is a very important fact for the correspondent to know whether the records
show an increasing business or a business that barely holds its own.

Then a most important source—by many considered the most valuable
material of all—is the customer himself. It may be laid down as a general
proposition that the more the correspondent knows about the man to whom
he is writing, the better appeal he can make.

In the first place, he wants to know the size and character of the
customer's business. He should know the customer's location, not merely as
a name that goes on the envelope, but some pertinent facts regarding the
state or section. If he can find out something regarding a customer's
standing and his competition, it will help him to understand his problems.

Fortunate is the correspondent who knows something regarding the
personal peculiarities of the man to whom he is writing. If he understands
his hobbies, his cherished ambition, his home life, he can shape his appeal
in a more personal way. It is comparatively easy to secure such information
where salesmen are calling on the trade, and many large houses insist upon
their representatives' making out very complete reports, giving a mass of
detailed information that will be valuable to the correspondent.

Then there is a third source of material, scarcely less important than the
study of the house and the customer, and that is a study of the competitors
—other firms who are in the same line of business and going after the same

trade. The broad-gauged correspondent never misses an opportunity to learn
more about the goods of competing houses—the quality of their products,
the extent of their lines, their facilities for handling orders, the satisfaction
that their goods are giving, the terms on which they are sold and which
managers are hustling and up to the minute in their methods.

The correspondent can also find information, inspiration and suggestion
from the advertising methods of other concerns—not competitors but firms
in a similar line.

Then there are various miscellaneous sources of information. The
majority of correspondents study diligently the advertisements in general
periodicals; new methods and ideas are seized upon and filed in the
"morgue" for further reference.

Where a house travels a number of men, the sales department is an
excellent place from which to draw talking points. Interviewing salesmen as
they come in from trips and so getting direct information, brings out talking
points which are most helpful as are those secured by shorthand reports of
salesmen's conventions.

Many firms get convincing arguments by the use of detailed forms asking
for reports on the product. One follow-up writer gets valuable pointers from
complaints which he terms "reverse" or "left-handed" talking points.

Some correspondents become adept in coupling up the news of the day
with their products. A thousand and one different events may be given a
twist to connect the reader's interest with the house products and supply a
reason for "buying now." The fluctuation in prices of raw materials,
drought, late seasons, railway rates, fires, bumper crops, political
discussions, new inventions, scientific achievements—there is hardly a
happening that the clever correspondent, hard pressed for new talking

points, cannot work into a sales letter as a reason for interesting the reader
in his goods.

*****

SOURCES OF MATERIAL:

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*****

Gathering the information is apt to be wasted effort unless it is classified
and kept where it is instantly available. A notebook for ideas should always
be at hand and men who write important sales letters should keep within
reach scrapbooks, folders or envelopes containing "inspirational" material
to which they can readily refer.

The scrapbook, a card index or some such method for classifying and
filing material is indispensable. Two or three pages or cards may be devoted
to each general subject, such as raw material, processes of manufacture,
methods of shipping, uses, improvements, testimonials, and so forth, and
give specific information that is manna for the correspondent. The data may
consist of notes he has written, bits of conversation he has heard, extracts
from articles he has read, advertisements of other concerns and circulars—
material picked up from a thousand sources.

One versatile writer uses heavy manila sheets about the size of a
letterhead and on these he pastes the catch-lines, the unique phrases, the
forceful arguments, the graphic descriptions and statistical information that
he may want to use. Several sheets are filled with metaphors and figures of
speech that he may want to use some time in illuminating a point. These
sheets are more bulky than paper but are easier to handle than a scrapbook,
and they can be set up in front of the writer while he is working.

Another correspondent has an office that looks as if it had been decorated
with a crazy quilt. Whenever he finds a word, a sentence, a paragraph or a
page that he wants to keep he pins or pastes it on the wall.

"I don't want any systematic classification of this stuff," he explains, "for
in looking for the particular word or point that I want, I go over so many
other words and points that I keep all the material fresh in my mind. No
good points are buried in some forgotten scrapbook; I keep reading these
things until they are as familiar to me as the alphabet."

It may be very desirable to keep booklets, pamphlets and bulky matter
that cannot be pasted into a book or onto separate sheets in manila folders.
This is the most convenient way for classifying and filing heavy material.
Or large envelopes may be used for this purpose.

Another favorite method of arrangement in filing talking points for
reference is that of filing them in the order of their pulling power. This, in
many propositions, is considered the best method. It is not possible, out of a
list of arguments to tell, until after the try-out always, which will pull and
which will not. Those pulling best will be worked the most. Only as more
extensive selling literature is called for will the weaker points be pressed
into service.

No matter what system is used, it must be a growing system; it must be
kept up to date by the addition of new material, picked up in the course of
the day's work. Much material is gathered and saved that is never used, but
the wise correspondent does not pass by an anecdote, a good simile, a
clever appeal or forcible argument simply because he does not see at the
moment how he can make use of it.

In all probability the time will come when that story or that figure of
speech will just fit in to illustrate some point he is trying to make. Nor does
the correspondent restrict his material to the subject in which he is directly
interested, for ideas spring from many sources and the advertisement of
some firm in an entirely different line may give him a suggestion or an
inspiration that will enable him to work up an original talking point. And so

it will be found that the sources of material are almost unlimited—limited
in fact, only by the ability of the writer to see the significance of a story, a
figure of speech or an item of news, and connect it up with his particular
proposition.

But gathering and classifying material available for arguments is only
preliminary work. A wide knowledge of human nature is necessary to select
from these arguments those that will appeal to the particular prospect or
class of prospects you are trying to reach.

"When you sit down to write an important letter, how do you pick out
your talking points?"

This question was put to a man whose letters have been largely
responsible for an enormous mail-order business.

"The first thing I do," he replied, "is to wipe my pen and put the cork in
the ink bottle."

His answer summarizes everything that can be said about selecting
talking points: before you start to write, study the proposition, picture in
your mind the man to whom you are writing, get his viewpoint, pick out the
arguments that will appeal to him and then write your letter to that
individual.

The trouble with most letters is that they are not aimed carefully, the
writer does not try to find the range but blazes away in hopes that some of
the shots will take effect.

There are a hundred things that might be said about this commodity that
you want to market. It requires a knowledge of human nature, and of
salesmanship to single out the particular arguments and the inducement that

will carry most weight with the individual to whom you are writing. For
even if you are preparing a form letter it will be most effective if it is
written directly at some individual who most nearly represents the
conditions, the circumstances and the needs of the class you are trying to
reach.

Only the new correspondent selects the arguments that are nearest at
hand—the viewpoints that appeal to him. The high score letter writers look
to outside sources for their talking points. One of the most fruitful sources
of information is the men who have bought your goods. The features that
induced them to buy your product, the things that they talk about are the
very things that will induce others to buy that same product. Find out what
pleases the man who is using your goods and you may be sure that this
same feature will appeal to the prospect.

It is equally desirable to get information from the man who did not buy
your machine—learn his reasons, find out what objections he has against it;
where, in his estimation, it fell short of his requirements; for it is reasonably
certain that other prospects will raise the same objections and it is a test of
good salesmanship to anticipate criticisms and present arguments that will
forestall such objections.

In every office there should be valuable evidence in the files—
advertisements, letters, circulars, folders and other publicity matter that has
been used in past campaigns. In the most progressive business houses,
every campaign is thoroughly tested out; arguments, schemes, and talking
points are proved up on test lists, the law of averages enabling the
correspondent to tell with mathematical accuracy the pulling power of
every argument he has ever used. The record of tests; the letters that have
fallen down and the letters that have pulled, afford information that is
invaluable in planning new campaigns. The arguments and appeals that

have proved successful in the past can be utilized over and over again on
new lists or given a new setting and used on old lists.

The time has passed when a full volley is fired before the ammunition is
tested and the range found. The capable letter writer tests out his arguments
and proves the strength of his talking points without wasting a big
appropriation. His letters are tested as accurately as the chemist in his
laboratory tests the strength or purity of material that is submitted to him for
analysis. How letters are keyed and tested is the subject of another chapter.

No matter what kind of a letter you are writing, keep this fact in mind:
never use an argument on the reader that does not appeal to you, the writer.
Know your subject; know your goods from the source of the raw material to
the delivery of the finished product. And then in selling them, pick out the
arguments that will appeal to the reader; look at the proposition through the
eyes of the prospect; sell yourself the order first and you will have found
the talking points that will sell the prospect.

When You Sit Down To
WRITE

PART I—PREPARING TO WRITE THE LETTER—CHAPTER 4

The weakness of most letters is not due to ungrammatical sentences or to
a poor style, but to a wrong viewpoint: the writer presents a proposition
from his own viewpoint instead of that of the reader. The correspondent has
gone far towards success when he can VISUALIZE his prospect, see his
environments, his needs, his ambitions, and APPROACH the PROSPECT
from THIS ANGLE. This chapter tells how to get the class idea; how to see

the man to whom you are writing and that equally important qualification,
how to get into the mood for writing—actual methods used by effective
correspondents

*****

When you call on another person or meet him in a business transaction
you naturally have in mind a definite idea of what you want to accomplish.
That is, if you expect to carry your point. You know that this end cannot be
reached except by a presentation which will put your proposition in such a
favorable light, or offer such an inducement, or so mould the minds of
others to your way of thinking that they will agree with you. And so before
you meet the other person you proceed to plan your campaign, your talk,
your attitude to fit his personality and the conditions under which you
expect to meet.

An advertising man in an eastern mining town was commissioned to
write a series of letters to miners, urging upon them the value of training in
a night school about to be opened. Now he knew all about the courses the
school would offer and he was strong on generalities as to the value of
education. But try as he would, the letters refused to take shape. Then
suddenly he asked himself, "What type of man am I really trying to reach?"

And there lay the trouble. He had never met a miner face to face in his
life. As soon as he realized this he reached for his hat and struck out for the
nearest coal breaker. He put in two solid days talking with miners, getting a
line on the average of intelligence, their needs—the point of contact. Then
he came back and with a vivid picture of his man in mind, he produced a
series of letters that glowed with enthusiasm and sold the course.

A number of years ago a printer owning a small shop in an Ohio city set
out to find a dryer that would enable him to handle his work faster and

without the costly process of "smut-sheeting." He interested a local druggist
who was something of a chemist and together they perfected a dryer that
was quite satisfactory and the printer decided to market his product. He
wrote fifteen letters to acquaintances and sold eleven of them. Encouraged,
he got out one hundred letters and sold sixty-four orders. On the strength of
this showing, his banker backed him for the cost of a hundred thousand
letters and fifty-eight thousand orders were the result.

The banker was interested in a large land company and believing the
printer must be a veritable wizard in writing letters, made him an attractive
offer to take charge of the advertising for the company's Minnesota and
Canada lands.

The man sold his business, accepted the position—and made a signal
failure. He appealed to the printers because he knew their problems—the
things that lost them money, the troubles that caused them sleepless nights
—and in a letter that bristled with shop talk he went straight to the point,
told how he could help them out of at least one difficulty—and sold his
product.

But when it came to selling western land he was out of his element. He
had never been a hundred miles away from his home town; he had never
owned a foot of real estate; "land hunger" was to him nothing but a phrase;
the opportunities of a "new country" were to him academic arguments—
they were not realities.

He lost his job. Discouraged but determined, he moved to Kansas where
he started a small paper—and began to study the real estate business. One
question was forever on his lips: "Why did you move out here?" And to
prospective purchasers, "Why do you want to buy Kansas land? What
attracts you?"

Month after month he asked these questions of pioneers and immigrants.
He wanted their viewpoint, the real motive that drove them westward. Then
he took in a partner, turned the paper over to him and devoted his time to
the real estate business. Today he is at the head of a great land company and
through his letters and his advertising matter he has sold hundreds of
thousands of acres to people who have never seen the land. But he tells
them the things they want to know; he uses the arguments that "get under
the skin."

He spent years in preparing to write his letters and bought and sold land
with prospects "face to face" long before he attempted to deal with them by
letter. He talked and thought and studied for months before he dipped his
pen into ink.

Now before he starts a letter, he calls to mind someone to whom he has
sold a similar tract in the past; he remembers how each argument was
received; what appeals struck home and then, in his letter, he talks to that
man just as earnestly as if his future happiness depended upon making the
one sale.

The preparation to write the letter should be two-fold: knowing your
product or proposition and knowing the man you want to reach. You have
got to see the proposition through the eyes of your prospect. The printer
sold his ink dryer because he looked at it from the angle of the buyer and
later he sold real estate, but not until he covered up his own interest and
presented the proposition from the viewpoint of the prospect.

Probably most successful letter writers, when they sit down to write,
consciously or unconsciously run back over faces and characteristics of
friends and acquaintances until they find someone who typifies the class
they desire to reach. When writing to women, one man always directs his

appeal to his mother or sister; if trying to interest young men he turns his
mind back to his own early desires and ambitions.

Visualize your prospect. Fix firmly in your mind some one who
represents the class you are trying to reach; forget that there is any other
prospect in the whole world; concentrate your attention and selling talk on
this one individual.

"If you are going to write letters that pull," says one successful
correspondent, "you have got to be a regular spiritualist in order to
materialize the person to whom you are writing; bring him into your office
and talk to him face to face."

"The first firm I ever worked for," he relates, "was Andrew Campbell &
Son. The senior Campbell was a conservative old Scotchman who had made
a success in business by going cautiously and thoroughly into everything he
took up. The only thing that would appeal to him would be a proposition
that could be presented logically and with the strongest kind of arguments
to back it up. The son, on the other hand, was thoroughly American; ready
to take a chance, inclined to plunge and try out a new proposition because it
was new or unique; the novelty of a thing appealed to him and he was
interested because it was out of the ordinary.

"Whenever I have an important letter to write, I keep these two men in
mind and I center all my efforts to convince them; using practical,
commonsense arguments to convince the father, and enough snappy 'try-it-
for-yourself' talk to win the young man."

According to this correspondent, every firm in a measure represents these
two forces, conservative and radical, and the strongest letter is the one that
makes an appeal to both elements.

A young man who had made a success in selling books by mail was
offered double the salary to take charge of the publicity department of a
mail-order clothing house. He agreed to accept—two months later.
Reluctantly the firm consented.

The firm saw or heard nothing from him until he reported for work. He
had been shrewd enough not to make the mistake of the printer who tried to
sell land and so he went to a small town in northern Iowa where a relative
owned a clothing store and started in as a clerk. After a month he jumped to
another store in southern Minnesota. At each place—typical country towns
—he studied the trade and when not waiting on customers busied himself
near some other clerk so he could hear the conversation, find out the things
the farmers and small town men looked for in clothes and learn the talking
points that actually sell the goods.

This man who had a position paying $6,000 a year waiting for him spent
two months at $9 a week preparing to write. A more conceited chap would
have called it a waste of time, but this man thought that he could well afford
to spend eight weeks and sacrifice nearly a thousand dollars learning to
write letters and advertisements that would sell clothes by mail.

At the end of the year he was given a raise that more than made up his
loss. Nor is he content, for every year he spends a few weeks behind the
counter in some small town, getting the viewpoint of the people with whom
he deals, finding a point of contact, getting local color and becoming
familiar with the manner of speech and the arguments that will get orders.

When he sits down to write a letter or an advertisement he has a vivid
mental picture of the man he wants to interest; he knows that man's process
of thinking, the thing that appeals to him, the arguments that will reach right
down to his pocket-book.

A man who sells automatic scales to grocers keeps before him the image
of a small dealer in his home town. The merchant had fallen into the rut, the
dust was getting thicker on his dingy counters and trade was slipping away
to more modern stores.

"Mother used to send me on errands to that store when I was a boy,"
relates the correspondent, "and I had been in touch with it for twenty years.
I knew the local conditions; the growth of competition that was grinding out
the dealer's life.

"I determined to sell him and every week he received a letter from the
house—he did not know of my connection with it—and each letter dealt
with some particular problem that I knew he had to face. I kept this up for
six months without calling forth a response of any kind; but after the
twenty-sixth letter had gone out, the manager came in one day with an order
—and the cash accompanied it. The dealer admitted that it was the first time
he had ever bought anything of the kind by mail. But I knew his problems,
and I connected them up with our scales in such a way that he had to buy.

"Those twenty-six letters form the basis for all my selling arguments, for
in every town in the country there are merchants in this same rut, facing the
same competition, and they can be reached only by connecting their
problems with our scales."

No matter what your line may be, you have got to use some such method
if you are going to make your letters pull the orders. Materialize your
prospect; overcome every objection and connect their problems with your
products.

When you sit down to your desk to write a letter, how do you get into the
right mood? Some, like mediums, actually work themselves into a sort of

trance before starting to write. One man insists that he writes good letters
only when he gets mad—which is his way of generating nervous energy.

Others go about it very methodically and chart out the letter, point by
point. They analyze the proposition and out of all the possible arguments
and appeals, carefully select those that their experience and judgment
indicate will appeal strongest to the individual whom they are addressing.
On a sheet of paper one man jots down the arguments that may be used and
by a process of elimination, scratches off one after another until he has left
only the ones most likely to reach his prospect.

Many correspondents keep within easy reach a folder or scrapbook of
particularly inspiring letters, advertisements and other matter gathered from
many sources. One man declares that no matter how dull he may feel when
he reaches the office in the morning he can read over a few pages in his
scrapbook and gradually feel his mind clear; his enthusiasm begins to rise
and within a half hour he is keyed up to the writing mood.

A correspondent in a large mail-order house keeps a scrapbook of
pictures—a portfolio of views of rural life and life in small towns. He
subscribes to the best farm papers and clips out pictures that are typical of
rural life, especially those that represent types and show activities of the
farm, the furnishings of the average farm house—anything that will make
clearer the environment of the men and women who buy his goods. When
he sits down to write a letter he looks through this book until he finds some
picture that typifies the man who needs the particular article he wants to sell
and then he writes to that man, keeping the picture before him, trying to
shape every sentence to impress such a person. Other correspondents are at
a loss to understand the pulling power of his letters.

A sales manager in a typewriter house keeps the managers of a score of
branch offices and several hundred salesmen gingered up by his weekly

letters. He prepares to write these letters by walking through the factory,
where he finds inspiration in the roar of machinery, the activity of
production, the atmosphere of actual creative work.

There are many sources of inspiration. Study your temperament, your
work and your customers to find out under what conditions your production
is the easiest and greatest. It is neither necessary nor wise to write letters
when energies and interest are at a low ebb, when it is comparatively easy
to stimulate the lagging enthusiasm and increase your power to write letters
that bring results.

How To Begin A BUSINESS
Letter

PART II—HOW TO WRITE THE LETTER—CHAPTER 5

From its saluation to its signature a business letter must hold the interest
of the reader or fail in its purpose. The most important sentence in it is
obviously the FIRST one, for upon it depends whether the reader will dip
further into the letter or discard it into the waste basket. IN THAT FIRST
SENTENCE THE WRITER HAS HIS CHANCE. If he is really capable, he
will not only attract the reader's interest in that first sentence, but put him
into a receptive mood for the message that follows. Here are some sample
ways of "opening" a business letter

*****

No matter how large your tomorrow morning's mail, it is probable that
you will glance through the first paragraph of every letter you open. If it

catches your attention by reference to something in which you are
interested, or by a clever allusion or a striking head line or some original
style, it is probable you will read at least the next paragraph or two. But if
these paragraphs do not keep up your interest the letter will be passed by
unfinished. If you fail to give the letter a full reading the writer has only
himself to blame. He has not taken advantage of his opportunity to carry
your interest along and develop it until he has driven his message home,
point by point.

In opening the letter the importance of the salutation must not be ignored.
If a form letter from some one who does not know Mr. Brown, personally,
starts out "Dear Mr. Brown," he is annoyed. A man with self-respect resents
familiarity from a total stranger—someone who has no interest in him
except as a possible customer for his commodity.

If a clerk should address a customer in such a familiar manner it would
be looked upon as an insult. Yet it is no uncommon thing to receive letters
from strangers that start out with one of these salutations:

"Dear Benson:"
"My dear Mr. Benson:"
"Respected Friend:"
"Dear Brother:"

While it is desirable to get close to the reader; and you want to talk to
him in a very frank manner and find a point of personal contact, this
assumption of friendship with a total stranger disgusts a man before he
begins your letter. You start out with a handicap that is hard to overcome,
and an examination of a large number of letters using such salutations are
enough to create suspicion for all; too often they introduce some
questionable investment proposition or scheme that would never appeal to
the hard-headed, conservative business man.

"Dear Sir" or "Gentlemen" is the accepted salutation, at least until long
correspondence and cordial relations justify a more intimate greeting. The
ideal opening, of course, strikes a happy medium between too great
formality on the one hand and a cringing servility or undue familiarity on
the other hand.

No one will dispute the statement that the reason so many selling
campaigns fail is not because of a lack of merit in the propositions
themselves but because they are not effectively presented.

For most business men read their letters in a receptive state of mind. The
letterhead may show that the message concerns a duplicating machine and
the one to whom it is addressed may feel confident in his own mind that he
does not want a duplicating machine. At the same time he is willing to read
the letter, for it may give him some new idea, some practical suggestion as
to how such a device would be a good investment and make money for him.
He is anxious to learn how the machine may be related to his particular
problems. But it is not likely that he has time or sufficient interest to wade
through a long letter starting out:

"We take pleasure in sending you under separate cover catalogue of our
latest models of Print-Quicks, and we are sure it will prove of interest to
you."

*****

The man who has been sufficiently interested in an advertisement to send
for a catalogue finds his interest cooling rapidly when he picks up a letter
that starts out like this:

"We have your valued inquiry of recent date, and we take pleasure in
acknowledging," and so forth.

*****

Suppose the letter replying to his inquiry starts out in this style:

"The picture on page 5 of our catalogue is a pretty fair one, but I wish
you could see the desk itself."

*****

The reader's attention is immediately gripped and he reaches for the
catalogue to look at the picture on page five.

To get attention and arouse interest, avoid long-spun introductions and
hackneyed expressions. Rambling sentences and loose paragraphs have
proved the graveyard for many excellent propositions. Time-worn
expressions and weather-beaten phrases are poor conductors, there, is too
much resistance-loss in the current of the reader's interest.

The best way to secure attention naturally depends upon the nature of the
proposition and the class of men to whom the letter is written.

One of the most familiar methods is that known to correspondents as the
"mental shock." The idea is to put at the top of the letter a "Stop! Look!
Listen!" sign. Examples of this style are plentiful:

THIS MEANS MONEY TO YOU—BIG MONEY LET ME PAY YOUR
NEXT MONTH'S RENT READ IT—ON OUR WORD IT'S WORTH
READING STOP SHOVELING YOUR MONEY INTO THE

FURNACE NOW LISTEN! I WANT A PERSONAL WORD WITH
YOU CUT YOUR LIGHT BILL IN HALF

*****

Such introductions have undoubtedly proved exceedingly effective at
times, but like many other good things, the idea has been overworked. The
catch-line of itself sells no goods and to be effective it must be followed by
trip-hammer arguments. Interest created in this way is hard to keep up.

The correspondent may use a catch-line, just as the barker at a side show
uses a megaphone—the noise attracts a crowd but it does not sell the
tickets. It is the "spiel" the barker gives that packs the tent. And so the
average man is not influenced so much by a bold catch-line in his letters as
by the paragraphs that follow. Some correspondents even run a catch-line in
red ink at the top of the page, but these yellow journal "scare-heads" fall
short with the average business proposition.

Then attention may be secured, not by a startling sentence but by the
graphic way in which a proposition is stated. Here is an opening that starts
out with a clear-cut swing:

"If we were to offer you a hundred-dollar bill as a gift we take it for
granted that you would be interested. If, then, our goods will mean to you
many times that sum every year isn't the proposition still more interesting?
Do you not want us to demonstrate what we say? Are you not willing to
invest a little of your time watching this demonstration?"

*****

This reference to a hundred-dollar bill creates a concrete image in the
mind of the reader. The letters that first used this attention-getter proved so

effective that the idea has been worked over in many forms. Here is the
effective way one correspondent starts out:

"If this letter were printed on ten-dollar bills it could scarcely be more
valuable to you than the offer it now contains. You want money; we want
your business. Let's go into partnership."

*****

Here is a letter sent out by a manufacturer of printing presses:

"If your press feeders always showed up on Monday morning; if they
were never late, never got tired, never became careless, never grumbled
about working overtime, you would increase the output of your plant, have
less trouble, make more money—that is why you will be interested in the
Speedwell Automatic feeding attachment."

*****

This paragraph summarizes many of the troubles of the employing
printer. It "gets under his skin," it is graphic, depicting one of the greatest
problems of his business and so he is certain to read the letter and learn
more about the solution that it offers.

This same paragraph might also be used as a good illustration of that
effective attention-getter, the quick appeal to the problems that are of most
concern to the reader. The one great trouble with the majority of letters is
that they start out with "we" and from first to last have a selfish viewpoint:

"We have your valued inquiry of recent date and, as per your request, we
take pleasure in enclosing herewith a copy of our latest catalogue," and so

forth.

*****

Don't begin by talking about yourself, your company, your business, your
growth, your progress, your improved machinery, your increased
circulation, your newly invested capital. The reader has not the faintest
interest in you or your business until he can see some connection between it
and his own welfare. By itself it makes no play whatever to his attention; it
must first be coupled up with his problems and his needs.

Begin by talking about him, his company, his business, his progress, his
troubles, his disappointments, his needs, his ambition.

That is where he lives day and night. Knock at that door and you will
find him at home. Touch upon some vital need in his business— some
defect or tangle that is worrying him—some weak spot that he wants to
remedy—some cherished ambition that haunts him—and you will have
rung the bell of his interest. A few openings that are designed to get the
reader's attention and induce him to read farther, are shown here:

"Your letter reached me at a very opportune time as I have been looking
for a representative in your territory."

*****

"By using this code you can telegraph us for any special article you want
and it will be delivered at your store the following morning. This will
enable you to compete with the large mail-order houses. It will give you a
service that will mean more business and satisfied customers."

*****

"You can save the wages of one salesman in every department of your
store. Just as you save money by using a typewriter, addressograph, adding
machine, cash register and other modern equipments, so you can save it by
installing a Simplex."

*****

"Don't you want to know how to add two thousand square feet of display
to some department of your store in exchange for twenty feet of wall?"

*****

"Yes, there is a mighty good opening in your territory for hustling
salesmen. You will receive a complete outfit by express so you can start at
once."

*****

Keep the interest of the reader in mind. No matter how busy he is, he will
find time to read your letter if you talk about his problems and his welfare.

Some correspondents, having taken only the first lesson in business letter
writing, over-shoot the mark with a lot of "hot air" that is all too apparent.
Here is the opening paragraph from one of these writers:

"By the concise and business-like character of your letter of inquiry we
know that you would be very successful in the sale of our typewriters. This
personal and confidential circular letter is sent only to a few of our selected
correspondents whom we believe can be placed as general agents."

*****

As a matter of fact, the gentleman to whom this letter was sent had
written with a lead pencil on a post card asking for further particulars
regarding propositions to salesmen. It is a good illustration of the form
letter gone wrong. The inquirer had not written a concise and business-like
letter and there was not the slightest reason why the firm should send him a
personal and confidential proposition and if the proposition were really
confidential, it would not be printed in a circular letter.

Here is the opening paragraph of a letter typical in its lack of originality
and attention-getting qualities:

"We are in receipt of yours of recent date and in reply wish to state that
you will find under separate cover a copy of our latest catalogue, illustrating
and describing our Wonder Lighting System. We are sure the information
contained in this catalogue will be of interest to you."

*****

Not only is the paragraph devoid of interest-getting features, but it is
written from the wrong standpoint—"we" instead of "you."

Re-write the paragraph and the reader is certain to have his interest
stimulated:

"The catalogue is too large to enclose with this letter and so you will find
it in another envelope. You will find on page 4 a complete description of the
Wonder System of Lighting, explaining just how it will cut down your light
bill. This system is adapted to use in stores, factories, public halls and
homes—no matter what you want you will find it listed in this catalogue."

*****

Then it is possible to secure attention by some familiar allusion, some
reference to facts with which the reader is familiar:

"In our fathers' day, you know, all fine tableware was hand forged—that
meant quality but high cost."

*****

The opening statement secures the assent of the reader even before he
knows what the proposition is. Sometimes an allusion may be introduced
that does not come home so pointedly to the reader but the originality of the
idea appeals to him. By its very cleverness he is led to read further. Here is
the beginning of a letter sent out by an advertising man and commercial
letter writer:

"The Prodigal Son might have started home much sooner had he received
an interesting letter about the fatted calf that awaited his coming.

"The right sort of a letter would have attracted his attention, aroused his
interest, created a desire and stimulated him to action."

*****

Then there is the opening that starts out with an appeal to human interest.
It is the one opening where the writer can talk about himself and still get
attention and work up interest:

"Let me tell you how I got into the mail order business and made so
much money out of it."

*****

"I wish I could have had the opportunity thirty years ago that you have
today. Did I ever tell you how I started out?"

*****

"I have been successful because I have confidence in other people."

*****

"I was talking to Mr. Phillips, the president of our institution, this
morning, and he told me that you had written to us concerning our
correspondence course."

*****

These personal touches bring the writer and reader close together and
pave the way for a man-to-man talk.

Then there is a way of getting attention by some novel idea, something
unusual in the typography of the letter, some unusual idea. One mail-order
man puts these two lines written with a typewriter across the top of his
letterheads:

"EVEN IF YOU HAD TO PAY TO SECURE A COPY OF THIS
LETTER—OR HAD TO TAKE A DAY OFF TO READ IT—YOU
COULD NOT AFFORD TO FAIL TO CONSIDER IT."

*****

Few men would receive a letter like that without taking the time to read
it, at least hurriedly, and if the rest of the argument is presented with equal
force the message is almost sure to be carried home.

Another mail-order house sending out form letters under one-cent
postage, inserts this sentence directly under the date line, to the right of the
name and address:

"Leaving our letter unsealed for postal inspection is the best proof that
our goods are exactly as represented."

*****

The originality of the idea impresses one. There is no danger that the
letter will be shunted into the waste basket without a reading.

There are times when it is necessary to disarm the resentment of the
reader in the very first paragraph, as, for instance, when there has been a
delay in replying to a letter. An opening that is all too common reads:

"I have been so extremely busy that your letter has not received my
attention."

*****

Or the writer may be undiplomatic enough to say:

"Pardon delay. I have been so much engaged with other matters that I
have not found time to write you."

*****

The considerate correspondent is always careful that his opening does not
rub the wrong way. One writer starts out by saying:

"You have certainly been very patient with me in the matter of your order
and I wish to thank you for this."

*****

Here are the first five paragraphs of a two-page letter from an investment
firm. The length of the letter is greatly against it and the only hope the
writer could have, would be in getting the attention firmly in the opening
paragraph:

"My dear Mr. Wilson:

"I want to have a personal word with you to explain this matter.

"I don't like to rush things; I believe in taking my time. I always try to do
it. I want you to do the same thing, but there are exceptions to all rules:
sometimes we cannot do things just the way we want to and at the same
time reap all the benefits.

"Here is the situation. I went out to the OIL FIELDS OF CALIFORNIA
and while there I DID DEVOTE PLENTY AND AMPLE TIME TO
PROPER INVESTIGATION. I went into the thing thoroughly. I went there
intending to INVEST MY OWN MONEY if I found things right.

"My main object in leaving for California was to INVESTIGATE FOR
MY
CLIENTS, but I would not advise my clients to invest THEIR money

unless the situation was such that I would invest MY OWN money.
That's where I stand—first, last and all the time.

"I don't go into the torrid deserts in the heat of the summer and stay there
for weeks just for fun. There is no fun or pleasure to it, let me tell you. It's
hard work when one investigates properly, and I surely did it right. I guess
you know that."

*****

The letter is not lacking in style; the writer knows how to put things
forcibly, but he takes up half a page of valuable space before he says
anything vital to his subject. See how much stronger his letter would have
been had he started with the fifth paragraph, following it with the fourth
paragraph.

The great weakness in many letters is padding out the introduction with
non-essential material. It takes the writer too long to get down to his
proposition. Here is a letter from a concern seeking to interest agents:

"We are in receipt of your valued inquiry and we enclose herewith full
information in regard to the E. Z. Washing Compound and our terms to
agents.

"We shall be pleased to mail you a washing sample post-paid on receipt
of four cents in two-cent stamps or a full size can for ten cents, which
amount you may subtract from your first order, thus getting the sample free.
We would like to send you a sample without requiring any deposit but we
have been so widely imposed upon by 'sample grafters' in the past that we
can no longer afford to do this."

*****

The first paragraph is hackneyed and written from the standpoint of the
writer rather than that of the reader. The second paragraph is a joke. Seven
lines, lines that ought to be charged with magnetic, interest-getting
statements, are devoted to explaining why ten cents' worth of samples are
not sent free, but that this "investment" will be deducted from the first
order. What is the use of saving a ten-cent sample if you lose the interest of
a possible agent, whose smallest sales would amount to several times this
sum?

It is useless to spend time and thought in presenting your proposition and
working in a clincher unless you get attention and stimulate the reader's
interest in the beginning. Practically everyone will read your opening
paragraph—whether he reads further will depend upon those first sentences.

Do not deceive yourself by thinking that because your proposition is
interesting to you, it will naturally be interesting to others. Do not put all
your thought on argument and inducements—the man to whom you are
writing may never read that far.

Lead up to your proposition from the reader's point of view; couple up
your goods with his needs; show him where he will benefit and he will read
your letter through to the postscript. Get his attention and arouse his interest
—then you are ready to present your proposition.

How To Present Your
PROPOSITION

PART II—HOW TO WRITE THE LETTER—CHAPTER 6

After attention has been secured, you must lead quickly to your
description and explanation; visualize your product and introduce your
proof, following this up with arguments. The art of the letter writer is found
in his ability to lead the reader along, paragraph by paragraph, without a
break in the POINT of CONTACT that has been established. Then the
proposition must be presented so clearly that there is no possibility of its
being misunderstood, and the product or the service must be coupled up
with the READER'S NEEDS

How this can be done is described in this chapter

*****

After you have attracted attention and stimulated the interest of the
reader, you have made a good beginning, but only a beginning; you then
have the hard task of holding that interest, explaining your proposition,
pointing out the superiority of the goods or the service that you are trying to
sell and making an inducement that will bring in the orders. Your case is in
court, the jury has been drawn, the judge is attentive and the opposing
counsel is alert—it is up to you to prove your case.

Good business letter, consciously or unconsciously usually contains four
elements: description, explanation, argument and persuasion. These factors
may pass under different names, but they are present and most
correspondents will include two other elements—inducement and clincher.

In this chapter we will consider description, explanation and argument as
the vehicles one may use in carrying his message to the reader.

An essential part of all sales letters is a clear description of the article or
goods—give the prospect a graphic idea of how the thing you are trying to
sell him looks, and this description should follow closely after the interest-

getting introduction. To describe an article graphically one has got to know
it thoroughly: the material of which it is made; the processes of
manufacture; how it is sold and shipped—every detail about it.

There are two extremes to which correspondents frequently go. One
makes the description too technical, using language and terms that are only
partially understood by the reader. He does not appreciate that the man to
whom he is writing may not understand the technical or colloquial language
that is so familiar to everyone in the house.

For instance, if a man wants to install an electric fan in his office, it
would be the height of folly to write him a letter filled with technical
descriptions about the quality of the fan, the magnetic density of the iron
that is used, the quality of the insulation, the kilowatts consumed—"talking
points" that would be lost on the average business man. The letter that
would sell him would give specific, but not technical information, about
how the speed of the fan is easily regulated, that it needs to be oiled but
once a year, and costs so much a month to operate. These are the things in
which the prospective customer is interested.

Then there is the correspondent whose descriptions are too vague; too
general—little more than bald assertions. A letter from a vacuum cleaner
manufacturing company trying to interest agents is filled with such
statements as: "This is the best hand power machine ever manufactured," "It
is the greatest seller ever produced," "It sells instantly upon demonstration."
No one believes such exaggerations as these. Near the end of the letter—
where the writer should be putting in his clincher, there is a little specific
information stating that the device weighs only five pounds, is made of
good material and can be operated by a child. If this paragraph had
followed quickly after the introduction and had gone into further details, the
prospect might have been interested, but it is probable that the majority of

those who received the letter never read as far as the bottom of the second
page.

If a man is sufficiently interested in a product to write for catalogue and
information, or if you have succeeded in getting his attention in the opening
paragraph of a sales letter, he is certain to read a description that is specific
and definite.

The average man thinks of a work bench as a work bench and would be
at a loss to describe one, but he has a different conception after reading
these paragraphs from a manufacturer's letter:

"Just a word so you will understand the superiority of our goods.

"Our benches are built principally of maple, the very best Michigan hard
maple, and we carry this timber in our yards in upwards of a million feet at
a time. It is piled up and allowed to air dry for at least two years before
being used; then the stock is kiln dried to make sure that the lumber is
absolutely without moisture or sap, and we know there can be no warping
or opening of glue joints in the finished product.

"Our machinery is electrically driven, securing an even drive to the belt,
thus getting the best work from all equipment—absolutely true cuts that
give perfect joints to all work.

"Then, as to glue: Some manufacturers contend that any glue that sticks
will do. We insist there should be no question about glue joints; no 'perhaps'
in our argument. That's why we use only the best by test; not merely
sticking two pieces of wood together to try the joint quality, but glue that is
scientifically tested for tenacity, viscosity, absorption, and for acid or
coloring matter—in short, every test that can be applied."

*****

This description is neither too technical nor too general; it carries
conviction, it is specific enough to appeal to a master carpenter, and it is
clear enough to be understood by the layman who never handled a saw or
planer.

It may be laid down as a principle that long description should ordinarily
be made in circulars, folders or catalogues that are enclosed with the letter
or sent in a separate envelope, but sometimes it is desirable to emphasize
certain points in the letter. Happy is the man who can eject enough
originality into this description to make it easy reading. The majority of
correspondents, in describing the parts of an automobile, would say:

"The celebrated Imperial Wheel Bearings are used, These do not need to
be oiled oftener than once in six months."

*****

A correspondent who knew how to throw light into dark places said:

"Imperial Wheel Bearings: grease twice a year and forget."

*****

This "and forget" is such a clever stroke that you are carried on through
the rest of the letter, and you are not bored with the figures and detailed
description.

In a similar way a sales manager, in writing the advertising matter for a
motor cycle, leads up to his description of the motor and its capacity by the

brief statement: "No limit to speed but the law." This is a friction clutch on
the imagination that carries the reader's interest to the end.

One writer avoids bringing technical descriptions into his letters, at the
same time carrying conviction as to the quality of his goods:

"This metal has been subjected to severe accelerated corrosion tests held
in accordance with rigid specifications laid down by the American Society
for Testing Material, and has proven to corrode much less than either
charcoal iron, wrought iron, or steel sheet.

"A complete record of these tests and results will be found on the
enclosed sheet."

*****

Then there are times when description may be almost entirely eliminated
from the letter. For instance, if you are trying to sell a man a house and lot
and he has been out to look at the place and has gone over it thoroughly,
there is little more that you can say in the way of description. Your letter
must deal entirely with arguments as to why he should buy now—
persuasion, inducement. Or, if you are trying to sell him the typewriter that
he has been trying out in his office for a month, description is unnecessary
—the load your letter must carry is lightened. And there are letters in which
explanation is unnecessary. If you are trying to get a man to order a suit of
clothes by mail, you will not explain the use of clothes but you will bear
down heavily on the description of the material that you put into these
particular garments and point out why it is to his advantage to order direct
of the manufacturers.

But if you are presenting a new proposition, it is necessary to explain its
nature, its workings, its principles and appliances. If you are trying to sell a
fountain pen you will not waste valuable space in explaining to the reader
what a fountain pen is good for and why he should have one, but rather you
will give the reasons for buying your particular pen in preference to others.
You will explain the self-filling feature and the new patent which prevents
its leaking or clogging.

It is not always possible to separate description and explanation. Here is
an illustration taken from a letter sent out by a mail-order shoe company:

"I hope your delay in ordering is not the result of any lack of clear
information about Wearwells. Let me briefly mention some of the features
of Wearwell shoes that I believe warrant you in favoring us with your order:

(A) Genuine custom style;
(B) Highest grade material and workmanship;
(C) The best fit—thanks to our quarter-sized system—that it is
possible to obtain in shoes;
(D) Thorough foot comfort and long wear;
(E) Our perfect mail-order service; and
(F) The guaranteed PROOF OF QUALITY given in the specification
tag sent with every pair."

*****

This is a concise summary of a longer description that had been given in
a previous letter and it explains why the shoes will give satisfaction.

Here is the paragraph by which the manufacturer of a time-recording
device, writing about the advantages of his system puts in explanation plus

argument:

"Every employee keeps his own time and cannot question his own
record. All mechanism is hidden and locked. Nothing can be tampered with.
The clock cannot be stopped. The record cannot be beaten.

"This device fits into any cost system and gives an accurate record of
what time every man puts on every job. It serves the double purpose of
furnishing you a correct time-on-job cost and prevents loafing. It stops
costly leaks and enables you to figure profit to the last penny."

*****

Explanation may run in one of many channels. It may point out how the
careful selection of raw material makes your product the best, or how the
unusual facilities of your factory or the skill of your workmen, or the
system of testing the parts assures the greatest value. You might explain
why the particular improvements and the patents on your machines make it
better or give it greater capacity. The description and the explanation must
of necessity depend upon the character of the proposition, but it may be laid
down as a general principle that the prospect must be made to understand
thoroughly just what the article is for, how it is made, how it looks, how it
is used, and what its points of superiority are. Whenever possible, the
description and explanation in the letter should be reinforced by samples or
illustrations that will give a more graphic idea of the product.

The prospect may be sufficiently familiar with the thing you are selling to
relieve you of the necessity of describing and explaining, although usually
these supports are necessary for a selling campaign. But it must be
remembered that description and explanation alone do not make a strong
appeal to the will. They may arouse interest and excite desire but they do

not carry conviction as argument does. Some letters are full of explanation
and description but lack argument. The repair man from the factory may
give a good explanation of how a machine works, but the chances are he
would fall down in trying to sell the machine, unless he understood how to
reinforce his explanations with a salesman's ability to use argument and
persuasion.

And so you must look well to your arguments, and the arguments that
actually pull the most orders consist of proofs—cold, hard logic and facts
that cannot be questioned. As you hope for the verdict of the jury you must
prove your case. It is amazing how many correspondents fail to appreciate
the necessity for arguments. Pages will be filled with assertions, superlative
adjectives, boastful claims of superiority, but not one sentence that offers
proof of any statement, not one logical reason why the reader should be
interested.

"We know you will make a mint of money if you put in our goods." "This
is the largest and most complete line in the country." "Our factory has
doubled its capacity during the last three years." "Our terms are the most
liberal that have ever been offered." "You are missing the opportunity of
your lifetime if you do not accept this proposition." "We hope to receive
your order by return mail, for you will never have such a wonderful
opportunity again." Such sentences fill the pages of thousands of letters that
are mailed every day.

"Our system of inspection with special micrometer gauges insures all
parts being perfect—within one-thousandth of an inch of absolute accuracy.
This means, too, any time you want an extra part of your engine for
replacement that you can get it and that it will fit. If we charged you twice
as much for the White engine, we could not give you better material or
workmanship."

*****

Now this is an argument that is worth while: that the parts of the engine
are so accurately ground that repairs can be made quickly, and new parts
will fit without a moment's trouble. The last sentence of the paragraph is of
course nothing but assertion, but it is stated in a way that carries conviction.
Many correspondents would have bluntly declared that this was the best
engine ever manufactured, or something of that kind, and made no
impression at all on the minds of the readers. But the statement that the
company could not make a better engine, even if it charged twice as much,
sinks in.

Proof of quality is always one of the strongest arguments that can be
used. A man wants to feel sure that he is given good value for his money, it
matters not whether he is buying a lead pencil or an automobile. And next
to argument of quality is the argument of price. Here are some striking
paragraphs taken from the letter sent out by a firm manufacturing gummed
labels and advertising stickers:

"We would rather talk quality than price because no other concern prints
better stickers than ours—but we can't help talking price because no other
concern charges as little for them as we do."

*****

This is a strong statement but it is nothing more than a statement The
writer, however, hastens to come forward with argument and proof:

"You know we make a specialty of gummed labels—do nothing else. We
have special machinery designed by ourselves—machinery that may be

used by no other concern. This enables us to produce better stickers at a
minimum expense.

"All of our stickers are printed on the best stock, and double gummed,
and, by the way, compare the gumming of our stickers with those put up by
other concerns. We have built up a business and reputation on stickers that
stick and stay."

*****

If you were in the market for labels you would not hesitate to send an
order to that firm, for the writer gives you satisfying reasons for the quality
and the low price of his goods. The argument in favor of its goods is
presented clearly, concisely, convincingly.

The argument that will strike home to the merchant is one that points out
his opportunity for gain. Here is the way a wholesale grocer presented his
proposition on a new brand of coffee:

"You put in this brand of coffee and we stand back of you and push sales.
Our guarantee of quality goes with every pound we put out. Ask the opinion
of all your customers. If there is the least dissatisfaction, refund them the
price of their coffee and deduct it from our next bill. So confident are we of
the satisfaction that this coffee will give that we agree to take back at the
end of six months all the remaining stock you have on hand—that is, if you
do not care to handle the brand longer.

"You have probably never sold guaranteed coffee before. You take no
chances. The profit is as large as on other brands, and your customers will
be impressed with the guarantee placed on every pound."

*****

The guarantee and the offer of the free trial are possibly the two strongest
arguments that can be used either with a dealer or in straight mail-order
selling.

Among the arguments that are most effective are testimonials and
references to satisfied users. If the writer can refer to some well-known firm
or individual as a satisfied customer he strengthens his point.

"When we showed this fixture to John Wanamaker's man, it took just
about three minutes to close the deal for six of them. Since then they have
ordered seventy-four more."

*****

Such references as this naturally inspire confidence in a proposition and
extracts from letters may be used with great effect, provided the name and
address of the writer is given, so that it will have every appearance of being
genuine.

A solicitor of patents at Washington works into his letters to prospective
clients quotations from manufacturers:

"'We wish to be put in communication with the inventor of some useful
novelty, instrument or device, who is looking for a way to market his
invention. We want to increase our business along new lines and
manufacture under contract, paying royalties to the patentee.

"'If your clients have any articles of merit that they want to market,
kindly communicate with us. Our business is the manufacture of patented
articles under contract and we can undoubtedly serve many of your clients
in a profitable manner.'"

*****

Such extracts as these are intended to impress upon the inventor the
desirability of placing his business with someone who has such a wide
acquaintance and is in a position to put him in touch with manufacturers.

To send a list of references may also prove a most convincing argument,
especially if the writer can refer to some man or firm located near the one to
whom he is writing. A mutual acquaintance forms a sort of connecting link
that is a pulling force even though the reference is never looked up. In fact,
it is only on occasions that references of this kind are investigated, for the
mere naming of banks and prominent business men is sufficient to inspire
confidence that the proposition is "on the square."

After you have explained your proposition, described your goods and
pointed out to the prospect how it is to his advantage to possess these
goods, the time has come to make him an offer.

One of the pathetic sins of business letter writers is to work in the price
too early in the letter—before the prospect is interested in the proposition.
The clever salesman always endeavors to work up one's interest to the
highest possible pitch before price is mentioned at all. Many solicitors
consider it so essential to keep the price in the background until near the
end of the canvass that they artfully dodge the question, "What is the cost?",
until they think the prospect is sufficiently interested not to "shy" when the
figure is mentioned.

A letter from a company seeking to interest agents starts out awkwardly
with a long paragraph:

"We will be pleased to have you act as our salesman. We need a
representative in your city. We know you will make a success."

*****

Then follows a second paragraph giving the selling price of a "complete
outfit" although there has not been a line in the letter to warm up the reader,
to interest him in the proposition, to point out how he can make money and
show him where he will benefit by handling this particular line.

After this poor beginning the letter goes on with its explanation and
argument, but the message is lost—a message that might have borne fruit
had the writer repressed his own selfish motives and pointed out how the
reader would gain. There is then plenty of time to refer to the cost of the
outfit.

A letter from a manufacturing concern selling direct to the consumer
starts out in this kill-interest fashion:

"Did you get our circular describing the merits of our celebrated
Wonderdown Mattresses which cost, full size, $10 each?"

*****

An experienced correspondent would never commit such a blunder for he
would not bring in the price until near the end of the letter; or, more likely,
the dollar mark would not appear in the letter at all. It would be shown only
in an enclosure—folder, circular, catalogue or price list. So important is this
point that many schemes have been devised for keeping the cost in the
back-ground and this is one of the principal reasons why many concerns are
emphasizing more and more the free trial and selling on instalments.

One manufacturing company makes a talking point out of the fact that
the only condition on which it will sell a machine is to put it in a plant for a
sixty-day trial; then if it is found satisfactory the purchaser has his option of
different methods of payments: a discount for all cash or monthly
instalments.

There are many propositions successfully handled by gradually working
up interest to the point where price can be brought in, then leading quickly
to the inducement and the clincher. In such a letter the price could not be
ignored very well and the effect is lost unless it is brought in at the proper
place, directly following the argument.

Like all rules, there are exceptions to this. Sometimes where the reader is
familiar with the proposition it may be a good policy to catch his attention
by a special price offer at the very beginning of the letter. This is frequently
done in follow-up letters where it is reasonably certain that the preceding
correspondence has practically exhausted explanation, description and
arguments. The problem here is different and a special price may be the
strongest talking point.

Then, of course, there are letters that are intended merely to arouse the
interest of the reader and induce him to write for prices and further
information. The purpose here is to stimulate the interest and induce the
recipient to send in particulars regarding his needs and ask for terms. After
a man's interest has been this far stimulated it is comparatively easy to
quote prices without frightening him away.

But in the majority of sales letters an offer must be made, for price, after
all, is the one thing that is, to the reader, of first importance. Most men want
to know all about a proposition without the bother of further
correspondence and so a specific offer should usually follow the arguments.

How To Bring The Letter To
A CLOSE

PART II—HOW TO WRITE THE LETTER—CHAPTER 7

GETTING ATTENTION, explaining a proposition and presenting
arguments and proofs are essentials in every letter, but they merely lead up
to the vital part—GETTING ACTION. They must be closely followed by
PERSUASION, INDUCEMENT and a CLINCHER. The well written letter
works up to a climax and the order should be secured while interest is at its
height. Many correspondents stumble when they come to the close. This
chapter shows how to make a get-away— how to hook the order, or if the
order is not secured—how to leave the way open to come back with a
follow-up

*****

Nothing will take the place of arguments and logical reasons in selling an
article or a service. But most salesmen will bear out the statement that few
orders would be taken unless persuasion and inducement are brought into
play to get the prospect's name onto the dotted line. Persuasion alone sells
few goods outside of the church fair but it helps out the arguments and
proofs. The collector's troubles come mainly from sales that are made by
persuasion, for the majority of men who are convinced by sound arguments
and logical reasons to purchase a machine or a line of goods carry out their
part of the bargain if they can.

There are a good many correspondents who are clever enough in
presenting their proposition, but display a most limited knowledge of
human nature in using persuasions that rubs the prospect the wrong way.

"Why will you let a few dollars stand between you and success? Why
waste your time, wearing yourself out working for others? Why don't you
throw off the conditions which bind you down to a small income? Why
don't you shake off the shackles? Why don't you rise to the opportunity that
is now presented to you?"

*****

Such a letter is an insult to anyone who receives it, for it really tells him
that he is a "mutt" and does not know it. Compare the preceding paragraph
with this forceful appeal:

"Remember, the men now in positions you covet did not tumble into
them by accident. At one time they had nothing more to guide them than an
opportunity exactly like this one. Someone pointed out to them the
possibilities and they took the chance and gradually attained their present
success. Have you the courage to make the start, grasp an opportunity, work
out your destiny in this same way?"

*****

This is persuasion by pointing out what others have done. It is the
persuasion of example; an appeal that is dignified and inspirational.

And here, as in all other parts of the letter, there is the tendency to make
the appeal from the selfish standpoint—the profits that will accrue to the
writer:

"We strongly advise that you get a piece of this land at once. It is bound
to increase in value. You can't lose. Won't you cast your lot with us now? It
is your last opportunity to get a piece of this valuable land at this extremely

low price. Take our word for it and make your decision now before it is too
late."

*****

A manufacturer of folding machines got away from this attitude and
cleverly combined persuasion and inducement in an offer made to
newspaper publishers during the month of October:

"You want to try this folder thoroughly before you buy it and no better
test can be given than during the holiday season when heavy advertising
necessitates large editions. Now, if you will put in one of these folders right
away and use it every week, we will extend our usual sixty-day terms to
January 15th. This will enable you to test it out thoroughly and,
furthermore, you will not have to make the first payment until you have
opportunity to make collections for the December advertising. This
proposition must be accepted before Oct. 31st."

*****

Such an inducement is timely and doubly effective on this account. The
appeal reaches the newspaper man at the season of the year when he is
busiest; just the time when he most needs a folder, and the manufacturer
provides for the first payment at the time of year when the average
publisher has the largest bank account.

Occasionally the most effective persuasion is a ginger talk, a regular
"Come on, boys," letter that furnishes the dynamic force necessary to get
some men started:

"There is no better time to start in this business than right now. People
always spend money freely just before the holidays—get in the game and
get your share of this loose coin. Remember, we ship the day the order
comes in. Send us your order this afternoon and the goods will be at your
door day after tomorrow. You can have several hundred dollars in the bank
by this time next week. Why not? All you need to do is to make the decision
now.

"Unless you are blind or pretty well crippled up, you needn't expect that
people will come around and drop good money into your hat. But they will
loosen up if you go out after them with a good proposition such as this—
and provided you get to them before the other fellow. The whole thing is to
get started. Get in motion! Get busy! If you don't want to take time to write,
telegraph at our expense. It doesn't make much difference how you start, the
thing is to start. Are you with us?"

*****

Now, there really is nothing in these two paragraphs except a little ginger,
and a good deal of slang, but this may prove the most effective stimulant to
a man's energy, the kind of persuasion to get him in motion.

One thing to be constantly guarded against is exaggeration—"laying it on
too thick." Concerns selling goods on the instalment basis through agents
who are paid on commission, find their hardest problem is to collect money
where the proposition was painted in too glowing colors. The
representative, thinking only of his commission on the sale, puts the
proposition too strong, makes the inducement so alluring that the goods do
not measure up to the salesman's claims.

Then the correspondent should be careful not to put the inducement so
strong that it will attract out of curiosity rather than out of actual intent.

Many clever advertisements pull a large number of inquiries but few sales
are made. It is a waste of time and money to use an inducement that does
not stimulate an actual interest. Many a mailing list is choked with
deadwood—names that represent curiosity seekers and the company loses
on both hands, for it costs money to get those names on the list and it costs
more money to get them off the list.

The correspondent should never attempt to persuade a man by assuming
an injured attitude. Because a man answers an advertisement or writes for
information, does not put him under the slightest obligation to purchase the
goods and he cannot be shamed into parting with his money by such a
paragraph as this:

"Do you think you have treated us fairly in not replying to our letters? We
have written to you time and again just as courteously as we know how; we
have asked you to let us know whether or not you are interested; we have
tried to be perfectly fair and square with you; and yet you have not done us
the common courtesy of replying. Do you think this is treating us just right?
Don't you think you ought to write us, and if you are not intending to buy,
to let us know the reason?"

*****

If the recipient reads that far down into his letter, it will only serve to
make him mad. No matter what inducement the company may make him
later, it is not probable that it can overcome the prejudice that such an
insulting paragraph will have created.

Some of the correspondence schools understand how to work in
persuasion cleverly and effectively. Here is a paragraph that is dignified and
persuasive:

"Remember also that this is the best time of the entire year to get good
positions, as wholesalers and manufacturers all over the country will put on
thousands of new men for the coming season. We are receiving inquiries
right along from the best firms in the country who ask us to provide them
with competent salesmen. We have supplied them with so many good men
that they always look to us when additional help is required, and just now
the demand is so great that we can guarantee you a position if you start the
course this month."

*****

Persuasion plays a small part in selling general commodities, such as
machinery, equipment, supplies, and the articles of every-day business, but
correspondence courses, insurance, banking, building and loan propositions
and various investment schemes can be pushed and developed by an
intelligent use of this appeal.

Merged with the persuasion or closely following it should be some
inducement to move the reader to "buy now." Description, explanation,
argument and even persuasion are not enough to get the order. A specific
inducement is necessary. There are many things that we intend to buy
sometime, articles in which we have become interested, but letters about
them have been tucked away in a pigeon-hole until we have more time. It is
likely that everyone of those letters would have been answered had they
contained specific inducements that convinced us it would be a mistake to
delay.

In some form or another, gain is the essence of all inducements, for gain
is the dynamic force to all our business movements. The most familiar form
of inducement is the special price, or special terms that are good if
"accepted within ten days." The inducement of free trial and free samples
are becoming more widely used every day.

The most effective letters are those that work in the inducement so
artfully that the reader feels he is missing something if he does not answer.
The skillful correspondent does not tell him bluntly that he will miss the
opportunity of a life time if he does not accept a proposition; he merely
suggests it in a way that makes a much more powerful impression. Here is
the way a correspondence school uses inducements in letters to prospective
students in its mechanical drawing course. After telling the prospect about
the purchase of a number of drawing outfits it follows with this paragraph:

"It was necessary to place this large order in order to secure the sets at the
lowest possible figure. Knowing that this number will exceed our weekly
sales, we have decided to offer these extra sets to some of the ambitious
young men who have been writing to us. If you will fill out the enclosed
scholarship blank and mail at once we will send you one of these handsome
sets FREE, express prepaid. But this offer must be accepted before the last
of the month. At the rate the scholarship blanks are now coming in, it is
more than likely that the available sets will be exhausted before November
1st. It is necessary therefore that you send us your application at once."

*****

It is not necessary to offer something for nothing in your inducement. In
fact, a good reason is usually a better order getter than a good premium.
Make the man want your proposition—that is the secret of the good sales
letter. If a man really wants your product he is going to get it sooner or later,
and the selling letters that score the biggest results are those that create
desire; following argument and reason with an inducement that persuades a
man to part with his hard-earned money and buy your goods.

It is a never-ending surprise—the number of correspondents who cleverly
attract the interest of a reader, present their proposition forcibly and

convincingly, following with arguments and inducements that persuade him
to buy, and then, just as he is ready to reach for his check book, turn heel
and leave him with the assurance that they will be pleased to give him
further information when they could have had his order by laying the
contract before him and saying, "Sign here."

There are plenty of good starters who are poor finishers. They get
attention but don't get the order. They are winded at the finish; they stumble
at the climax where they should be strongest, and the interest which they
worked so hard to stimulate oozes away. They fail because they do not
know how to close.

As you hope for results, do not overlook the summary and the climax.
Do not forget to insert a hook that will land the order.

Time, energy and money are alike wasted in creating desire if you fail to
crystallize it in action. Steer your letter away from the hold-over file as
dexterously as you steer it away from the waste basket. It is not enough to
make your prospect want to order, you must make it easy for him to order
by enclosing order blanks, return envelopes, instructions and other
"literature" that will strengthen your arguments and whet his desire; and
more than that, you must reach a real climax in your letters—tell the
prospect what to do and how to do it.

The climax is not a part distinct from the parts that have gone before.
Persuasion and inducement are but elements of the climax, working the
prospect up to the point where you can insert a paragraph telling him to
"sign and mail today." How foolish to work up the interest and then let the
reader down with such a paragraph as this:

"Thanking you for your inquiry and hoping to be favored with your
order, and assuring you it will be fully appreciated and receive our careful
attention, we are."

*****

Such a paragraph pulls few orders. Compare the foregoing with the one
that fairly galvanizes the reader into immediate action:

"Send us a $2.00 bill now. If you are not convinced that this file is the
best $2.00 investment ever made, we will refund your money for the mere
asking. Send today, while you have it in mind."

*****

Here is a paragraph not unlike the close of dozens of letters that you read
every week:

"Trusting that we may hear from you in the near future and hoping we
will have the pleasure of numbering you among our customers, we are,"

*****

Such a close invites delay in answering. It is an order killer; it smothers
interest, it delays action. But here is a close that is likely to bring the order
if the desire has been created.

"Simply wrap a $1.00 bill in this letter and send to us at our risk."

*****

A writer who does not understand the psychology of suggestion writes
this unfortunate closing paragraph:

"Will you not advise us at an early date whether or not you are interested
in our proposition? As you have not replied to our previous letters, we begin
to fear that you do not intend to avail yourself of this wonderful
opportunity, and we would be very glad to have you write us if this is a
fact."

*****

How foolish to help along one's indifference by the suggestion that he is
not interested. Just as long as you spend postage on a prospect treat him as a
probable customer. Assume that he is interested; take it for granted that
there is some reason why he has not replied and present new arguments,
new persuasion, new inducements for ordering now.

A firm handling a line very similar to that of the firm which sent out the
letter quoted above, always maintains the attitude that the prospect is going
to order some time and its close fairly bristles with "do it now" hooks:

"Step right over to the telegraph office and send us your order by
telegraph at our expense. With this business, every day's delay means loss
of dollars to you. Stop the leak! Save the dollars! Order today!"

*****

Another unfortunate ending is a groveling servility in which the writer
comes on his knees, as it were, begging for the privilege of presenting his
proposition again at some future time. Here are the two last paragraphs of a
three-paragraph letter sent out by an engraving company—an old

established, substantial concern that has no reason to apologize for
soliciting business, no reason for meeting other concerns on any basis
except that of equality:

"Should you not be in the market at the present time for anything in our
line of work, we would esteem it a great favor to us if you would file this
letter and let us hear from you when needing anything in the way of
engraving. If you will let us know when you are ready for something in this
line we will deem it a privilege to send a representative to call on you.

"Trusting we have not made ourselves forward in this matter and hoping
that we may hear from you, we are,"

*****

It is a safe prediction that this letter was written by a new sales manager
who will soon be looking for another job. Such an apologetic note, with
such a lack of selling talk, such a street beggar attitude could never escape
the waste basket. The salesman who starts out by saying, "You wouldn't be
interested in this book, would you?" takes no orders. The letter that comes
apologizing and excusing itself before it gets our attention, and, if it gets
our attention, then lets down just as we are ready to sign an order, is headed
straight for the car wheel plant.

Avoid in the closing paragraph, as far as possible, the participial phrases
such as "Thanking you," "Hoping to be favored," "Assuring you of our
desire," and so forth. Say instead, "We thank you," "It is a pleasure to assure
you," or "May I not hear from you by return mail?" Such a paragraph is
almost inevitably an anti-climax; it affords too much of a let-down to the
proposition.

One of the essentials to the clinching of an order is the enclosures such as
order blanks and return envelopes—subjects that are sufficiently important
to call for separate chapters.

The essential thing to remember in working up to the climax is to make it
a climax; to keep up the reader's interest, to insert a hook that will get the
man's order before his desire has time to cool off. Your proposition is not a
fireless cooker that will keep his interest warm for a long time after the heat
of your letter has been removed—and it will be just that much harder to
warm him up the second time. Insert the hook that will get the order NOW,
for there will never be quite such a favorable time again.

"STYLE" In Letter Writing—
And How To Acquire It

PART III—STYLE—MAKING THE LETTER READABLE—CHAPTER 8

SPECIFIC STATEMENTS and CONCRETE FACTS are the substance
of a business letter. But whether that letter is read or not, or whether those
statements and facts are FORCEFUL and EFFECTIVE, is dependent upon
the manner in which they are presented to the reader—upon the "style."
What "style" is, and how it may be acquired and put to practical use in
business correspondence, is described in this chapter

*****

Letter writing is a craft—selecting and arranging words in sentences to
convey a thought clearly and concisely. While letters take the place of
spoken language, they lack the animation and the personal magnetism of

the speaker—a handicap that must be overcome by finding words and
arranging them in sentences in such a way that they will attract attention
quickly, explain a proposition fully, make a distinct impression upon the
reader and move him to reply. Out of the millions of messages that daily
choke the mails, only a small per cent rise above the dead level of colorless,
anemic correspondence.

The great majority of business letters are not forcible; they are not
productive. They have no style. The meat is served without a dressing. The
letters bulge with solid facts, stale statements and indigestible arguments—
the relishes are lacking. Either the writers do not realize that effectiveness
comes only with an attractive style or they do not know how a crisp and
invigorating style can be cultivated. Style has nothing to do with the subject
matter of a letter. Its only concern is in the language used—in the words and
sentences which describe, explain and persuade, and there is no subject so
commonplace, no proposition so prosaic that the letter cannot be made
readable and interesting when a stylist takes up his pen.

In choosing words the average writer looks at them instead of into them,
and just as there are messages between the lines of a letter, just so are there
half-revealed, half-suggested thoughts between the letters of words—the
suggestiveness to which Hawthorne referred as "the unaccountable spell
that lurks in a syllable." There is character and personality in words, and
Shakespeare left a message to twentieth-century correspondents when he
advised them to "find the eager words—faint words—tired words—weak
words—strong words—sick words—successful words." The ten-talent
business writer is the man who knows these words, recognizes their
possibilities and their limitations and chooses them with the skill of an artist
in mixing the colors for his canvas.

To be clear, to be forceful, to be attractive—these are the essentials of
style. To secure these elements, the writer must make use of carefully
selected words and apt figures of speech. Neglect them and a letter is lost in
the mass; its identity is lacking, it fails to grip attention or carry home the
idea one wishes to convey.

An insipid style, is responsible for much of the ineffectiveness in
business letters. Few men will take the time to decipher a proposition that is
obscured by ambiguous words and involved phrases. Unless it is obviously
to a man's advantage to read such a letter it is dropped into the waste basket,
taking with it the message that might have found an interested prospect if it
had been expressed clearly, logically, forcibly.

The first essential for style is clearness—make your meaning plain. Look
to the individual words; use them in the simplest way— distinctive words to
give exactness of meaning and familiar words to give strength. Words are
the private soldiers under the command of the writer and for ease of
management he wants small words—a long word is out of place, unwieldy,
awkward. The "high-sounding" words that are dragged in by main force for
the sake of effect weigh down the letter, make it logy. The reader may be
impressed by the language but not by the thought. He reads the words and
misses the message.

Avoid long, unfamiliar words. Clothe your thoughts in words that no one
can mistake—the kind of language that men use in the office and on the
street. Do not make the reader work to see your point; he is busy, he has
other things to do—it is your proposition and it is to your interest to put in
that extra work, those additional minutes that will make the letter easily
understood. It is too much to expect the reader to exert himself to dig out
your meaning and then enthuse himself over your proposition.

The men who write pulling letters weigh carefully every sentence, not
only pruning away every unessential word but using words of Anglo-Saxon
origin wherever possible rather than words of Latin derivation. "Indicate
your selection" was written as the catch line for a letter in an important
selling campaign, but the head correspondent with unerring decision re-
wrote it—"Take your choice"—a simpler, stronger statement. The meaning
goes straight to the reader's mind without an effort on his part. "We are
unable to discern" started out the new correspondent in answering a
complaint. "We cannot see" was the revision written in by the master
correspondent—short, concise, to the point. "With your kind permission I
should like to say in reply to your favor"—such expressions are found in
letters every day—thousands of them. The reader is tired before the subject
matter is reached.

The correspondent who is thinking about the one to whom he is writing
starts out briefly and to the point by saying, "This is in reply to your letter,"
or, "Thank you for calling our attention to, and so forth." The reader is
impressed that the writer means business. The attitude is not antagonistic; it
commands attention.

Letters are unnaturally burdened with long words and stilted phrases,
while in conversation one's thoughts seek expression through lines of least
resistance—familiar words and short sentences. But in writing, these same
thoughts go stumbling over long words and groping through involved
phrases.

Proverbs are sentences that have lived because they express a thought
briefly in short, familiar words. Slang becomes popular because of the
wealth of meaning expressed in a few words, and many of these sayings
gradually work their way into respectability— reluctantly admitted into the
sanctuary of "literature" because of their strength, clearness, adaptability.

While short words are necessary for force and vigor, it may be very
desirable at times to use longer and less familiar words to bring out the finer
shade of meaning. A subtle distinction cannot be ignored simply because
one word is shorter than another. "Donate" and "give" are frequently used
as synonyms, but "give" should not be used because it is a short word when
"donate" expresses the meaning more accurately. As a usual thing, "home"
is preferable to "residence," but there are times when the longer word
should be used. "Declare" and "state," "thoroughfare" and "street"—there
are thousands of illustrations on this point, and while the short, Anglo-
Saxon word is always preferable, it should not be used when a longer word
expresses more accurately the thought which the writer wishes to convey.

Many letter writers think that these rules are all right for college
professors, journalists and authors, but impractical for the every-day
business correspondent. Some of the most successful companies in the
country, however, have recognized the importance of these very points and
have adopted strict rules that give strength and character to the letters that
are sent out. For example, here is a paragraph taken from the book of
instructions issued by a large manufacturing concern in the middle west:

"Don't use a long or big word where a short one will do as well or better.
For example: 'Begin' is better than 'commence'; 'home' or 'house' better than
'residence'; 'buy' better than 'purchase'; 'live' better than 'reside'; 'at once'
better than 'immediately'; 'give' better than 'donate'; 'start' or 'begin' better
than 'inaugurate.'"

The selection of words is not the only thing that the writer must consider.
The placing of words to secure emphasis is no less important. The strength
of a statement may depend upon the adroitness with which the words are
used. "Not only to do one thing well but to do that one thing best—this has
been our aim and our accomplishment." In this sentence, taken from a letter,

emphasis is laid upon the word "best" by its position. The manufacturer has
two strong arguments to use on the dealer; one is the quality of the goods—
so they will give satisfaction to the customer—and the other is the
appearance of the goods so they will attract the customer. This is the
sentence used by a clever writer: "We charge you for the service quality—
we give you the appearance quality." The strength comes from the
construction of the sentence throwing emphasis on "charge" and "give."

"Durability—that is our talking point. Other machines are cheaper if you
consider only initial cost; no other machine is more economical when its
durability, its length of service is considered." Here the unusual position of
the word "durability," thrown at the beginning of the sentence, gives an
emphasis that could not be obtained in any other way. And so the stylist
considers not only the words he uses but he places them in the most
strategic position in the sentence—the beginning.

In the building of a climax this order of words is reversed since the
purpose is to work up from the weakest to the strongest word or phrase. The
description, "sweet, pure and sanitary," gives emphasis to the sanitary
feature because it comes last and lingers longest in the mind.

After the study of words, their meaning and position, the writer must
look to completed sentences, and the man who succeeds in selling goods by
mail recognizes first of all the force of concise statements. "You can pay
more but you can't buy more." This statement strikes home with the force of
a blow. "We couldn't improve the powder so we improved the box." There
is nothing but assertion in this sentence, but it carries conviction. Not a
word is out of place. Every word does duty. The idea is expressed concisely,
forcibly. The simplicity of the sentence is more effective than pages of
prosaic argument.

Here is a sentence taken from a letter of a correspondence school:
"Assuming that you are in search of valuable information that may increase
your earning capacity by a more complete knowledge of any subject in
which you may be interested, we desire to state most emphatically that your
wages increase with your intelligence." This is not only ungrammatical, it is
uninteresting. Contrast it with the sentence taken from a letter from another
correspondence school: "You earn more as you learn more." It is short,
emphatic, thought producing. The idea is clearly etched into your mind.

Short sentences are plain and forceful, but when used exclusively, they
become tiresome and monotonous. A short sentence is frequently most
striking when preceding or following a long sentence—it gives variation of
style. Following a long sentence it comes as a quick, trip-hammer blow that
is always effective. And there are times when the proposition cannot be
brought out clearly by short sentences. Then the long sentence comes to the
rescue for it permits of comparisons and climaxes that short sentences
cannot give.

[Illustration: Unique enclosures catch the eye and insure a reading of the
letter. Here are shown two facsimile bonds—one, an investment bond and
the other a guarantee bond; a sample of the diploma issued by a
correspondence school and a $15.00 certificate to apply on a course. The
axe-blade booklet carries the message of a wholesale hardware house, and
the coupon, when filled out, calls for a free sample of toilet preparation.]

[Illustration: Neither printed descriptions nor pictures are as effective as
actual samples of the product advertised. Here are shown different methods
of sending samples of dress goods, shirtings and cloth for other purposes.
At the right are some pieces of wood showing different varnishes and wall
decorations, and at the bottom are veneers that show different furniture

finishes; the various colored pieces of leather are likewise used by furniture
houses in showing the styles of upholstering.]

It is the long, rambling sentences that topple a letter over onto the waste
basket toboggan. But the sentence with a climax, working up interest step
by step, is indispensable. By eye test, by mechanical test, by erasure test
and by strength test, Orchard Hill Bond makes good its reputation as the
best bond on the market for commercial use. There is nothing tiresome
about such a sentence. There is no difficulty in following the writer's
thought.

*****

THE LETTER THE VEHICLE WORDS SHORT SAXON SPECIFIC INDIVIDUAL
PHRASES VIVID NATURAL FIGURES IDIOMS SENTENCES CLEAR FORCEFUL
CLIMATIC POLISHED PARAGRAPHS SHORT UNIFORM LOGICAL ORDERLY THE
LOAD IDEAS GRAPHIC TECHNICAL CLEAR COMPLETE STATEMENTS FACTS
PROOFS REFERENCES TESTIMONY EXPLANATIONS SPECIFIC TECHNICAL CLEAR
COMPLETE ARGUMENTS LOGICAL CLIMATIC CONCLUSIVE CONVINCING

There are two elements in every letter: the thought and the language in
which that thought is expressed. The words, phrases, sentences and
paragraphs are the vehicle which carries the load—explanations,
arguments, appeal. Neither can be neglected if the letter is to pull

*****

Here is another sentence showing the force to be attained through the use
of a long sentence: "Just as the physician may read medicine, just as the
lawyer may read law, just so may a man now read business—the science of
the game which enables some men to succeed where hosts of others fail; it
is no longer enveloped in mystery and in darkness." There is no danger of
the reader's becoming confused in the meaning and he is more deeply

impressed because his interest has been gained by the gradual unfolding of
the idea back of the sentence, the leading up to the important thought.

And after the choice of words, the placing of words and the construction
of a sentence comes that other essential element of style—the use of figures
of speech, the illustrating of one's thought by some apt allusion.
Comparison adds force by giving the reader a mental picture of the
unknown, by suggestions of similarity to familiar things. The language of
the street, our conversational language, secures its color and expressiveness
through figures of speech—the clever simile and the apt metaphor light up a
sentence and lift it out of the commonplace.

"Don't hold yourself down," "Don't be bottled up," "Don't keep your nose
on the grindstone"—these are the forceful figures used in the letters of a
correspondence school. The most ignorant boy knows that the writer did not
mean to be taken literally. Such figures are great factors in business letters
because they make the meaning clear.

Here is the attention-getting first sentence of another letter: "Don't lull
yourself to sleep with the talk that well enough should be let alone when
practical salary-raising, profit-boosting help is within your reach." The
sentence is made up of figures; you do not literally lull yourself to sleep
with talk, you don't really boost profits, you don't actually reach out and
grasp the help the letter offers. The figures merely suggest ideas, but they
are vivid.

A sales manager writes to the boys on the road regarding a contest or a
spurt for records: "Come on, boys. This is the last turn round the track. The
track was heavy at the start but if none of you break on the home stretch
you are bound to come under the wire with a good record." The salesman
will read this sort of a letter and be inspired by its enthusiasm, when the
letter would be given no more than a hurried glance if it said what it really

means: "Get busy! Keep on the job! Send in more orders." By framing your
ideas in artistic figures of speech you bring out their colors, their lines, their
fullest meanings—and more than that, you know your letters will be read.

But in the attempt to add grace and attractiveness by some familiar
allusion, one must not overlook the importance of facts—cold, plainly
stated facts, which are often the shortest, most convincing argument. In the
letter of an advertising concern is this plain statement: "Last year our
business was $2,435,893 ahead of the year before." No figure of speech, no
touch of the stylist could make such a profound impression as this brief,
concise statement of fact.

The average correspondent will agree that these are all essential elements
of style—his problem is practical: how can he find the right words; how can
he learn to put his proposition more clearly; how think up figures of speech
that will light up the thought or illustrate the proportion.

To some men an original style and the ability to write convincingly is a
birthright. Others have to depend less on inspiration and more on hard
work. One man carries a note book in which he jots down, for future use,
phrases, words and comparisons that he comes across while reading his
morning paper on the way down town, while going through his
correspondence, while listening to callers, while talking with friends at
lunch, while attending some social affair—wherever he is, his eyes and ears
are always alert to catch a good phrase, an unusual expression or a new
figure of speech. At his first opportunity a notation is made in the ever-
handy memorandum book.

Another man systematically reads articles by Elbert Hubbard, Alfred
Henry Lewis, Samuel Blythe and other writers whose trenchant pens
replenish his storage with similes, metaphors and crisp expressions.

The head of a mail-order sales department of a large publishing house
keeps a scrapbook in which he pastes words, phrases, striking sentences and
comparisons clipped from letters, advertisements, booklets, circulars, and
other printed matter. Each month he scans the advertisements in a dozen
magazines and with a blue pencil checks every expression that he thinks
may some time be available or offer a suggestion. It is but a few minutes'
work for a girl to clip and paste in these passages and his scrapbooks are an
inexhaustible mine of ideas and suggestions.

Another man, after outlining his ideas, dictates a letter and then goes over
it sentence by sentence and word by word. With a dictionary and book of
synonyms he tries to strengthen each word; he rearranges the words, writes
and rewrites the sentences, eliminating some, reinforcing others and
devising new ones until he has developed his idea with the precision of an
artist at work on a drawing.

The average correspondent, handling a large number of letters daily, has
little time to develop ideas for each letter in this way, but by keeping before
him a list of new words and phrases and figures of speech, they soon
become a part of his stock in trade. Then there are other letters to write—
big selling letters that are to be sent out by the thousands and letters that
answer serious complaints, letters that call for diplomacy, tact, and above
all, clearness and force.

On these important letters the correspondent can well afford to spend
time and thought and labor. A day or several days may be devoted to one
letter, but the thoughts that are turned over—the ideas that are considered,
the sentences that are written and discarded, the figures that are tried out—
are not wasted, but are available for future use; and by this process the
writer's style is strengthened. He acquires clearness, force, simplicity and
attractiveness—the elements that will insure the reading of his letters.

And one thing that every correspondent can do is to send to the scrap-
heap all the shelf-worn words and hand-me-down expressions such as, "We
beg to acknowledge," "We beg to state;" "Replying to your esteemed
favor;" "the same;" "the aforesaid;" "We take great pleasure in
acknowledging," and so on. They are old, wind-broken, incapable of
carrying a big message. And the participial phrases should be eliminated,
such as: "Hoping to hear from you;" "Trusting we will be favored;"
"Awaiting your reply," and so on, at the close of the letter. Say instead, "I
hope to hear from you;" or, "I trust we will receive your order;" or, "May
we not hear from you?"

Interest the man quickly; put snap and sparkle in your letters. Give him
clear and concise statements or use similes and metaphors in your sentences
—figures of speech that will turn a spot-light on your thoughts. Pick out
your words and put them into their places with the infinite care of a
craftsman, but do not become artificial. Use every-day, hard-working words
and familiar illustrations that have the strength to carry your message
without stumbling before they reach their goal.

Making The Letter HANG
TOGETHER

PART III—STYLE—MAKING THE LETTER READABLE—CHAPTER 9

The letter writer looks to words, phrases and sentences to make the little
impressions on the reader as he goes along. The letter as a whole also has
to make a SINGLE IMPRESSION—clear-cut and unmistakable. The
correspondent must use this combination shot-gun and rifle. To get this
single rifle-shot effect a letter has to contain those elements of style that

HOLD IT TOGETHER; there must be a definite idea behind the letter; the
message must have a unity of thought; it must be logically presented; it
must have a continuity that carries the reader along without a break, and a
climax that works him up and closes at the height of his enthusiasm

*****

Thinking is not easy for anyone. And it is too much to expect the average
business man to analyze a proposition in which he is not interested. His
thoughts tend to move in the course of least resistance. If you want him to
buy your goods or pay your bill or hire you, present your arguments in a
way that will require no great mental exertion on his part to follow you.

A single idea behind the letter is the first requisite for giving it the hang-
together quality and the punch that gets results. The idea cannot be
conveyed to the reader unless it is presented logically. He won't get a single
general impression from what you are saying to him unless there is unity of
thought in the composition. He cannot follow the argument unless it has
continuity; sequence of thought. And, finally no logic or style will work
him up to enthusiasm unless it ends with a strong climax.

These five principles—the idea behind, logic, unity of thought,
continuity, climax—are the forces that holds the letter together and that
gives it momentum. Because these principles are laid down in text books
does not mean that they are arbitrary rules or academic theories. They are
based on the actual experiences of men ever since they began to talk and
write. Essay or sermon; oration or treatise; advertisement or letter; all forms
of communication most easily accomplish their purpose of bringing the
other man around to your way of thinking, if these proved principles of
writing are followed. Merely observing them will not necessarily make a
letter pull, but violating them is certain to weaken it.

You cannot hit a target with a rifle unless you have one shot in the barrel.
The idea behind the letter is the bullet in the gun. To hit your prospect you
must have a message—a single, definite, clearly-put message. That is the
idea behind the letter.

Look at the letter on page 61. It gets nowhere. Because the writer did not
have this clear, definite idea of what he wanted to impress upon his
prospect. Not one reader in ten would have the shallowest dent made in his
attention by this letter, as he would have had if the writer had started out,
for instance, with one idea of impressing upon the reader the facilities of his
establishment and the large number of satisfied customers for whom it does
work.

With this dominant idea in mind, a correspondent has got to explain it
and argue it so logically that the reader is convinced. Here is a letter from a
manufacturer of gasoline engines:

Dear Sir:

I understand you are in the market for a gasoline engine and as ours is the
most reliable engine made we want to call your attention to it. It has every
modern improvement and we sell it on easy terms.

The inventor of this machine is in personal charge of our factory and he
is constantly making little improvements. He will tell you just what kind of
an engine you need and we will be glad to quote you prices if you will call
on us or write us, telling us what you need.

Hoping to hear from you, we are,

Yours truly,
[Signature: THE MADEWELL ENGINE CO.]

*****

The letter is illogical, disjointed and lacking in that dominant idea that
carries conviction. Yet the writer had material at hand for a strong, logical
selling letter. To have interested the prospect he should have told something
specific about his engine. Here is the letter, rewritten with due regard to the
demands of unity, sequence, logic and climax:

Dear Sir:

A friend told me yesterday that you want a gas engine for irrigating, so I
am sending you bulletin "B."

Do you notice that all its parts are in plain view and easy to get at? Mr.
Wilbur, who invented this engine, had a good many years of practical
experience installing gasoline engines before he started to manufacture his
own, and he knows what it means to tighten up a nut or some other part
without having to send to the factory for a special man with a special
wrench to do the work.

Sparkers sometimes get gummed up. To take the Wilbur sparker out you
simply remove two nuts and out comes the sparker complete, and you
cannot get it back the wrong way. It isn't much of a job to wipe the point off
with a rag, is it?

And the governor! Just the same type of throttling governor that is used
on the highest grade of steam engine, allowing you to speed her up or slow
her down while the engine is running. That's mighty handy. Few engines are
built like this. It costs a good deal of extra money but it does give a lot of
extra satisfaction.

Nothing shoddy about the equipment described in the bulletin, is there?
No. We don't make these supplies ourselves, but we do watch out and see
that the other fellow gives us the best in the market because WE
GUARANTEE IT.

This sounds very nice on paper, you think. Well, we have over four
thousand customers in Kansas. Mr. W. O. Clifford, who lives not so far
from you, has used a Wilbur for three years. Ask him what he has to say
about it.

Then you will want to know just what such an engine will cost you, and
you will be tickled to death when you know how much money we can
really save you. I don't mean that we will furnish you with a cheap machine
at a high price, but a really high-grade machine at a low price.

I await with much interest your reply telling us what you want.

Very truly yours,
[Signature: L. W. Hamilton]

*****

The commonest cause of a lack of punch in a letter is the temptation to
get away from the main idea—unity of thought. This is what a mail-order
house writes:

"This is the largest catalogue of the kind ever issued, it will pay you to
deal with our house. Every machine is put together by hand and tested, and
we will ship the day your order is received.

"An examination of the catalogue will prove our claim that we carry the
largest stock of goods in our line. Should our goods appeal to you, we shall
be glad to add you to our list of customers."

*****

There is neither unity nor logic in a letter like this, although there is the
suggestion of several good ideas. The fact that the house issues the largest
catalogue of its kind might be so explained to me that it would convince me
that here is the place I ought to buy. Or, the fact that every machine is tested
and put together by hand, if followed to a logical conclusion, would prove
to me that I could rely on the quality of these goods. But when the writer
doesn't stick to one subject for more than half a sentence, my attention will
not cling to it and my mind is not convinced by a mere statement without
proof.

Unity does not necessarily mean that the whole letter must be devoted to
one point. A paragraph and even a sentence must have this quality of unity
as much as the entire letter. And the paragraphs, each unified in itself, may
bring out one point after another that will still allow the letter to retain its
hang-together.

In the letter quoted, not even the individual sentence retained unity. This
writer might have presented all his points and maintained the unity of his
letter, had he brought out and simplified one point in each paragraph:

First: The size of the catalogue as an indication of the large stock carried
by the house and the convenience afforded in buying.

Second: The quality of the machines; the care exercised in their
assembling; the guarantee of the test, and the assurance that this gives the
far-away purchaser.

Third: Promptness in filling orders; what this means to the buyer and
how the house is organized to give service.

Fourth: The desire to enroll new customers; not based solely on the
selfish desires of the house, but on the idea that the more customers they
can get, the bigger the business will grow, which will result in better
facilities for the house and better service for each customer.

And now, giving a unified paragraph to each of the ideas, not eliminating
subordinate thoughts entirely, but keeping them subordinate and making
them illuminate the central thought—would build up a unified, logical
letter.

In the arrangement of these successive ideas and paragraphs, the third
element in the form is illustrated—continuity of thought. Put a jog or a jar
in the path of your letter and you take the chance of breaking the reader's
attention. That is fatal. So write a letter that the reader will easily and,
therefore, unconsciously and almost perforce, follow from the first word to
the last—then your message reaches him.

How to secure this continuity depends on the subject and on the prospect.
Appealing to the average man, association of thoughts furnishes the surest
medium for continuity. If you lead a man from one point to another point
that he has been accustomed to associating with the first point, then he will
follow you without a break in his thought. From this follows the well-
known principle that when you are presenting a new proposition, start your
prospect's thoughts on a point that he knows, which is related to your
proposition, for the transition is easiest from a known to a related unknown.

An insurance company's letter furnishes a good example of continuity of
ideas and the gradual increasing strength in each paragraph:

"If you have had no sickness, and consequently, have never felt the
humiliation of calling on strangers for sick benefits—even though it were

only a temporary embarrassment—you are a fortunate man.

"Health is always an uncertain quantity—you have no assurance that next
week or next month you will not be flat on your back—down and out as far
as selling goods is concerned. And sickness not only means a loss of time
but an extra expense in the way of hospital and doctor bills."

*****

In the next paragraph the idea is further strengthened; a new thought is
presented with additional force:

"If there is one man on earth who needs protection by insurance against
sickness it is you. There are two thousand one hundred and fifty ailments
covering just such diseases as you, as a traveling man, expose yourself to
every day."

*****

These are specific facts, therefore decidedly forceful. Then, while interest
is at its height, another paragraph presents a specific offer:

"We will protect you at an extremely low annual cost. We guarantee that
the rate will not exceed $9.00 a year—that's less than two and a half cents a
day. Think of it—by paying an amount so small that you will never miss it,
you will secure benefits on over two thousand sicknesses—any one of
which you may contract tomorrow."

*****

Here is the logical presentation of subject matter by paragraphs, leading
up from an interest-getting general statement to a specific proposition.

Break this continuity of ideas by a space filler or an inconsequential
argument and the reader loses interest that it will be hard to regain.

Make this the test of each paragraph: if it does not illuminate the central
thought, fit into the argument at that point, or add to the interest of the
reader, eliminate it or bring it into conformity with the "idea behind the
letter."

And there must be an actual continuity of thought from paragraph to
paragraph. Merely inserting a catch-word or a conjunctive does not build a
logical bridge.

The letter from another insurance agent might have been saved if this test
had been applied, for it was well written except where the writer forgot
himself long enough to insert an irrelevant paragraph about his personal
interest:

"We are desirous of adding your name to our roll of membership because
we believe that every man should be protected by insurance and because we
believe this is the best policy offered. We are endeavoring to set a new
record this month and are especially anxious to get your application right
away."

*****

The continuity of thought is broken. The preceding paragraphs have been
working up the reader's interest in casualty insurance by pointing out the
dangers to which he is exposed, the humiliating position in which it will
place him and his family to be the recipients of charity in case of sickness
or accident, and so on. Then the writer short-circuits the reader's interest by

a paragraph of generalities which call attention to his desire for profits—
things in which the prospect is not interested.

Most propositions can be developed in different ways, along different
angles. The problem of the correspondent is to determine upon the way that
will prove easiest for the reader to follow. He may have his path smoothed
for him if he understands how facts, ideas and arguments will cohere in the
reader's mind. It is much easier to follow a proposition if it is developed
along some definite channel; if it follows the law of continuity, the law of
similarity; of association or contrast, or of cause and effect.

Some epigrammatic thinker once said, "When you get through, stop!"
This applies to letter writing as well as to speech. But don't stop a letter on
the down grade. Stop after you have given your hardest punch. This is what
rhetoricians call the climax.

A letter constructed along these principles of style will almost inevitably
have a climax. If there is an idea behind the letter, if it is carried out
logically, if the letter sticks to this one idea, if the argument is carried along
step by step, proceeding from the general statement to the specific, from the
attention-getting first sentence to the inducement, then you are working up
your reader's interest to the point where with one final application of your
entire idea to his own individual case, you have accomplished your climax,
just as was done in the re-written letter about gasoline engines.

A letter from a firm manufacturing a duplicating machine starts out by
calling attention to the difficulty the personal salesmen has in getting an
audience with the busy executive. The second paragraph shows how his
time and "your money" is wasted in call-backs and in bench warming while
the solicitor waits for an opportunity to be heard. The third paragraph tells
how over-anxious the salesman is to close a sale when a few minutes is
granted—and usually fails, at least the first time. The fourth paragraph

shows how this costly process of selling can be reduced by using the mails;
then follow a couple of specific paragraphs telling about the advantage of
the company's machine. A paragraph on the saving on five thousand
circulars that would pay for the machine brings the proposition home to the
reader and then, with interest at the height, the last paragraph—the climax
—urges the reader to fill out a post card to secure the additional information
regarding capacity, quality of work and cost. Logic, unity, sequence, climax
—each does its part in carrying the load.

The principles of style and form in letter writing do not reach their
highest pulling power as long as the correspondent handles them like
strange tools. The principles must, of course, first be learned and
consciously applied. But to give your letter the touch of sincerity and of
spontaneity; to give it the grip that holds and the hook that pulls, these
principles must become a part of yourself. They must appear in your letters,
not because you have consciously put them in but because your thinking
and your writing possesses them.

How To Make Letters
ORIGINAL

PART III—STYLE—MAKING THE LETTER READABLE—CHAPTER 10

The average business letter is machine-made. It is full of time-worn
phrases, hackneyed expressions and commonplace observations that fail to
jolt the reader out of the rut of the conventional correspondence to which he
is accustomed: consequently it does not make an impression upon him. But
occasionally a letter comes along that "gets under the skin," that STANDS
OUT from the rest because it has "human interest;" because it is original in

its statements; because it departs from the prescribed hum-drum routine;
because, in short, it reflects a live, breathing human being and not a mere
set of rules

*****

Study the letters the janitor carries out in your waste-basket— they lack
the red blood of originality. Except for one here and one there they are
stereotyped, conventional, long, uninteresting, tiresome. They have no
individuality; they are poor representatives of an alert, magnetic personality.

Yet there is no legerdemain about writing a good letter; it is neither a
matter of luck nor of genius. Putting in the originality that will make it pull
is not a secret art locked up in the mental storerooms of a few successful
writers; it is purely a question of study and the application of definite
principles.

A lawyer is successful only in proportion to the understanding he has of
the law—the study he puts on his cases; a physician's success depends upon
his careful consideration of every symptom and his knowledge of the effect
of every drug or treatment that he may prescribe. And it is no different with
correspondents. They cannot write letters that will pulsate with a vital
message unless they study their proposition in detail, visualize the
individuals to whom they are writing, consider the language they use, the
method of presenting their arguments, their inducements—there is no point
from the salutation to the signature that is beneath consideration. You
cannot write letters that pull without hard study any more than the doctor
can cure his patients or the lawyer win his cases without brain work.

So many letters are insipid because the correspondents do not have time
or do not appreciate the necessity for taking time to consider the viewpoint
of their readers or for studying out new methods of presenting their

proposition. Yet the same respect that would be given to a salesman may be
secured for a letter. Any one of four attitudes will secure this attention. First
of all, there may be a personal touch and an originality of thought or
expression that commands immediate attention; in the second place, one
can make use of the man-to-man appeal; then there is the always-forceful,
never-to-be-forgotten "you" element; and finally, there are news items
which are nearly always interest-getters.

By any one of these appeals, or better, by a combination of appeals, a
letter can be given an individuality, a vitality, that will make it rise above
the underbrush of ordinary business correspondence.

To begin with, vapid words and stereotyped expressions should be
eliminated, for many a good message has become mired in stagnant
language. So many correspondents, looking for the easiest road to travel,
fall into the rut that has been worn wide and deep by the multitudes passing
that way. The trouble is not the inability of writers to acquire a good style or
express themselves forcibly; the trouble is mental inertia—too little
analytical thought is given to the subject matter and too little serious effort
is made to find an original approach.

Most business letters are cold, impersonal, indifferent: "Our fall
catalogue which is sent to you under separate cover;" "We take pleasure in
advising you that;" "We are confident that our goods will give you entire
satisfaction," and so on—hackneyed expressions without end—no
personality—no originality—no vitality.

The correspondent who has learned how to sell goods by mail uses none
of these run-down-at-the-heel expressions. He interests the reader by direct,
personal statements: "Here is the catalogue in which you are interested;"
"Satisfaction? Absolute! We guarantee it. We urge you not to keep one of
our suits unless it is absolutely perfect;" "How did you find that sample of

tobacco?" No great mental exertion is required for such introductions, yet
they have a personal touch, and while they might be used over and over
again they strike the reader as being original, addressed to him personally.

Everyone is familiar with the conventional letter sent out by investment
concerns: "In response to your inquiry, we take pleasure in sending you
herewith a booklet descriptive of the White Cloud Investment Company."
Cut and dried—there is nothing that jars us out of our indifference; nothing
to tempt us to read the proposition that follows. Here is a letter that is
certain to interest the reader because it approaches him with an original
idea:

"You will receive a copy of the Pacific Coast Gold Book under separate
cover. Don't look for a literary product because that's not its purpose. Its
object is to give you the actual facts and specific figures in reference to the
gold-mining industry."

*****

A correspondence school that has got past the stage where it writes, "We
beg to call attention to our catalogue which is mailed under separate cover,"
injects originality into its letter in this way:

"Take the booklet we have mailed you and examine the side notes on
Drawing for Profit and Art Training that apply to you individually and then
go back over them carefully."

*****

The reader, even though he may have had nothing more than the most
casual interest is certain to finish that letter.

Here is the way a paper manufacturer puts convincing argument into his
letter, making it original and personal:

"Take the sheet of paper on which this letter is written and apply to it
every test you have ever heard of for proving quality. You will find it
contains not a single trace of wood pulp or fillers but is strong, tough, long-
fiber linen. Take your pen and write a few words on it. You will find the
point glides so smoothly that writing is a pleasure. Then erase a word or
two and write them again—do it twice, three or four times—repeated
erasures, and still you will find the ink does not blot or spread in the least.
This proves the hard body and carefully prepared finish."

*****

Even if a person felt sure that this same letter went to ten-thousand other
men, there would be an individuality about it, a vividness that makes the
strongest kind of appeal.

In a town in central Indiana two merchants suffered losses from fire. A
few days later, one sent out this announcement to his customers:

"We beg to announce that temporary quarters have been secured at 411
Main Street, where we will be glad to see you and will endeavor to handle
your orders promptly."

*****

The second firm wrote to its customers:

Dear Mr. Brown:

Yes, it was a bad fire but it will not cripple the business. Our biggest asset
is not the merchandise in the store but the good-will of our customers—
something that fires cannot damage.

Our store does not look attractive. It won't until repairs are made and new
decorations are in, but the bargains are certainly attractive—low prices to
move the stock and make room for the new goods that have been ordered.
Everything has gone on the bargain tables; some of the goods slightly
damaged by water, but many of the suits have nothing the matter with them
except a little odor of smoke that will disappear in a couple of days. Come
in and look at these goods. See the original price mark—you can have them
at just one-half the amount.

Very truly yours,
[Signature: Smith and Deene] 82

*****

Here is originality; emphasis is laid on "good will" in a way that will
strengthen this "asset." The merchant put a personal element into the letter;
gave it an original appeal that made it not only a clever bit of advertising,
but proclaimed him a live-wire business man.

Here is the letter sent out by a store fixture manufacturer:

"If one of your salesmen should double his sales slips tomorrow you
would watch to see how he did it. If he kept up this pace you would be
willing to double his wages, wouldn't you? He would double his sales if he
could display all his goods to every customer. That's the very thing which
the Derwin Display Fixture does—it shows all the goods for your salesman,
yet you don't have to pay him a higher salary."

*****

A merchant cannot read this letter without stopping to think about it. The
appeal strikes home. He may have read a hundred advertisements of the

Derwin fixture, but this reaches him because of the originality of
expression, the different twist that is given to the argument. There are no
hackneyed expressions, no involved phrases, no unfamiliar words, no
selfish motives.

And then comes the man-to-man attitude, the letter in which the writer
wins the reader's confidence by talking about "you and me." A western firm
handling building materials of all kinds entered the mail-order field. One
cannot conceive a harder line of goods to sell by mail, but this firm has
succeeded by putting this man-to-man attitude into its letters:

"If you could sit at my desk for an hour—if you might listen a few
minutes to the little intimate things that men and women tell me— their
hopes, their plans for the home that will protect their families—their little
secret schemes to make saved-up money stretch out over the building cost;
if you could hear and see these sides of our business you would understand
why we give our customers more than mere quality merchandise. We plan
for you and give expert advice along with the material."

*****

There is nothing cold or distant in this letter; it does not flavor of a
soulless corporation. It is intimate, it is so personal that we feel we are
acquainted with the writer. We would not need an introduction—and what is
more, we trust him, believe in him. Make the man feel that you and he are
friends.

Write to the average college or university for a catalogue and it will be
sent promptly with a stereotyped letter: "We are pleased to comply with
your request," and so forth. But a little school in central Iowa makes the

prospective student feel a personal interest in the school and in its officers
by this letter:

My dear Sir:

The catalogue was mailed to you this morning. We have tried to make it
complete and I believe it covers every important point. But I wish you
could talk with me personally for half an hour—I wish you might go over
our institution with me that I might point out to you the splendid equipment,
the convenient arrangement, the attractive rooms, the ideal surroundings
and the homelike places for room and board.

Won't you drop me a line and let me know what you think about our
school? Tell me what courses you are interested in and let me know if I
cannot be of some personal assistance to you in making your plans.

I hope to see you about the middle of September when our fall term
opens.

Very cordially yours,
[Signature: Wallace E. Lee]
President.

*****

This letter, signed by the president of the institution, is a heart-to-heart
talk that induces many students to attend that school in preference to larger,
better-equipped colleges.

A large suit house manufacturing women's garments uses this paragraph
in a letter in response to a request for a catalogue:

"And now as you look through this book we wish we could be privileged
to sit there with you as you turn its pages. We would like to read aloud to
you every word printed on pages 4, 5 and 6. Will you turn to those pages,
please? Sometimes we think the story told there of the making of a suit is
the most interesting thing ever written about clothes—but then, we think
Columbia suits are the most wonderful garments in the world."

*****

The letter creates a feeling of intimacy, of confidence in the writer, that
no formal arguments, logical reasons or special inducements could ever
secure.

Important as these two attitudes are—the personal appeal and the man-to-
man appeal—they can be strengthened manifold by making use of that
other essential, the "you" element in letters. The mistake of so many writers
is that they think of their interests in the transaction rather than the interests
of the men to whom they are writing. It is "we" this and "we" that. Yet this
"we" habit is a violation of the first rule of business correspondence. "We
are very desirous of receiving an order from you." Of course; the reader
knows that. Why call his attention to so evident a fact and give emphasis to
the profit that you are going to make on the deal? To get his interest, show
him where he will gain through this proposition—precious little he cares
how anxious you are to make a sale.

Mr. Station Agent—

Brother Railroader:

As soon as you have told the fellow at the ticket window that the noon
train is due at twelve o'clock and satisfied the young lady that her telegram

will be sent at once and O.S.'d the way freight and explained to the Grand
Mogul at the other end of the wire what delayed 'em, I'd like to chat with
you just a minute.

It's about a book—to tell the truth, just between you and me, I don't
suppose it's a bit better book than you could write yourself if you had time.
I simply wrote it because I'm an old railroad man and telegrapher myself
and had time to write it.

The title of the book is "At Finnegan's Cigar Store," and the hero of the
fourteen little stories which the booklet contains is Mr Station Agent. The
first story in the book, "How Finnegan Bought Himself a Diamond," is
worth the price of that ten-cent cigar you're smoking, and that's all the book
will cost you.

I know you'll like it—I liked it myself. I'm so sure of it I am enclosing a
ten-cent coin card for you to use in ordering it. A dime in the card and
postage stamp on the letter will bring you the book by first mail. "Nuff
said."

"73" E. N. RICHARDSON.

P. S.—I am enclosing another card for your night operator, if you have
one—I'd hate to have him feel that I had slighted him.

*****

This letter, sent out under a one-cent stamp to 80,000 agents, pulled
22,000 replies with the money. The writer did not address them individually,
but he knew how to flag the interest of a station agent—by working in
familiar allusions he at once found the point of contact and made the letter
so personal that it pulled enormous results

*****

No other appeal is so direct, so effective, as that which is summed up in
the words "you," "your business," "your profits," "your welfare." "It costs
you too much to sell crockery, but your selling expense can be cut down by
utilizing your space to better advantage;" "Your easiest profits are those you
make by saving expense;" "Did you ever figure up the time that is wasted in
your mailing department by sealing and stamping one letter at a time?"—
these are the letters that will be read through. Keep before the reader his
interest. Show him how your proposition would benefit him.

This letter was sent to lady customers by a mail-order house:

Dear Madam:

You want a dress that does not sag—that does not grow draggy and
dowdy? Then you want to make it of Linette—the new dress goods.

You have seen the beautiful new look and rich luster charm of a high-
priced fabric. You can find this same quality in Linette at only thirty-nine
cents a yard, and then—just think—it will stay in your dress through
wearing, washing and wetting, and you will be surprised to see how easily
dresses made of it may be washed and ironed and what long service the
material will give.

Very truly yours.
[Signature: Anderson & Anderson]

*****

In this letter there is not the faintest suggestion of the profits that the
writer hopes to make by the sale. A man is going to listen just as long as

you talk about him; a woman will keep on reading your letter as long as you
talk about her. Shout "You" and whisper "me" and your letter will carry
home, straight to the heart of the reader.

A capitalized "YOU" is often inserted in letters to give emphasis to this
attitude. Here is a letter from a clothing concern:

Dear Madam,

Remember this—when we make your suit we make it for YOU just as
much as if you were here in our work roomed and, furthermore, we
guarantee that it will fit YOU just a perfectly as if you bought it of an
individual tailor. We guarantee this perfection or we will refund your money
at once without question, and pay the express charges both ways.

We have tried hard to make this style-book interesting and beautiful to
you and full of advantage for YOU.

Your friends will ask "Who made your suit?" and we want you to be
proud that it is YOUR suit and that WE made it.

Yours very truly,
[Signature: Adams & Adams ]

*****

And there is yet another quality that is frequently most valuable to the
correspondent in making his letter personal. It is the element of news value.
News interests him especially when it is information about his business, his
customers, his territory, his goods, his propositions. Not only does the news
interest appeal to the dealer because of its practical value to him, but it

impresses him by your "up-to-the-minuteness" and it gives a dynamic force
to your letters.

Tell a man a bit of news that affects his pocket book and you have his
interest. Offer to save him money and he will listen to your every word, and
clever correspondents in manufacturing and wholesale establishments are
always on the alert to find some selling value in the news of the day.

One correspondent finds in the opening of lake navigation an excuse for
writing a sales letter. If the season opens unusually early he points out to the
retailer just how it may affect his business, and if the season opens late he
gives this fact a news value that makes it of prime interest to the dealer. A
shortage of some crop, a drought, a rainy season, a strike, a revolution or
industrial disturbances in some distant country—these factors may have a
far-reaching effect on certain commodities, and the shrewd sales manager
makes it a point to tip off the firm's customers, giving them some practical
advance information that may mean many dollars to them and his letter
makes the reader feel that the house has his interests at heart.

Another news feature may be found in some event that can be connected
with the firm's product. Here is the way a manufacturer of stock food
hitches his argument onto a bit of news:

"No doubt you have read in your farm paper about the Poland China that
took first prize at the Iowa State Fair last week. You will be interested to
know that this hog was raised and fattened on Johnson's stock food."

*****

This is the way a manufacturer of window screens makes capital out of a
new product:

"Throw away that old, rusty, stationary fly screen that you used last
season. You won't need it any more because you can substitute an adjustable
one in its place.

"How many times when you twisted and jerked at the old stationary
screen did you wish for a really convenient one? The sort of screen you
wanted is one which works on rollers from top to bottom so that it will open
and close as easily and conveniently as the window itself.

"That's just the way the Ideal screen is made. It offers those advantages.
It was placed on the market only a few months ago yet it is so practical and
convenient that already we have been compelled to double the capacity of
our factory to handle the growing business.

"All the wood work is made to harmonize with the finish of your rooms.
Send the measure of your window and the colors you want and get a screen
absolutely free for a week's trial. If you are not perfectly satisfied at the end
of that time that it's the most convenient screen you ever used, you need
send no money but merely return the screen at our expense.

"The Ideal screen is new; it is improved; it is the screen of tomorrow. Are
you looking for that kind?"

*****

The news element may have its origin in some new feature, some
attachment or patent that is of interest to the prospect. A manufacturer of
furniture uses this approach effectively:

"The head of my designing department. Mr. Conrad, has just laid on my
desk a wonderful design for something entirely new in a dining room table.
This proposed table is so unique, so new, so different from anything ever

seen before, I am having the printer strike off some rough proofs of this
designer's drawing, one of which I am sending you under separate cover."

*****

This letter is manifestly a "today" product. It wins attention because it is
so up to date, and a new article may possess the interest-compelling feature
that will lead to an order.

Then there are the letters that tell of the purchase of goods. A retailer puts
news value into his letter when he writes that he has purchased the entire
stock of the bankrupt Brown & Brown at thirty-eight cents on the dollar and
that the goods are to be placed on sale the following Monday morning at
prices that will make it a rare sales event. This is putting into the letter news
value that interests the customer. It is original because it is something that
could not have been written a week before and cannot be written by anyone
else.

Then there are other elements of news of wide interest—the opening of a
new branch office, the increase of facilities by the enlargement of a factory,
the perfecting of goods by some new process of manufacture or the putting
on the market of some new brand or line. These things may affect the dealer
in a very material way and the news value is played up in the most
convincing style. The correspondent can bear down heavily on the better
service that is provided or the larger line of commodities that is offered.
Search through the catalogue of possibilities, and there is no other talking
point that it seized upon more joyfully by the correspondent, for a news
item, an actual occurrence or some new development that enables him to
write forceful, interest-impelling letters, for the item itself is sufficient to
interest the dealer or the consumer. All that is required of the correspondent
is to make the most of his opportunity, seize upon this news element and

mount it in a setting of arguments and persuasion that will result in new
business, more orders, greater prestige.

Making The Form Letter
PERSONAL

PART III—STYLE—MAKING THE LETTER READABLE—CHAPTER 11

Over ONE-HALF of all the form letters sent out are thrown into the
waste basket unopened. A bare ONE-THIRD are partly read and discarded
while only ONE-SIXTH of them—approximately 15 per cent—are read
through. This wasteful ratio is principally due to the carelessness or
ignorance of the firms that send them out— ignorance of the little touches
that make all the difference between a personal and a "form letter." Yet an
increase of a mere one per cent in the number of form letters that are
READ means a difference of hundreds—perhaps thousands of dollars to the
sender. This article is based on the experiences of a house that sends out
over a million form letters annually

*****

There are three ways by which you can deliver a message to one of your
customers: you can see him personally, you can telegraph or telephone him,
or you can write him a letter. After you have delivered the message you may
decide you would like to deliver the same message to 252 other customers.

To see each customer personally, to telegraph or telephone each one, or to
write each a personal letter, would prove slow and expensive. So you send

the same letter to all your customers, since you wish to tell them all the
same story.

But you do not laboriously write all these letters on the typewriter;
instead, you print them on some kind of duplicating machine.

But it is not enough to print the body of the letter and send it out, for you
know from your own point of view that the average man does not give a
proposition presented to him in a circular letter, the same attention he gives
to it when presented by a personal appeal. And so little plans and schemes
are devised to make the letter look like a personally dictated message, not
for the purpose of deceiving the reader, but to make your proposition more
intimate. This form of presentation is merely a means to an end; just
because a letter is duplicated a thousand times does not make the
proposition any the less applicable to the reader. It may touch his needs just
as positively as if he were the sole recipient. The reason the letter that one
knows to be simply a circular fails to grip his attention, is because it fails to
get close to him—it does not look personal.

So, if form letters are to escape the waste basket—if they are to win the
prospect's attention and convince him—they must have all the ear-marks of
a personally dictated communication. If a proposition is worth sending out
it is worthy of a good dress and careful handling.

All the principles of making the individual letter a personal message hold
good with the form letter, except that greater pains must be taken to make
each letter look personal. Nothing should be put into the letter to a dozen or
a thousand men that does not apply to each one individually.

From the mechanical standpoint, there are five parts to a letter:
superscription, body of the letter, signature, enclosures and envelope. In

each of these five parts there are opportunities for original touches that
make letters more than mere circulars.

The superscription and the way it is inserted in a form letter is the most
important feature in making it personal. No semblance of a regularly
dictated letter can be given unless the date, name and address are filled in,
and if this is not done carefully it is far better to open your letter with "Dear
Sir," and thus acknowledge that it is a circular.

To the left, and in exact alignment with the paragraphs in the body of the
letter, should appear the name and address of the reader. If this
superscription appears a fraction of an inch to either side of the margin the
fill-in is evident. The style of type and the shade of the typewriter ribbons
used in filling-in must match with absolute accuracy. This is vital and yet
the most common error in form letters is imperfect alignment and
conspicuously different colors of ink.

To secure an exact match between the filled-in name and address and the
body of the letter, it is necessary to use ink on the duplicating machine
which matches your typewriter ribbon. The ink used on the duplicating
machine can be mixed to correspond with the color of the ribbons. Long
experience has shown that violet or purple shades of ink are best for form
letters, for these colors are the easiest to duplicate. Black and blue are very
difficult to handle because of the great variety of undertones which are put
into these inks.

Duplicating machines which print through a ribbon give variable shades
and the typist in filling in must watch carefully to see that her typewriter
ribbons match the impressions made in the body of the letter, especially
where the form letters are printed several months in advance and exposed to
changing conditions.

In departments where the stenographers fill in only a few letters a day, a
piece of a "fill-in" ribbon is attached to the end of the regular ribbon and
used for this purpose.

For speed and better work, typists who do nothing but fill in form letters,
overlay their work—that is, before one sheet is taken out of the machine
another is started in. A scheme which is slower but gives accuracy, is to
work backward on the name and address, writing the "Gentlemen" or "Dear
Madam" first, beginning flush with the margin. The town or city is next
written, beginning on the paragraph or established margin line and then the
name and the date are filled in. Guides may be secured so that all sheets
will be fed into the machine at one place, thus assuring an exact margin.

Too much emphasis cannot be laid on the necessity of doing this fill-in
work carefully, or not at all. If letters are printed by means of some
duplicating machine which prints through a ribbon, care must be taken that
the first run from the fresh ribbon is filled in on the typewriter with an
equally fresh typewriter ribbon. Later when the machine ribbon is worn,
giving a lighter impression, an older ribbon is used on the typewriters.

This fill-in work is difficult, and even when done properly many firms
adopt all kinds of little schemes to help out the personal appearance.
Separating the superscription from the body of the letter so that the
immediate contrast is not so great, accomplishes this purpose.

One familiar scheme is to print the shipping or sales terms of the
company across the letterhead so that the first paragraph comes beneath the
printed matter and the filled-in superscription above. Then if there is a
slight difference in shades of ink it is not so apparent. The same care must,
however, be taken with the alignment.

Mr. L. B. Burtis, 1034 Elm Ave., Ravenswood, Ill.,

Dear Sir:

In reply to your letter of July 3d I take pleasure in enclosing the free book
asked for.

All that I ask is that you read the book— no longer letter is necessary.

Everything I could say to you in this letter about my chest is in my book.
I wrote every word of it so when you read it, I wish you would take it as a
personal message from me.

We deliver this chest to Ravenswood at the price quoted in the book.

This is all I am going to say. When you have selected the chest you wish,
simply check it on the enclosed post card, and mail to me. Promptly upon
its receipt the chest will go to you subject to your approval.

I shall be looking for your post card.

Very truly yours,
OLD ENGLISH CHEST COMPANY.

*****

New York,
July 7, 1910,

Mr. L. B. Burtis, 1034 Elm Ave., Ravenswood, Ill.

Dear Sir:

I enclose with pleasure the free book you asked for in your letter of July
3rd.

All that I ask is that you read the book—no longer letter is necessary.

Everything I could say to you in this letter about my chest is in my book.
I wrote every word of it so when you read it, I wish you would take it as a
personal message from me.

Tho prices quoted you in this book include freight prepaid to
Ravenswood.

This is all I am going to say. When you have selected the chest you wish,
simply check it on the enclosed post card, and mail to me. Promptly upon
its receipt the chest will go to you subject to your approval.

I shall be looking for your post card.

Very truly yours,
OLD ENGLISH CHEST COMPANY
[Signature: Edward Brown, Pres.
Dict EB-ERS.]

*****

The wrong and right way of handling form letters. In the first letter the
type of the fill-in does not match and the lines are out of alignment. Wide
white space at both sides of the date "July 3d" and the town,
"Ravenswood," calls attention to the poor fill-in. The second letter shows
the same fill-ins coming at the end of paragraphs. The second letter has a
date line, personal signature and initials of dictator and stenographer—
little touches that add to the personality of the letter

*****

A similar scheme is to write the first paragraph or sentence in red ink.
This is a somewhat expensive process, however, for the letter must be run
through the duplicating machine twice and skill is required to secure an
exact register.

Now that two-colored typewriter ribbons are in such general use the
name and address and date are printed in red, eliminating the necessity of
matching the ink of the body of the letter. This is an effective attention-
getter, but unless carefully printed the impersonality is apparent.

In certain kinds of communications where the more formal customs of
social correspondence are sometimes employed, the letter is often opened
with the salutation, "My dear Sir." The full name and address is then written
in the lower left corner, in alignment with the paragraphs of the body of the
letter.

Some businesses, presenting a proposition to a limited number of
persons, write the entire first paragraph. It is usually short and of course
should be made pointedly personal. "Typing" the name and address onto the
form letter is another familiar scheme to make it more personal.

Use of a body fill-in is always effective. But the right way to do this is to
phrase the letter so that the name, or date, or word, to be inserted, comes at
the beginning or end of the paragraph, preferably at the end. Otherwise the
fill-in may be too short for the space allowed and the result is farcical.

Here is an all too common mistake:

"You may be sure, Mr. Hall, that this machine is just as represented."

*****

The advantage of having the fill-in at the end of the paragraph is because
names vary so much in length that they seldom just fill the space that is left
and when there is a long blank space, as in the sentence given above, the
scheme is anything but effective.

A manufacturer of automobiles, writing old customers who might wish to
exchange their machines for newer models, added a real personal touch by
filling in the serial number of each machine at the end of a line. Another
individual touch was added in this way:

"You will be interested to know that we have recently sold one of our
machines to a near neighbor of yours, Mr. Henry C. Smith of Rock Creek."

*****

This sentence was so phrased that the neighbor's name came at the end of
a line and could be easily filled in.

A furniture manufacturer works in a personal touch by closing a
paragraph of his letter with this sentence:

"You can find our liberal offer to ship freight pre-paid to Rogers
Park on page 3 of the catalogue."

*****

The name of the town and page number of the catalogue came at the end
of the sentence. Another manufacturer opened his letter with this sentence:
"On April 2, we received your inquiry." In this case, "On April 2," was
filled in at the beginning of the sentence. Both schemes give the "one-man"

attitude. A personal touch in the body of the letter indicates an individual
communication—as it really is.

There are four ways for making the body of the letter look like a
regularly typewritten message: it may be typewritten, printed on a printing
press, printed through a ribbon or printed by means of a stenciled waxed
paper.

Firms sending out only a few form letters typewrite them so that no effort
is necessary to give an individual touch.

But the letter printed from typewriter type by means of an ordinary
printing press is obviously nothing more than an ordinary circular. Filling in
the name and address by a typewriter is absolutely useless. It is usually
advisable to print form letters by means of some duplicating process which
prints through a ribbon.

Where a stencil is used, the waxed paper is put in the typewriter and the
letter is written on it without a ribbon. Here the stenciled letter replaces the
usual type, and the impression secured can seldom be detected from a
typewritten letter. A stencil can be made more quickly than type for the
same letter can be set. Then the exact touch of the typist is reproduced on
the duplicated letters through the stencil. No stenographer can write a letter
without making some words heavier than others, the distribution of the ink
is not the same throughout, so absolute uniformity in the printed letter is not
advisable.

In printing the body of the letter select some process which gives the
appearance of typewriting and then match the fill-in. One merchant secured
an effective matching of fill-in and body by printing the form with a poorly-
inked ribbon on the duplicating machine and then filling in the name and
address with a typewriter ribbon that had been well used. While the general

appearance of the letter was marred by this scheme, the impression was that
of a letter written on a poor typewriter and it was effective.

The business man, the clerk and the farmer—everyone visited by the
postman—is becoming more and more familiar with letters. The day has
passed when anyone is deceived by a carelessly handled form letter. Unless
a firm feels justified in spending the time and money to fill in the letter very
carefully, it is much better to send it out frankly as a circular.

Nor is this always a weakness, for a clever touch can be added that
introduces the personal elements. One mail-order house sent out a large
mailing with this typewritten notice in the upper left corner of the
letterhead:

"You must pardon me for not filling in your name and address at the
beginning of this letter, but the truth is I must get off fifty thousand letters
tonight, and I have not the necessary stenographic force to fill in the name
and address on each individual letter."

*****

In spite of the fact that each man was frankly told that 49,999 other
persons were receiving the same letter, the appeal was as personal as an
individual message. Another writer opened his communication in this way:

"This letter is to YOU. and it is just as personal as If I had sat down and
pounded it off on the typewriter myself, and I am sure that you, as a
business man, appreciate that this is a personal message to you, even if I am
writing a hundred thousand others at the same time."

*****

This letter struck a popular and responsive chord, for each reader took it
to himself as a frank, honest appeal, from a frank, honest business man. It
was a direct personal communication because each reader felt that although
it was duplicated a thousand times it nevertheless contained a live message.

But the care that some writers take to make the form letter look personal,
is the very thing that kills it. They make the letter too perfect. To avoid this
result, leave an imperfect word, here and there, throughout the body of the
letter. Watch the setting up of the type to be sure the lines are not spaced out
like a printed page. Many correspondents imitate the common mistakes of
the typewritten letter from the mechanical standpoint and in the language.

Time spent in correcting these errors with pen and ink is usually
considered a paying investment. The tympan of the duplicating machine is
sometimes made uneven so that the impression of a typewriter is still
further carried out. Some duplicating machines advertise that their type
print "loose" for this very purpose. A favorite scheme with firms where
letter presses are used is to blur the letter slightly after it has been filled in
and signed. A word "XXX'd" out as by a typewriter lends an impression of
the personal message, as does also the wrong spelling of a word, corrected
by pen and ink.

But fully as vital to the individuality of the letter is the manner in which
it is closed. The signature of the form letter is a subject that deserves as
careful consideration as the superscription and the body of the letter. The
actual typewritten letter to Henry Brown is signed with pen and ink. Even
where the name of the company also appears at the end of the letter, the
personal signature in ink is desirable. And when you write all the Henry
Browns on your mailing list, you should apply the pen-and-ink signature to
every letter. That is the only effective way.

It is not so essential that the signature should be applied by the writer
personally. Often a girl writes the signature, saving the time of a busy
department head. Many firms use a rubber facsimile stamp for applying the
signature, but it is not as effective, for it is seldom that the stamped name
does not stand out as a mechanical signature. One concern adds the name of
the company at the bottom of the letter and has a clerk mark initials
underneath with pen and ink.

The form letter has a heavy load which carries a row of hieroglyphics at
the bottom of the page—the "X-Y-Z," the "4, 8, 6," the "Dictated WML-
OR" and the twenty and one other key numbers and symbols common to
the form letters of many houses. When a man receives such a letter, he is
impressed by the mass of tangled mechanical operations the message has
undergone; on its face he has the story of its mechanical make-up and its
virility is lost, absolutely.

Then consider the various notes, stamped in a frankly mechanical manner
at the bottom of the letter, such as, "Dictated, but not read," "Signed in the
absence of Mr. So-and-So." To the average man who finds one of these
notes on the letter, there is the impression of a slap in the face. He does not
like to be reminded that he may converse with the stenographer in the
absence of the president. When a letter says "Not read" he feels that the
message was not of sufficient importance to warrant the personal attention
of the writer. Eliminate all such notes from the form letter.

Sometimes a postscript may suggest a note of personality. For instance,
one firm writes underneath the signature: "I want you to look especially at
the new model on page 37 of the catalogue." This is effective if done with
pen and ink, but if printed or stamped, it gives no additional tone of
individuality to the letter. One manufacturer had a postscript written on an
extra slip of paper which he pasted to the corner of the sheet.

Another concern writes out on a piece of white paper the blue-penciled
postscript: "I'll send you this three-tool garden kit free (express prepaid) if
your order for the patent roller reaches me before the 5th." This is made into
a zinc etching and printed in blue so perfectly that the postscript appears to
have been applied with a blue pencil.

Still another postscript scheme is to write the form letter so that it just
fills the first page, then to dictate and sign a paragraph for a second page—a
most effective plan.

Then you must consider the enclosure that often goes with the letter. This
frequently stamps it a circular. If you are offering a special discount or
introductory sale price, for instance, it would be ridiculous to say in your
letter, "This is a special price I am quoting to you," when the reader finds
the same price printed on the circular. Print the regular price, and then blot
out the figures with a rubber stamp and insert the special price with pen and
ink, or with a stamp.

If you offer a special discount it is best to say so frankly:

"I am making this special discount to a selected list of a few of our old
friends. And in order that you may be sure of this discount I am enclosing
the discount card which will entitle you to the special prices."

*****

[Illustration: A series of letterheads that illustrate various uses of the
product and so not only vary the appearance of successive letters but afford
good advertising.]

[Illustration: For different departments, to handle different classes of
correspondence or simply to vary their follow-up, varying letterheads are

used.]

*****

The discount card should be filled-in with the name of the person written
and stamped with a serial numbering machine. The date the special offer
expires should also be stamped on the circular. In making a special offer to
a "limited number of persons," the enclosure describing it and the return
order blank should not be too elaborate or carefully prepared. It is more
effective to make them inexpensive and give a careless appearance. Aim to
carry the impression that with a hundred or so you could not afford to do it
better.

Do not let an opportunity pass to give the enclosure the same personal
touch that you aim at in the letter. Some houses even sign the reader's name
to the card. A pencil or pen mark over some particular feature of the
enclosure is another way to suggest personal attention.

Refer to the enclosure in a way that indicates individual attention. A
correspondence school takes off the weight of the overload of enclosures by
inserting this paragraph:

"So in order that you may properly understand our proposition I am
enclosing these circulars and application blanks. It is impossible to tell one
whole story in a single letter, or even a series of letters. To make them
perfectly plain I have asked my stenographer to number them with a pen,
and I will refer to them in this letter in that order."

*****

A manufacturer who has succeeded in the mail-order business turns down
a page in his catalogue, and refers to it in this way:

"I have turned down the corner of a page—39—in my catalogue that I
particularly want you to read. On this page you will find pictured and
described the best value in a single-seated carriage ever offered to the
public. Turn to this page now and see if you can afford not to investigate
this proposition further."

*****

A successful campaign prepared by a wholesale house consisted simply
of a letter and a cheap-looking yellow circular, across the top of which had
been printed with a typewriter duplicating machine this heading:

"There is no time to prepare an elaborate circular—the time limit set on
this offer is too short."

*****

This idea was further strengthened by additional typewritten notes on the
top and sides of the circular. The special offer and order blank appeared in
typewriter type on the back of the circular.

Another scheme which pulled results for a tailor was this typewritten
postscript:

"The enclosed is a circular letter. If I sent it to you without this personal
note, I fear you would be too busy to give it the attention it deserves. So I
ask you now—in justice to your interests—to read this circular as carefully
as if I had put the whole thing in a personal letter to you."

*****

It is an easy matter to enclose a few typewritten names, so a paper
manufacturer says in his answer to an inquiry:

"I'm sending you a list of the printers in your immediate vicinity from
whom you can secure our bond papers."

*****

A land concern refers to an enclosed list in this way:

"So you can investigate for yourself just what our proposition will do for
you, I am having my stenographer make up a list of a few purchasers in
your vicinity from whom you can secure first hand facts."

*****

Another concern typewrites the note "Personal Matter" on the enclosed
return envelope to give added individuality to it. Thus the return envelope
contributes to the general impression of the one-man message. But whether
it is the superscription, the body of the letter, the closing or the enclosure,
there is one general principle that must be followed: first consider how you
would handle the individual letter, then make the form letter similar. Make
the form letter talk as though it were intended for one man. Keep this rule in
mind and your form letters will pull.

Making Letterheads and Envelopes
DISTINCTIVE

PART IV—THE DRESS OF A BUSINESS LETTER—CHAPTER 12

The dress of a business letter reflects the character and the standing of a
house no less than the dress of its personal representative. The quality of
the paper, the kind of printing or engraving, the mechanical make-up—all
these things contribute to the IMPRESSION a letter makes upon the
recipient even BEFORE THE MESSAGE IS READ. Many letters come to
nothing because their dress is unattractive, cheap, slovenly; and so
progressive business men are learning to select their stationery with care to
insure for it both tone and dignity. The kind of paper to select—the size, the
tint and the quality—is described and explained in the following chapter

*****

The first impression created by a business letter is based upon its outward
appearance—upon its mechanical make-up, the quality of its paper, the
grade of its printing or engraving; upon the superficial qualities that are
apparent at a glance.

The externals do not necessarily reflect the quality of the message within
the letter. But the experienced business man, who is trained to make his
estimate quickly, gets an impression of some kind—good, bad or indifferent
—of every letter that comes before him, even before a word of that letter is
read.

In other words, the general appearance of the letter is the first appeal that
it makes to the average man. The nearer that appearance conforms to the
appearance of the letters from reputable concerns with which he is familiar,
the more favorably he is impressed with it. The farther its appearance
departs from the established and approved standards, the more forcibly will
that letter force itself upon his attention. But whether the recipient is
favorably or unfavorably impressed by this prominence depends upon the
skill and ingenuity with which the letter is made up mechanically.

Generally speaking, business correspondence paper may be classified as
follows:

First: The conventional stationery, that conforms to the established rules
and the principal variation of which is in the quality of its paper and
printing.

Second: The individualistic stationery, that departs from the usual styles
and is good to the extent that it meets the unusual requirements for which it
is designed.

Third: The eccentric stationery, which is usually merely a fanciful
violation of the conventions for the purpose of being conspicuous.

Of these three types of business stationery, the first is essentially practical
and sane; the second is forceful if it does not violate the fundamental rules
of color and design, and if it has a peculiarly apt application; while the third
is almost invariably in as poor taste as eccentricity in dress.

The first consideration in the preparation of business stationery is the
paper, or "stock."

The quality of this "stock," like the quality of material of a suit of clothes,
largely determines the taste, if not the resources of the owner. Important
messages may be written on cheap stationery; big men with big plans are
sometimes clad in shoddy garments. But ninety-nine out of a hundred are
not, and the hundredth man, who does not conform to the accepted order of
things, is taking an unnecessary business risk of being wrongly classified.
After a man has delivered his message, the quality of his clothes is not an
important item. After a letter has been read, the quality of its paper is
insignificant. But as the man is seen before he is heard, and the letter before

it is read, it is good business to make both dress and stationery conform to
approved styles.

For instance, the average financial institution, such as a bank or trust
company, takes every precaution to create an impression of strength and
security. The heavy architecture of its building, the massive steel bars, its
uniformed attendants the richness of its furnishings, all tend to insure a
sense of reliability. Does it use cheap stationery? On the contrary, it uses
rich, heavy bond. The quality of its paper conforms to the dignity and
wealth of the institution; indeed, so long has the public been trained to
expect good letter paper from such concerns that it would be apt to mistrust,
perhaps unconsciously, the house that resorted to cheap grades of stationery
which is almost invariably associated with cheap concerns or with mere
form letters issued in large quantities.

Stationery should be representative of the business from which it comes.
The impression created by a well-dressed man, as well as of a well-dressed
letter, is seldom analyzed; the first glance is generally sufficient to establish
that impression. A letter soliciting an investment of money, if printed on
cheap stock, may create such a tawdry impression as to be discarded
instantly by the average business man, although the letter may come from
an entirely reliable house and contain an excellent business proposition on
good, substantial paper. For this reason, the letter that departs from the
usual standards must assume unnecessary risks of being thrown away
unread.

To discriminate at a glance between important and inconsequential
business letters, is what most men have been trained to do. It is not
exaggeration to claim that the success of many business letters often
depends upon the paper. The difference between the letter of an obscure
country merchant or lawyer, and that of his well-known correspondent in

the city, lies often in its mechanical appearance. The one, who is not trained
to observe what he considers trifling items, uses paper that is cheap and
easily available; the other, experienced in the details that tend to increase
the dignity of the house, selects his stationery with care from a wider
assortment. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred the two letters may be
identified at a distance. The message of one letter may be just as important
as the other; but one is properly and the other is improperly "clothed."

What the firm thinks about business stationery is not so important as
what the recipients think. Do not buy good stock because it pleases the
"house," but because it influences the man to whom the house writes. First
impressions are usually strongest and the first impression produced by a
letter comes from the paper upon which it is written.

Some men seem to feel superior to creating a good impression. They do
not want to stoop so low as to go to the best hotel. They will not buy a hat
or an umbrella that can help them get business. Their general idea is to bang
their way into the market and succeed in their shirt sleeves, as it were, and
on the strength of the goods. Of course, if a man has time to succeed in his
shirt sleeves, there is no objection to it. The idea of having as one's address
the best hotel, or in writing one's business on the best paper, is not that a
man could not succeed in his shirt sleeves, if he set out to, but that he has
not time. He gets little things out of the way and proceeds to business.

The quality of the paper must be largely influenced by the purpose, as
well as by the quantity of the letters to be written. A firm that sends out
hundreds of thousands of form letters to sell a small retail article in the rural
districts, will not use an expensive stock; it will use a cheaper quality of
paper. If the form letter goes to business or professional men in the city, the
quality of the paper will be determined accordingly. In every instance, stock
should be selected which will meet the expectations of the recipient.

The fact that the recipient knows a form letter as such, largely nullifies its
influence. A business man who sends out a large number of form letters a
year claims that when he gets a reply beginning, "In response to your form
letter," he knows that the effect of that letter is absolutely lost on a large
percentage of this list who seldom or never bother to read such
communications. And one of the distinguishing marks of such a letter is the
poor quality of its paper.

Different grades of stationery may be used for the various departments.
For inter-house or inter-department correspondence, an inexpensive paper is
desirable. For many purposes, indeed, a low-priced stock is entirely
permissible. But the higher the quality of paper, the more exclusive and
personal that letter becomes, until, in the cases of executive heads of
corporations, the stock used is of the best. One well-known corporation
regularly uses six different grades of paper for its letters; one grade is
engraved upon a thin bond of excellent quality and used by the president of
the company when writing in his official capacity; another grade is
engraved upon a good quality of linen paper and is used by the other
officers, sales managers and heads of office departments when writing
official letters to outside parties; when writing to officers or employees of
their own concern, the same letterhead, lithographed on a less expensive
grade of paper, is used; A fourth grade of bond paper is used by officers and
department heads for their semi-official correspondence. The sixth grade is
used only for personal letters of a social nature; it is of a high quality of
linen stock, tinted. Thus, the size, shape and quality of the paper and
letterhead in each instance is made to conform to the best business and
social usages.

For business correspondence, custom allows but little leeway in the
choice of paper. For print shops, advertising concerns, ink manufacturers,
engravers, or paper manufacturers, stationery offers an opportunity to

exploit their taste or products in an effective and legitimate manner. For
most houses, however, a plain bond, linen, or the vellums and hand-made
papers that are coming into favor, furnish the best letter paper.

Colors on correspondence paper are seldom used to good effect; the
results are frequently glaring and cheap. When in doubt as to what tint to
use in the paper stock, use white, which is always in good taste. Tinted
stock is occasionally used to good advantage as a "firm color." In such cases
all the correspondence of that house has a uniform tint, which thus acquires
an advertising value in attracting attention to itself among a mass of other
letters. Aside from this occasional and often doubtful advertising value,
tinted stock tends toward the eccentric except in the cases of paper dealers,
publishers, or printers who have a purpose in displaying typographical
effects.

Many concerns use paper of various tints, each of which identifies the
particular department from which it comes. Thus, white paper may mark the
letters from the executive department, blue from the selling department, and
brown from the manufacturing department. But, even in such cases, the
colors are used ordinarily only for inter-house or inter-department
communications.

The sheet should be of standard size; that is the letter sheet should be
folded to fit exactly into the envelope that is used.

Only such paper stock should be selected as can hold ink readily. Never
select a stock that is not entirely serviceable on a typewriting machine.
Never sacrifice the practical to the eccentric in business stationery.

An inferior quality of stationery is sometimes accepted by the shrewd
observer either as a deliberate act to economize or as an indication of poor
taste or indifference. A man who gets an estimate, for example, written on

cheap paper, may be led to believe that the man who skimps on letter paper
is apt to skimp on his work. So long as the paper represents the sender, just
so long will the sender be judged by it.

From a semi-business or social standpoint, stationery often plays an
important role; many instances are recorded where a man's private note
paper has been the means of eliminating his name from select, social lists.
The lady who, in writing to an employment office for a butler, used her
private stationery with the remark, "that is one more way of giving them to
understand what sort of a butler I want," knew the effect produced by
proper letter paper.

In other words, the stationery of a business house—the size, the
proportions, the tint, the quality of its correspondence-paper— offers the
first of the several opportunities for the correspondent to put the recipient
into a receptive state of mind toward the communication. It is an item that
the shrewd correspondent does not ignore, because it offers him an
opportunity—and the first opportunity—to score.

The Typographical Make-Up
Of BUSINESS LETTERS

PART IV—THE DRESS OF A BUSINESS LETTER—CHAPTER 13

All business houses recognize the necessity for having printed letterheads
and envelopes, but the variety of designs and styles are infinite. Nothing,
not even the paper, affords such an index to the character of the individual
or firm as the typography of the envelope and letterhead. An impression,
favorable or otherwise, is created BEFORE THE LETTER IS READ. This

chapter describes the methods of printing, engraving and lithographing; the
advantages of each process, and the difference in prices; the proper placing
of date, name and address, the width of margins, spacing between lines—
little points that contribute to the appearance of the letter and give it tone

*****

The feature of a business letter that invariably commands the first
conscious attention of the recipient is the name—printed or written—of the
firm or individual from whom the letter comes.

Except when the correspondent intentionally omits this information for
the purpose of inducing the recipient to notice a circular letter that he might
otherwise ignore, the name and address of the sender is printed on the
envelope.

This is done for two reasons: it brings the name of the correspondent
before the recipient immediately upon receipt of the letter; it tends to secure
favorable attention, and it enables the post office authorities to return letters
to the senders in case of non-delivery because of removals, death, wrong
address or other causes.

In either case, the interests of the correspondent are best served by
printing this information in the upper left corner of the face of the envelope.
It is this side of the envelope that bears the address and the stamp, and
consequently the only side, under ordinary circumstances, that receives
attention from either the postal officials or the recipient. When the sender's
name is printed in this position, it is brought prominently to the attention of
the recipient as the letter is placed before him. But even a more practical
reason for putting this data in the upper left corner is that such a location on
the envelope permits the post office rubber stamp, "Return to Sender," to be
affixed, in case of need, without the confusion and annoyance that is caused

when this address is printed on the back of the envelope, as is sometimes
done.

As a rule, the printed matter that appears on the envelope should consist
merely of the name and address of the sender in plain, legible letters.

In no case should the address be ambiguous. However many branch
offices the firm may have, the use of more than one address on the envelope
is apt to be confusing and may result in a communication's being returned to
an office other than that from which it comes. To avoid this, only one
address should be printed on the envelope, and that should be the address to
which the correspondence is to be returned by the postal authorities in case
of non-delivery to the addressee. The trade mark or other similar distinctive
imprint of a firm may properly be used on the envelope, but only in cases
where it will not tend to confuse or crowd the essential wording. The name
of the person to whom the letter is to be returned is of considerable more
practical value to the postman than a unique design with which the
envelope may be adorned.

The letterhead offers wider opportunities for an array of data. Pictures of
offices, buildings and factories, trade marks, lists of branch offices, cable
codes and the names of officers and executive heads may be used, but too
much reading matter leads to confusion. The tendency today is toward
simplicity. The name and address of the firm, and the particular department
or branch office from which the communication comes, is regarded as
sufficient by many houses. The day of the letterhead gay with birds-eye
views of the plant and much extraneous information seems to be passing,
and money that was once spent in elaborate designs and plates is now put
into the "quality" of the letter paper—and quality is usually marked by
dignified simplicity and directness.

Letterheads may be mechanically produced by several different processes
that range widely in costs. The principal methods of printing letterheads are:

First: From type.

Second: From zinc or half-tone plates made from drawings—generally
designated as "photo-engraving".

Third: From plates engraved on copper or steel.

Fourth: From lithograph plates, engraved on stone.

Fifth: From photogravure or similar engraved plates.

Generally speaking, letterheads printed from type are the cheapest. The
costs of type composition for an ordinary letterhead will vary from fifty
cents to four or five dollars, dependent upon the amount of work. The
printing ranges in cost from one dollar a thousand sheets for one color to
several times that amount, dependent upon the quality of ink and paper, and
upon local conditions. Many concerns are discarding letterheads printed
from type, as more individuality can be shown in some form of engraved or
lithographed work.

Good results may often be secured from "line cuts" or zinc plates—
which cost from five to ten cents a square inch, with a minimum charge
ranging from fifty cents to a dollar—made from pen-and-ink drawings.
Good and distinctive lettering may often be secured in this way, where type
matter does not offer the same opportunities. The cost of printing from zinc
plates is practically the same as the cost of printing from type. If the
drawings are made in water color, "wash" or oil, or if they contain fine
crayon or pencil shadings, the reproductions must be made from half-tone
plates. These cost from twelve cents to twenty cents a square inch, with a

minimum rate that usually is equivalent to the cost of ten square inches.
Half-tones, however, can be printed only on an enamel or other smooth-
surface paper, and cannot be used satisfactorily on a rough-surface paper as
can zinc plates.

Copper or steel engravings are made from designs furnished either by the
engraver or by some other designer. For simple engraved lettering such as is
customarily used on business stationery, the cost of a copper plate is about
ten cents a letter. For elaborate designs the costs increase proportionately.
Steel plates, which are more durable, cost about sixty per cent more.
Printing from such plates is considerably more expensive than the two
processes previously described. Engraved letterheads cost from six dollars
upward a thousand for the printing, while the envelopes cost approximately
two dollars and fifty cents a thousand. The envelopes are usually printed
from steel dies, which cost about ten cents a letter.

For large orders of stationery, exceeding 20,000 sheets, lithography offers
economies in price and other advantages that render it more practical than
metal engraving. The design is engraved upon stone and printed from the
stone block. While the initial costs of lithography are high, ranging from
$25.00 to $100.00 for the engraving (with an average cost of about $50.00),
the price of printing is so moderate as to make this form of production
popular among extensive users of business paper. Lithography gives a
smooth, uniform and permanent impression on the paper, and permits of an
indeterminate "run." The cost of printing from lithographic plates is
practically the same as from steel or copper plates. The savings effected in
large orders is in the cost of the plates, for copper and steel must be
renewed as they become worn down.

The photogravure process is costly both in the plate-making and in the
printing. While it gives a rich and uniform impression on the letter paper,

and is highly valuable for reproducing pictures and ornate designs, it is
adaptable only for special purposes and is not generally regarded as suitable
for commercial work. A photogravure plate costs from seventy-five cents to
one dollar and twenty-five cents a square inch, or about $12.00 to $50.00
for a letterhead. The printing costs about the same as for other engraved
stationery. With other processes, somewhat similar in the market, this
method of printing letterheads has not yet won extensive favor.

It is now almost universally recognized that a letter should be written on
one side of the sheet only.

A copy should be kept of every communication that leaves the office.
Either a carbon copy may be made at the time the letter is written—six
good copies can be made simultaneously on the average typewriter,
although one is usually sufficient—or a letter-press copy can be made from
the sheet after it is signed. Both forms have been accepted by the courts as
legal copies of correspondence.

Such copies are usually filed alphabetically either by the name of the
company or individual to whom the letter is addressed.

Letter-press copies must necessarily be filed chronologically, even when
separate books for each letter of the alphabet are maintained. In either case
the search through the files for a letter copy is facilitated by placing the
name, address and date of a letter at the top.

For the same reason the date of a letter should be placed in the upper
right corner of the page; the recipient must know when the communication
is sent; it may have a bearing on other communications. The name and
address of the addressee, similar to the address on the envelope, should in
all cases be placed, as the formal salutation, in the upper left corner of the
sheet, whether the correspondent be greeted "Dear Sir" or "Gentlemen." Not

only does this establish at once the exact individual for whom the
communication is intended but it facilitates the filing of the correspondence,
both by the recipient and by the sender.

The margins of a business letter, owing to the limitations of the
typewriter, are usually variable. The space occupied by the letterhead must,
of course, determine the margin at the top of the sheet. Theoretically, the
margins at the left and right should be exactly the same size; practically,
however, the typewriter lines will vary in length and cause an uneven edge
on the right side. In printing, the use of many-sized spaces not only between
words but at times, between the letters themselves rectifies these variations,
but the typewriter does not permit this. The more even the right margin is
and the more uniform it is to the left margin, the better the effect. The
margins should be about one and a half inches in width. The margin at the
bottom should not be less than the side margins. Should it be smaller, the
page will appear cramped for space as the reading matter will be really
running over into the margin—a typographical defect that is as noticeable
on typewritten as on printed pages.

The spacing between the lines and between the paragraphs of a business
letter may vary to suit the tastes of the individual, although considerations
of a practical nature tend to establish a few general principles.

Both for purposes of convenience and of economy, a letter should be as
compact as possible, both in words and in mechanical production. It should
not take up two sheets if the message can be written on one without undue
crowding. Hence most business letters are single spaced; that is, only one
space on the typewriter separates the lines. Even when a letter is short, it is
advisable for purposes of uniformity, to use single spaces only.

The first line of each paragraph is usually indented from five to fifteen
points on the machine. Each business house should establish exactly what

this indentation shall be in order to secure uniformity in its correspondence.
Instead of indenting the first line, some concerns designate the paragraphs
merely by separating them by double spacings, beginning the first line flush
with the left margin. The best practice, however, seems to embody both of
these methods, but the average business letter usually has its paragraphs
separated by double spacing and indenting the first line.

The address on the envelope, to which the salutation at the top of the
letter should correspond, either exactly or in slightly condensed form, may
be properly typewritten in various ways. The style that is most observed,
however, and which has the stamp of general approval, provides for an
indentation of about five points on each line of the address.

Between the lines the spacings may be either single or double but the
latter is preferable. Greater spacing tends to separate the address too much
to allow it to be read quickly.

Another approved, though less popular form of address does not indent
the lines at all.

Any radical departure from these forms should be made cautiously,
especially if the various items of the address are separated from each other.

The address, like a paragraph, is generally read as a unit—as a single,
distinct idea. The closer the address conforms to the generally accepted
forms, the more readily are the envelopes handled by the postoffice and the
less danger of delay.

Getting a UNIFORM Policy and Quality in Letters

PART IV—THE DRESS OF A BUSINESS LETTER—CHAPTER 14

Every correspondent naturally reflects his own personality in his letters.
His distinguishing characteristics, good, bad and indifferent, inevitably
tend to find expression in his correspondence—UNLESS THOSE
TENDENCIES ARE GUIDED. That is exactly what the modern business
house does. It directs the work of its correspondents by means of general
and specific rules as well as by instruction in the policies of the house until
ail of its letters are uniform in quality and bear the stamp of a consistent
personality—the personality of "the house"

*****

A number of years ago, the president of a company manufacturing
carriages felt that he was not getting adequate results for the money he was
spending in the mail sales department. One day he called a meeting of all
his correspondents and asked each man what arguments he used in writing
to prospects. He discovered that eight correspondents were using eight
different lines of talk. One emphasized this feature of the carriage, a second
based his argument on another feature, and no two correspondents were
reaching prospects from the same angle or making use of the same
arguments.

"Here are eight different approaches," said the president. "It is certain
that one of these must be more effective than the other seven. They can't all
be best. It is up to us to test them out and determine which one is best and
then we will all use it."

When the proposition was presented in this way, it was so elementary
that everyone wondered why it had not been thought of before. A series of
tests followed with the different arguments and presentations and by a

process of elimination the company proved conclusively which was the
strongest approach. Then all of the correspondents used it in the first letter
and the second strongest argument was used in the second letter, and so on
through the follow-up. It was no longer left for each man to develop his
arguments and his selling talk according to his own ideas. Through tests,
consultation and discussion, every point was considered and all the
correspondence was on the same level.

By adopting a uniform policy the efficiency of the sales department was
increased, the quality of the letters was raised and the work was handled
more expeditiously and more economically.

One cannot write to all his customers and prospects; that is why it is
necessary to have correspondents in the various departments. It is an easy
matter to adopt rules and establish policies that will make their letters of a
much higher standard and give them greater efficiency than if each went his
own way without rule or regulation to guide him. Every correspondent
represents the house in a dignified manner and handles the subjects
intrusted to his care in a way that will reflect the best thought and the most
successful methods of the house. Not everyone can be developed into a
master correspondent but it is possible to establish a policy and enforce
rules that will give quality and at least a fair measure of salesmanship to all
letters.

Many businesses have grown so rapidly and the heads have been so
absorbed in the problems of production and extending markets that little
time or thought has been given to the work of the correspondents. And so it
happens that in many concerns the correspondence is handled according to
the whims, the theories and the personality of the various men who are in
charge of the different departments. But there are other concerns that have
recognized the desirability of giving individuality to all the mail that bears a

house message. They have found that the quality can be keyed up and the
letters, even though they may be written in a dozen different departments,
all have the family resemblance and bear evidence of good parentage.

And it may be certain that when all the letters from a house impart this
tone, this atmosphere of quality and distinction, it is not because of chance.
It is not because the correspondents all happen to use a similar policy. Such
letters imply a deliberate, persistent, intelligent effort to keep the
correspondence from falling below a fixed level. Such a policy represents
one of the finer products of the process of systematically developing all the
factors in modern business—the stamping of a strong individuality upon all
of the correspondence of a large organization.

To secure this uniformity in policy and in quality, it is necessary to adopt
a set of clear, comprehensive rules and to impress upon the correspondents
the full significance of the standing, the character and the traditions of the
house.

There are certain tendencies on the part of some correspondents that can
be overcome by a general rule. For instance, there are the correspondents
who try to be funny in their letters. Attempts at humor should be forbidden
for the day has gone when the salesman can get orders by telling a funny
story. Another correspondent may deal too largely in technicalities in his
letters, using words and phrases that are not understood.

Then there is the correspondent who has an air of superiority in his letters
and writes with impudence and his letters suggest a condescension on his
part to explain a proposition; or the complaint department may have a man
who grants an allowance or makes an adjustment but puts a sting into his
letter that makes the reader wish he had never patronized the house. All
such tendencies may be eradicated by a set of rules giving specific
instruction on how to handle every point that comes up and the attitude that

is to be assumed in answering complaints, collecting accounts, making
sales, and so forth.

And in order to have the letters reflect the house, rules have been adopted
in some cases that cover every conceivable point from a broad policy in
handling arguments to a specific rule regarding the use of commas.

For instance, it is no longer left to the discretion of the correspondent to
start his letter "John Smith." A rule provides that all letters shall begin "Mr.
John Smith." For the sake of dignity, a western mail-order house decided to
use "Dear Sir" and "Dear Madam" in the first three letters that went to a
customer. But on the third and succeeding letters this house uses the
salutation "Dear Mr. Smith" or "Dear Mrs. Smith."

This is a matter of policy, a rule that will keep the letters up to a fixed
standard.

*****

Page from One Firm's Book of Rules:

_In a long letter, or where two or more subjects are treated, each subject
must be introduced with an appropriate subhead.

All letters, long or short, must carry a general subject head between the
address and the first paragraph. This general head and the subheads must be
in capitals, underscored with a single line, and as nearly as possible in the
middle of the sheet from right to left.

Carefully avoid even the appearance of sarcasm.

Be wary of adjectives, particularly superlatives. "Very," "great,"
"tremendous," "excellent," etc., have marred many an otherwise strong

phrase and have propped needlessly many a good word, all-sufficient of
itself.

Never use the first personal pronoun "I" when writing as Blank
Company. "We" is the proper pronoun. Where a personal reference is
necessary, "the writer" may be used; but even this should be avoided
wherever possible.

Don't forget that certain small words are in the language for a purpose.
"And," "a," "the," are important, and their elimination often makes a letter
bald, curt, and distinctly inelegant.

Carefully avoid such words and stock phrases as "beg to acknowledge,"
"beg to inquire," "beg to advise," etc. Do not "beg" at all.

Do not say "kindly" for "please."

Do not say "Enclosed herewith." Herewith is superfluous.

Do not "reply" to a letter; "answer" it. You answer a letter and reply to an
argument._

*****

In determining a uniformity in policy and quality, the rules may be
grouped in three classes: those which determine the attitude of the writer;
those that relate to the handling of subject matter; and then there are
specific rules, such as the style of paper, the salutation, the subscription,
signature, and so forth.

The attitude and policy of the house must be determined according to the
nature of the business and the ideas of the management. The same rules will
not apply to all houses but this does not lessen the desirability of an

established policy. For instance, one large corporation, selling entirely to
dealers and to large contractors, forbids the use of the first person singular.
Under no consideration is the correspondent permitted to say "I". And if a
personal reference is absolutely necessary, he must refer to "the writer". The
rule is to say "we" and the correspondents are urged to avoid this personal
pronoun, using the name of the company, as, "It has always been the
practice of the Workwell Company," and so on.

Most mail-order houses, on the other hand, get just as far away from this
formal attitude as possible. Here it is the policy to get up close to the reader
by a "you-and-me" attitude. Some mail-order houses have letters written in
the name of the company, signed by the writer as department manager, sales
manager, or other officer. Then there are other houses that omit the
company name entirely in order to get away from the "soulless corporation"
idea as much as possible, and letters to a customer are always signed by the
same individual to get a personal relationship that is considered a most
valuable asset. This does not mean merely the matter of the signature, but
the entire attitude of the letter. "Address your reply to me personally" is the
spirit of these firms—a policy that has been adopted after tests have
demonstrated that it is the one appeal most effective with the average mail-
order customer.

A large concern aims to make its points stand out more clearly by having
the arguments presented in a one, two, three order, and each paragraph is
introduced with a subject printed in capitals at the beginning of the first
line, such as Location, Terms, Guarantee. This company, dealing in lands,
usually finds it necessary to write rather lengthy letters and the subject
heads serve as guide-posts and tend to concentrate attention.

One firm has barred all superlative adjectives, not merely to guard
against exaggeration but because the superlative degree lacks conviction.

The statement that "This is the best collar ever made" is not believed, but to
say that it is a "fine" collar or a "good" collar for it is five-ply, and so forth,
rings true. It is a better selling talk and so the superlative is not permitted.

Then there are other general policies that concerns have adopted, such as
a rule that the price of articles cannot be mentioned in a letter. A printed
enclosure gives this information and reference may be made to it, but the
dollar mark does not appear in the letter itself. This policy has been adopted
to emphasize upon readers the fact that the company quotes but one price to
all, and it makes an effective selling talk out of the point that special
discounts and "inside prices" are never given. As confidence is always the
first essential in building up a mail-order business, this policy has done
much towards increasing the standing and reputation of the houses using it.

And then come certain specific instructions covering a multitude of
details. For instance, the style of paper is a matter that progressive business
houses no longer ignore. The policy of the house may be revealed in the
envelope and letter paper before one has had time to read even the date line.
Some firms provide different grades of stationery for different departments,
the sales letters going out in a much finer dress than letters from other
departments.

The style to use is largely a matter of personal taste and preference. The
significant thing is not in the kind that is used by certain companies but the
fact that progressive business houses now appreciate the necessity for a
uniformity in stationery and in the manner of handling it.

Harmony of color is especially desirable—the tint of the paper, the color
of the lithographing, embossing or printing, the color of the typewriter
ribbon used and the color of the ink used in signing. None of these points
are too small to be considered in the progressive business houses today.

The closing is no less important than the opening and most rule books
relieve the correspondent of all responsibility in deciding on what
subscription to use or how to sign the letter. For instance, he is told that the
house policy is to close with "Yours truly" and that the name of the
company is written with the typewriter followed by the signature of the
writer and his title, such as "President," or "Sales Manager."

A publishing house in the east for years clung to the established policy of
having all letters go out in the name of the president. But it was finally
decided by the executive committee that this policy tended to belittle the
house, for it was obvious that no institution of any size could have all its
mail handled directly from the president's office. It was argued that if the
president's name were used only occasionally, greater prestige would be
given to the letters that actually came from his office, and thereafter letters
were signed by different department heads as "Manager of Sales,"
"Advertising Manager," "Managing Editor," "Manager of Collection
Department," and so forth.

And just so one could go through the book of rules of any business house
and find a good reason for every policy that has been adopted. For while it
is desirable to have a "family resemblance" which is possible only through
established rules, and while letters written under specific instructions have
added dignity and character, yet there is back of each rule some additional
significance, the force of some tested argument, the psychological effect of
some timely suggestion.

No longer do large manufacturing and mercantile houses send out their
salesmen and allow each one to push his line as he sees best. Many
concerns require the salesmen to take a regular course of training to learn
thoroughly the "house" attitude, and they are given instructions on the best

way to present arguments and overcome objections—just so the men who
sell by letter are now instructed in the best methods for getting results.

The best way to secure a uniform policy is a practical question. Some
houses employ a correspondent expert to spend a few weeks in the
correspondence department just the same as an expert auditor is employed
to systematize the accounting department. In other houses the book of rules
is a matter of evolution, the gradual adding of new points as they come up
and as policies are tried out, a process of elimination determining those that
should be adopted. In some concerns the correspondents have regular
meetings to discuss their problems and to decide upon the best methods of
meeting the situations that arise in their work. They read letters that have
pulled, analyze the arguments and in this way try to raise the quality of their
written messages.

While it must be admitted that some men have a natural faculty of
expressing themselves clearly and forcibly, the fact remains that letter
writing is an art that may be acquired. It necessitates a capacity to
understand the reader's attitude; it requires careful study and analysis of
talking points, arguments and methods of presentation, but there is no
copyright on good letters and any house can secure a high standard and be
assured that distant customers are handled tactfully and skilfully if a
uniform policy is worked out and systematically applied.

Making Letters UNIFORM In Appearance

PART IV—THE DRESS OF A BUSINESS LETTER—CHAPTER 15

Business stationery should reflect the house that sends it out but unless
specific rules are adopted there will be a lack of uniformity in arrangement,
in style, in spelling, infolding—all the little mechanical details that
contribute to an impression of CHARACTER and INDIVIDUALITY.
Definite instructions should be given to correspondents and stenographers
so that letters, although written in a dozen different departments, will have
a uniformity in appearance. What a book of instructions should contain and
how rules can be adopted is described in this chapter

*****

Just as progressive business houses now aim to have their
correspondence uniform in policy and quality, so too, they aim at
uniformity in letter appearance—the mechanical production. It is obvious
that if the letters sent out by a house are to have character, one style must be
adopted and definite rules must be formulated for the guidance of the
stenographers. The authorities differ on many points such as the use of
capital letters, abbreviations, the use of figures, and so forth, and it is not to
be expected that stenographers, trained at different schools and working in
different departments, could produce uniformity unless they all follow
specific instructions.

And so the more progressive firms have adopted a fixed style and
codified certain rules for the guidance of stenographers and typists. In the
writing of a letter there are so many points that are entirely a matter of
personal taste that a comprehensive rule book touches an almost infinite
number of subjects, ranging from an important question of house policy to
the proper way of folding the sheet on which the letter is written.

It is not the purpose of this chapter to give a summary of the rules for
punctuation and capitalization or to pass judgment on questions of style, but
to emphasize the necessity for uniformity in all correspondence that a house

sends out, and to call attention to a few of the more common errors that are
inexcusable.

As far as the impression created by an individual letter is concerned, it
really makes very little difference whether the paragraphs are indented or
begin flush with the line margin. But it is important that all the letters sent
out by a house follow the same style. A stenographer should not be
permitted to use the abbreviation "Co." in one part of her letter and spell out
the word "company" in the following paragraph.

In formulating the rules, two things should be kept in mind— clearness,
to make the meaning of the writer plain; and a pleasing appearance that will
make a favorable impression upon the reader. The sole purpose of
punctuation marks is to help convey a thought so clearly that it cannot be
misunderstood and experienced writers learn to use the proper marks almost
intuitively. The rules are applied unconsciously. Many correspondents in
dictating designate the beginning and the close of each sentence but others
leave this to the intelligence of the stenographer, and there is no better rule
for those to whom such matters are left than to be liberal in the use of
periods. Avoid long, involved sentences. There is little danger of
misunderstanding in short sentences.

Most of the rules can be made hard and fast—a simple regulation to do
this or to avoid that. They should begin with the date line. Instructions
should be given as to the place for the date line: whether it should be
written on one or two lines and whether the month should be expressed in
figures or should be spelled out, and whether the year should be printed in
full or abbreviated. There is a growing tendency to use figures, such as 10-
15-10, and supplementary letters, such as "rd," "th," and so forth, are being
eliminated. Some firms are placing the date at the bottom of the letter at the

left hand margin, although for convenience in making a quick reference the
date line at the top of the letter is much to be preferred.

*****

A Page of Instructions to Stenographers:

_City and date must be written about three spaces below the lowest
printed matter on letterhead, as follows: Chicago, date single space below,
regulated so that it will precede and extend beyond "Chicago" an equal
distance, the end of date being in line with margin of body of letter; spell
the month in full, followed by the date in figures, after which use comma;
add year in figures and end with period.

Commence letter by addressing customer, then double space and follow
with city and state (do not give street address) except where window
envelope is to be used; double space and address as "Dear Sir" or "Madam."
Also double space between this salutation and first paragraph.

Paragraphs must begin ten points from margin on a line with city.
Use single space, with double space between paragraphs.

In closing use the phrase "Yours very truly" and sign "The Wilson-
Graham Company." Have correspondent's and stenographer's initials on line
with margin on left hand side of sheet. Margins must be regulated by length
of letter to be written, using your judgment in this respect.

The half size letterhead should be used for very short letters.

Envelopes must be addressed double space, with beginning of name,
street address, city and state on marginal line, as per sample attached._

*****

The points that are suggested here, however, are entirely a matter of taste.
There is no court of last resort to which appeal can be made as to the better
method. Each house must use its own judgment. The important thing is to
secure uniformity.

Rules should govern the name of the addressee, whether it should be
prefaced by such titles as "Mr." or "Messrs." The form of the salutation, the
size of the margin, the spacing between lines and between paragraphs, the
indentation of paragraphs, if any—all of these points should be covered by
rules. The subscription, the placing of the dictator's and the stenographer's
initials are all proper subjects for the instruction book.

The use of capital letters is a disputed question with writers, printers and
proofreaders. But there is a growing tendency to use the small letters
wherever possible. One large firm in the east has this rule:

"When in doubt regarding the use of a capital letter, don't.
Use a small letter."

A great many business houses, for the sake of emphasis, capitalize the
names of their own products. For instance:

"In this Catalogue you will find listed a very complete line of
Countershafts, Magnetos, Induction Coils, Lubricators, Mufflers,
Spark Coils, and a complete line of automobile accessories."

*****

There is no rule that justifies such capitalization but it is a common
practice in business correspondence.

There are some correspondents who write a word or a sentence in capital
letters for emphasis. Occasionally this may be done to advantage but the
tendency is to overwork the scheme. At best it is a lazy man's way of trying
to secure emphasis without the mental exertion of thinking up some figure
of speech or some original expression that will give force to his thought.

The rule book should help out the stenographer in the use of numbers and
prices. Usage and a practical viewpoint both commend the use of figures for
expressing sums of money. "Twelve hundred dollars" may be understood
but it takes longer to write and does not make such a sharp image in the
mind of the reader as $1,200. A common rule for figures is to spell out
numbers under one hundred and to use numerals for larger amounts.

The use of abbreviations should be restricted and an inflexible rule
should be never to use a man's initials or abbreviate his given name if he
spells it out. If you find by a letterhead that the one to whom you are
writing spells out the name of his state it is wise to follow the trail.

The errors in punctuation found in business correspondence are of
infinite variety, although a surprising number of stenographers make similar
errors in using hyphens for dashes and in misplacing quotation marks. Here
is a common error:

"A model No. 8,—the one we exhibited at the Business
Show last week,—has been sold to a customer in New Zealand."

*****

There is no excuse for the comma used in connection with the dash and
yet this construction is found in letters every day.

Unfortunately most typewriters do not have a dash and so the hyphen is
used, but stenographers should be instructed to use two or, better yet, three
hyphens without spacing (—-), rather than a single hyphen as is so
frequently seen. Here is a sentence in which the girl was versatile enough to
combine two styles in one sentence:

"The auto—-although it was completely overhauled a few days ago—-
could not be started."

*****

In the first place, the single hyphen gives the appearance of a compound
word, and placing a space on each side is scarcely less objectionable. Insist
upon two or three hyphens without spaces when a dash is wanted.

Quotation marks are another stumbling block. There is no occasion to put
the name of well-known books, magazines, and newspapers in quotation
marks. If you refer to Harper's Monthly the reader will get your meaning
just as well without the quotation marks. Many stenographers in writing a
sentence that ends with a quoted word place the quotation mark first and the
period or question mark following, as:

Johnson's last words to me were: "I will accept your terms".

*****

Put the period inside the fence where it belongs. This is a rule that is
violated more often than it is observed, the confusion coming from an
occasional exception where a punctuation mark has nothing to do with the
quotation, as in the sentence:

"May we not send you a trial order of our "X Brand"?

*****

Here it is plain that the question mark should follow the quotation mark.
There is no excuse for the frequent misplacing of these marks, for the
quoted part of a sentence invariably shows the proper position for each
mark.

A chapter could be filled with errors to be avoided—only a few of the
most common ones are mentioned here. This reference to them may suggest
to the heads of correspondence departments the range of points to be
covered in a rule book.

Some rule books go further and devote pages to faulty diction that must
be avoided and print lists of words that should not be used and words that
are "preferred".

The folding of the typewritten page usually comes in for a rule and
instructions are generally given regarding corrections—whether the pen can
be used at all or if letters must be rewritten.

With these rules laid down for the guidance of the stenographer, her mind
is left free for other things that will contribute to her usefulness. It is no
reflection on their knowledge of correct English to say that the majority of
correspondents, working under high pressure, make mistakes that the
stenographer must catch. It is extremely easy in dictating to mix up the
tenses of verbs and to make other slips which most letter writers look to
their stenographers to correct. It should be a hard and fast rule that an
ungrammatical letter must never be sent out under any circumstances. Some
correspondents not only look to the stenographer to edit their "copy" but to
come back for a new dictation if the meaning of a letter is not perfectly

clear. The thought is that if the stenographer does not understand it, there is
danger of its being misinterpreted by the one to whom it is addressed.

Many rule books include a list of trade terms and phrases that the most
expert stenographer may never have met with in their previous work. Legal
terms are especially difficult to take down until a girl has become familiar
with the unknown Latin words. This may also be said of technical terms,
mechanical terms, architectural and building terms, and so forth. It is a
saving of time and annoyance in many offices to have a list of frequently
used words that the new stenographer can study before she attempts to take
dictations.

It is not likely that any two business houses could adopt the same rules
throughout. But this does not lessen the desirability of having specific
instructions covering all these points, for without uniformity, the letters will
not have the character, the dignity and the individuality that is desired by
every concern.

How to Write the Letter That
Will "LAND" the Order

PART V—WRITING THE SALES LETTER—CHAPTER 16

Selling goods is considered the biggest problem in the business world.
Hard as it is to close a deal with the prospect right before you, it is infinitely
harder to get his order when he is miles away and you must depend upon a
type-written sheet to interest him in your proposition sufficiently to buy your
goods. Methods that have succeeded are described in this chapter and
samples of order-bringing letters are given

*****

The letter that is sent out unaided to make its own approach, open its own
canvass and either complete a sale or pave the way to a sale may be called
"the original sales letter." There has been no inquiry, no preliminary
introduction of any kind. The letter is simply the substitute for the salesman
who voluntarily seeks out his own prospect, presents his proposition and
tries to land an order.

Such a letter undertakes a big task. It has a more difficult mission than
the personal salesman, for it cannot alter its canvass on the spot to suit the
prospect's mood. It must have its plan complete before it goes into the mail.
It must be calculated to grip the attention, impel a reading, prompt a
favorable decision and get back, in the return envelope, an order or at least
a request for further information.

The letter that can do that, a letter so clever and so convincing that it
makes a man a thousand miles away put his hand into his pocket, take out
his hard earned cash and buy a money order; or makes the shrewd man at
the desk take up his pen, write a check and send it for the goods you have to
sell, is a better employee than your star salesman because it gets the order at
a fraction of the cost. And the man who can write the letter that will do that
is a power in the business world—his capacity is practically unlimited.

Original sales letters are of two kinds: those that endeavor to perform the
complete operation and secure the order and those that are intended merely
as the first of a follow-up series or campaign. Which to use will depend
upon the nature and cost of your proposition. A simple, low-priced article
may be sold with a single letter—the margin of profit may not warrant more
than that. On an expensive, complicated article you cannot hope to do more
in the initial letter than win your prospect's interest, or possibly start him
toward the dealer who sells your goods.

Consider first the former. You are to write a single letter and make it an
attention-getting, interest-winning, complete, convincing, order-bringing
medium. There is no better way to do this than to put yourself in the
position of the salesman who must do all these things in a single interview.
You really must do more than the salesman, but this is the best way to get in
your own mind the proper attitude toward your prospect.

Say to yourself, "I am now going into this man's office. He does not
know me and does not know I am coming. This is the only chance I have to
see him and I shall probably never see him again. I must concentrate all my
knowledge of my proposition on this one selling talk and must tell him
everything I can about it that will make him want to buy. I must say it in
such a way that he will clearly understand; I must give him a good reason
for buying today and I must make it easy for him to do so."

Then picture yourself in his office, seated beside his desk and proceed to
talk to him. Above all, keep in mind that you are talking to one man. No
matter if your letter is to go to ten thousand people, each letter is individual.
Remember, it goes to one person. So when you write it, aim directly at one
person.

And see him in your mind's eye. Get as clear an idea as you can of the
class your letter is going to and then picture the average man in that class.
The best way is to pick out some friend or acquaintance who most nearly
represents the class you want to reach and write the letter to him. You'll be
surprised how much easier it is when you have a definite person in mind.
And your letter will then be sure to have that much desired "personal
touch."

Of prime importance in this single sales letter is the close, the clincher.
Your one big purpose is to get the order, and no matter how clever you may

be three-fourths of the way through, if the letter falls short of clinching the
order in the end, it may as well not have been written at all.

Here is an excellent example of one of these complete letters. Note
particularly the summing up, the guarantee offer and how easy the writer
makes it to order:

HOW TO GET A POSITION AND HOW TO HOLD IT

Is the title of a little book that business men and editors say is the most
sensible and helpful thing ever printed on its subject Contains the boiled-
down experience of years. Written by an expert correspondent and high-
salaried writer of business literature who has hunted positions for himself,
who has been all along the road up to places where he, in turn, has
advertised for employees, read their letters, interviewed and engaged them
—who is now with a company employing 2700 of both sexes and all grades
from the $3 a week office boy to a $75 a week specialist.

HOW TO GET A POSITION AND HOW TO HOLD IT treats of what
one should be able to do before expecting to find a good position; takes up
the matter of changes; advises how long to hold the old position; tells what
kind of a new position to try for; explains the various ways of getting
positions; suggests how the aid of prominent people can be enlisted; shows
the kind of endorsements that count; teaches how to write letters of
application that COMMAND attention; gives hints on preparing for the
interview and on how to make the best impression; tells what should be
done when you are selected for a position and take up your duties; deals
with the question of salary before and after the engagement; with the
bugbear of experience; the matter of hours; and gives pages of horse-sense
on a dozen other important topics. The clear instructions for writing strong
letters of application, and the model letters shown, are alone worth the price

of the book. Not one in a hundred—even among the well- educated—can
write a letter of application that convinces.

How many of yours fail? The engagement usually depends on the
interview; and the interview cannot, as a rule, be obtained without the
impressive letter. Consequently, the letter is of tremendous importance.

If you carry out the suggestions set down in plain language in this little
book, you can hardly fail to land a position. And I am offering the book for
twenty-five cents a copy. Just think of it! The principles and plans outlined
in its pages have been the means of securing high-salaried positions for its
author and for others, and this valuable information is yours for the price of
five car rides.

This is my offer: Send me a 25-cent piece in the enclosed coin-card, or
twenty-five cents in stamps, and I'll mail you a copy of HOW TO GET A
POSITION AND HOW TO HOLD IT. If, after reading the book, you do not
feel it is worth many times its cost, just tell me so and return the copy in
good condition. I'll send your money back without any quibbling. Could
any offer be fairer?

Order today—now. Next week there may come to your notice an opening
that may be the chance of a lifetime—when my little book will be worth its
weight in gold. Besides, it tells how to create openings when none are
advertised. You need not write me a letter. Just write your full name and
address on the back of this sheet and wrap your stamps up in it, or put your
name and address on the coin-card after you have enclosed the 25-cent
piece. I'll understand.

Write plainly. I am selling the book so cheaply that I cannot afford to
have any copies go astray in the mails.

Yours truly,
[Signature: Charles Black]

*****

Now as to the other kind of original sales letter—the one that is merely
the first of a series of three or more letters skillfully planned to build up
interest until the climax, the purchasing point is reached. This letter is really
a combination of the two kinds. If you can land the order with the first
letter, you want to, of course. But you know you can expect to do this only
in a small percentage of cases. So while you must put into the initial letter
enough information to make your proposition clear and must give at least
one good reason for buying, you must keep good convincing sales talk in
reserve for the succeeding letters. And you must plan this first letter so that
the re-enforcements to follow will logically support your introduction.

This can best be illustrated by a clever first letter from a very successful
series. The manufacturer of a $5 fireless cooker planned a letter campaign
to induce hardware dealers and department stores to buy a stock of his
product.

The first sales letter of the series scored strongly on one or two points
and at the same time paved the way for the second letter:

Dear Sir:

Are you ready for the woman who wants a fireless cooker but can't pay
ten or fifteen dollars?

The aggressive advertising done by the manufacturers of fireless cookers
and the immense amount of reading matter published in women's

magazines about the fireless method of cooking has stirred up a big
demand.

But just figure out how many of your customers can't afford to pay $10,
$12 or $15.

Think of the sales that could be made with a thoroughly reliable cooker at
$5—one that you could feel safe in standing back of.

It's here!

We had the $15-idea, and we worked out the prettiest cooker you ever
saw at any price. But we got together one day and figured out that the big
market was for a low-priced cooker that every woman could buy.

How to get a Jenkins-quality cooker, one that a retailer would be proud to
sell, down to the retail price of $5 was the question. But we figured our
manufacturing up into the tens of thousands, and the enclosed folder tells
about the result.

Our advertising next month in the Woman's Home Companion, Ladies'
Home Journal, Ladies' World, Good Housekeeping, Everybody's,
Cosmopolitan and McClures will do big things for you if you have the
Jenkins $5 Fireless Cooker in your window.

We have a good sized stock on hand but they won't last long the way
orders are coming in from far-sighted retailers.

How would a dozen do as a starter for you?

Yours truly,
[Signature: Black & Black]

*****

A letter of this kind should be effective because it gives enough
information to make a sale in case the reader is an unusually good prospect,
and at the same time it lays a good foundation for the second letter.

Are you willing to make more money on soap?

Yes, we suppose you are carrying many soaps, but when a distinctive
soap is advertised as thoroughly as we are advertising WESINOD, it
actually creates new trade, and of course you aren't sorry to see new faces in
the store.

WESINOD SOAP has the curative and beneficial effects of Resinol
Ointment, which is now used so extensively by the medical profession.

WESINOD SOAP is more than a cleanser: it is a restorer, preserver and
beautifier of the skin, and as such is attracting the favorable attention of
women.

Enclosed is a reproduction of our advertisement in the magazines this
month and a list of the magazines in which the copy appears.

We are educating 10,000,000 readers to feel the need of WESINOD
SOAP.

A supply of our liberal samples and a trial order to be used in a window
display will show you the possibilities.

May we send samples and a trial gross?

Yours for more soap money,
WESINOD SOAP COMPANY

*****

This is a strong selling letter that interests the reader, disarms his natural
objection to adding an additional line of soap and presents briefly
convincing reasons for stocking with Wesinod. While this letter is intended
to get the order, it effectively paves the way for further correspondence

*****

It is unnecessary to take up here the elements that should go into the sales
letter—attention, interest, argument, proof, persuasion, inducement and the
clincher. But it is well to emphasize three points that are especially
important in the original letter in the series: confidence, price and the close.

You may be sure, that unless you win the confidence of your prospect
from the start, your whole campaign is going to be a waste of time, paper
and postage. Distrust and prejudice, once started, are hard things to
overcome by mail, particularly when you are a concern or individual
unknown to the man to whom you are writing.

Dear Sir:

''If your magazine pulls as well as the Blank Monthly I will give you a
twelve-page contract.''

That remark wasn't meant for our ears, but one of our solicitors couldn't
help overhearing it. It was made by a prominent advertiser, too. We wish we
could give his name, but when we asked permission to quote he smiled and
said he'd rather not. So, we'll have to refer you to our advertising pages.

But the remark speaks pretty well for the Blank Monthly, doesn't it? It's
not surprising, though. The Blank Monthly goes into 151,000 homes. It is

taken and read by the best class of technical, scientific and mechanically
inclined men, representing one of the choicest classes of buyers in America.

Our subscribers are great buyers of things by mail. Dozens of our
advertisers have proved it. They don't sell shoddy or cheap goods, either.
That's why we believe your advertising will pay in the Blank Monthly. If
we didn't believe it, we shouldn't solicit your business.

Try your copy in the June issue, which goes to press on April 27— last
form May 6.

If you send copy TODAY, you will be sure to get in.

Very truly yours,
[Signature: M. O. Williams]

*****

The quoted language gives the opening of this letter an interesting look.
The first three paragraphs are strong. The fourth paragraph is merely
assertive, and is weak. A fact or two from some advertiser's experience
would be much better

*****

And so with this in mind, be careful of the tone of your letter. Be earnest,
make reasonable statements, appeal to the intelligence or the experience of
the reader and deal with specific facts rather than with mere assertions or
claims. There is no inspiration to confidence in the time-worn claims of
"strongest," "best," and "purest". Tell the facts. Instead of saying that an
article is useful in a dozen different ways, mention some of the ways. When
you declare that the cylinder of your mine pump is the best in the world,
you are not likely to be believed; the statement slips off the mind like the

proverbial water from a duck's back. But when you say that the cylinder is
made of close-grained iron thick enough to be rebored, if necessary, you
have created a picture that does not call for doubt. But watch out that you
don't start an argument. Brander Mathews gives us a great thought when he
says that "controversy is not persuasion." Don't write a letter that makes the
reader feel that he is being argued into something. Give him facts and
suggestions that he can't resist; let him feel that he has convinced himself.
This paragraph fails of its purpose, simply because it argues. You can
almost picture the writer as being "peevish" because his letters haven't
pulled:

"This stock is absolutely the safest and most staple you could buy. It will
positively pay regular dividends. We stand back of these statements. You
must admit, therefore, that it is a good buy for you. So why do you hesitate
about buying a block of it?"

*****

On the other hand, this appeals to the investor because it has genuine
proof in it:

"No stockholder of ours has lost a dollar through fluctuation in the price
of the stock, though we have been doing business for fifteen years. Our
stock has been readily salable at all times. No dividend period has ever been
missed. The quarterly dividend has never been less than 2-1/2 per cent.
During the depression of 1907-1908 our stock maintained itself at 40 per
cent above par when other industrial stocks were dropping to par or below.
Surely, here is an investment worth your investigation."

*****

Telling specific facts helps to produce conviction as well as to create
confidence. Not every one is a genius in the handling of words, but every
writer of a letter that is to bristle with conviction must use his imagination.
He must put himself mentally in the place of the typical customer he is
addressing and use the arguments and facts that would convince him. The
writer should try to see himself enjoying the foods or service—picture his
satisfaction. Then he has a better chance of reproducing his picture in the
mind of the reader.

For instance, read this paragraph of idle assertions:

"Buy our hams once and you will buy them always. All of our meat is
from young hogs, and is not tough, but is high-grade. Nothing but corn-fed
stock is used. We guarantee the quality. We use good sugar in curing our
hams, the best quality of saltpeter and some salt. The result is a natural
flavor that can't be beat. We challenge competition."

*****

And now contrast it with this real description of the same product,
calculated to create confidence in the trademark it bears:

"This mark certifies that the hog came from good stock, that it was corn-
fed in order that it might be firm and sweet—that it was a barrow hog, so
that the meat would be full-flavored and juicy—that it was a young hog,
making the ham thin-skinned and tender—well-conditioned and fat,
insuring the lean of the ham to be tasty and nutritious. The mark certifies
that the ham was cured in a liquor nearly good enough to drink, made of
granulated sugar, pure saltpeter and only a very little salt; this brings out all

the fine, rich, natural flavor of the carefully selected meat, and preserves it
without 'salty pickling.'"

*****

Note how much more graphic the second paragraph is than the first, and
every statement is backed up by a logical reason.

The testimony of other people, especially of those in positions of
authority and those who would not be suspected of bias, has much
convincing power. There is nothing in the contention that "testimonials are
out of date." They constitute the strongest kind of support. But get
testimonials that really say something. The man who writes and says that he
got out of the book he bought from you an idea that enabled him to make a
profit of $50 the first week, says a thousand times more than the man who
writes and merely says that he was pleased with his purchase.

Let price come in the letter just about where it would come in an oral
canvass. The skillful salesman of high-priced shirts doesn't talk about the $3
price until he has shown the shirt and impressed the customer. If price is the
big thing—is lower than the reader is likely to imagine it would be—it may
be made the leading point and introduced at the outset, but unless it is an
attraction, it should be held back until strong description has prepared the
reader for the price.

The method of payment and delivery must be treated effectively in the
closing paragraphs. The following plans all have their use:

Offer to send on free trial for ten days or longer;

Offer to send for free examination, payment to be made to express agent
when examination has shown article to be satisfactory;

Offer to send on small payment, the small payment to be a guarantee
against trifling, balance payable on examination;

Offer to sell on easy-payment plan;

Offer to sell for cash but with strong refunding guarantee;

Offer to supply article through local dealer on reader's authorization.
With such an authorization, the advertiser has a good opening to stock the
retailer.

The price feature offers one of the best opportunities to give the letter
real inducement. If the price is in any sense a special price, make it clear
that it is. Sometimes you can hang your whole letter on this one element.

Reduced price, if the reduction is set forth logically, is a strong feature.
One publisher uses it in this fashion:

"We have just 146 sets of these books to sell at $18.50. When the new
edition is in, it will be impossible to get a set at less than $25. The old
edition is just as good as the new, but we are entirely out of circular matter
describing the green cloth binding, and as we don't want to print a new lot
of circulars just to sell 146 sets, we make this unusual offer. Now is your
chance."

*****

Advance in price is almost as strong. It's a lever to quick action:

"On the 1st of October the rate of the MESSENGER will go up to one
dollar a line. If you place your order before the thirtieth of this month you
can buy space to be used any time before January 1 next at seventy-five

cents a line. After the thirtieth, positively no orders will be accepted at less
than one dollar a line. As a matter of fact our circulation entitles us to a
dollar a line right now.

"Don't let this letter be covered up on your desk. Attend to this matter
now, or instruct your advertising agent to reserve space for you, and get a
big bargain."

*****

Price, in this case is, in fact, a part of the close. It spurs the reader to
"order now."

Setting a time limit, in which a proposal holds good, is also a strong
closer. A large book publisher finds it effective to make a discount offer
good if accepted within a certain number of days.

Guarantee offers are strong. Don't content yourself with the old
"absolutely guaranteed" expression. Be definite. "Order this buggy, and if,
at the end of a month, you are not entirely satisfied that it is the biggest
buggy value you ever had for the money, just write me, and I'll take the
buggy back without quibbling. Could any offer be fairer? I make it because
I've sold 246 of these buggies since January, and so far no man has asked
for his money back."

The sum-up is as important a part of the sales letter as it is of the lawyer's
speech or brief. It should concentrate the whole strength of the letter at the
close, as, for instance:

"So you see that though our machine is apparently high-priced it is really
cheaper by the year than another machine. Our offer of a free trial right in
your own plant gives you absolute protection. It is quite natural, of course,

for us to be desirous of getting your order, but we do not see how you can,
from your own point of view, afford not to put the Bismarck in your
factory."

*****

And finally, help the prospect buy. The sales letter designed to bring the
order must provide an easy method of ordering. In the first place, a great
many people do not understand how to order. To others, making out an
order is a task that is likely to be postponed. By making it easy for the
reader to fill out a blank with a stroke or two of the pen, while the effect of
the letter is strong, a great many orders will be secured that would
otherwise be lost.

It should be axiomatic that if a letter is expected to pull business through
the mails it must place before the recipient every facility for making it easy
and agreeable to reply and reply NOW. How this can best be done will be
taken up more fully in a separate chapter on "Making It Easy to Answer."

One thing to remember particularly in the case of the original sales letter
is that if possible it should have a definite scheme behind it. A reason for
the offer, a reason for the letter itself.

A safe-deposit vault was well advertised by sending out letters that
contained a special pass to the vault with the name of the reader filled in. Of
course the letter gave a pressing invitation to call and allow the custodian to
show the vault's interesting features.

Still another clever letter soliciting rentals of safe-deposit boxes proposed
that in case the reader now had a box elsewhere, they would take the lease
off his hands. In reality they merely gave him free rental until his other
lease expired, but the scheme was cleverly planned.

A buggy maker wrote enclosing duplicate specifications of a buggy he
had just had made for his own personal use, and suggested that he would
have another made for the reader exactly like it and turned under the same
careful supervision.

Letters that give the reader something or offer to give him something
have similar effect. The letter about a new facial cream will command extra
attention because of the small sample of the cream enclosed. In fact, one
cold cream company finds it an effective plan to send a sample and a sales
letter to druggists' mailing lists or to names taken from telephone books,
telling the reader in the final paragraph that the cream can be purchased at
the local drug store.

A letter offering a sample can of a high-grade coffee for the name of the
reader's favorite grocer will bring a good response and afford the advertiser
a strong hold on the grocer.

A favorite method of securing savings depositors is to send a good
"savings letter" that offers a free home-savings bank or a vest-pocket saver.

Even calendars may be given out more effectively by sending a letter and
telling the reader that a good calendar has been saved for him and asking
him to call at the office.

A striking paragraph of a real estate dealer's soliciting letter is one that
asserts that the dealer has a client with the cash who wants just about such a
house as the reader of the letter owns.

A real estate dealer, whose specialty is farms, has this telling sentence in
his original letter: "Somewhere there is a man who will buy your farm at a
good price; I should like to find that man for you."

There is hardly a product or a proposition that does not offer opportunity
to put some scheme behind the letter. And such a plan doubles the appeal of
the original sales letter. But once more, remember, not to put all your
ammunition into the first letter. Be prepared to come back in your second
and third letters, not simply with varied repetitions, but with more reasons
for buying. Make your first letter as strong as you can, but at the same time
—pave the way.

The Letter That Will BRING an Inquiry

PART V—WRITING THE SALES LETTER—CHAPTER 17

Comparatively few propositions can be sold in the first letter; in most
campaigns it is enough to stimulate a man's interest and get him to reply.
This chapter gives specific schemes that have proved successful in pulling
answers—in making an opening for the heavy artillery of the follow-up

*****

Think what a problem you would have if you started out as a salesman to
sell a certain article with no definite idea of where to find your prospects.
You might interview a hundred men before you found one who was
interested. That would be pretty slow and pretty expensive selling, wouldn't
it?

And think what it would mean if you were to send out broadcast a
thousand expensive booklets and follow-up letters only to receive one reply
from the one man with whom you effected a point of contact. That, too,
would be a prohibitively costly method of selling.

Yet one or both these methods would in many cases be necessary were it
not for the inquiry-bringing letter. The inquiry letter is a "feeler"—the
advance agent of the selling campaign. It goes broadcast to find and put its
finger on the man who is interested or who can be interested, and his reply
labels him as the man whom it is worth while for your salesman to see, or,
who is at least worth the expense and endeavor of a follow-up series.

The inquiry letter is like the advertisement which asks you to send for a
catalogue or booklet. The advertisement writer believes that if you are
interested enough to write for the booklet, you will be interested enough to
read his sales letters, and possibly become a purchaser. It is the same with
the inquiry-bringing letter. It is simply a sieve for sifting out the likely
prospects from the great mass of persons, who for many reasons cannot be
brought around into a buying mood concerning your proposition.

The great advantage of the letter which induces the recipient to express
his interest in an inquiry, is that you not only make him put himself
unconsciously under an obligation to read further details, but you give time
for the thoughts that you have started to get in their work.

The fact that a man has decided to ask for more information and has put
that decision in writing is of considerable psychological value.

The one thing the salesman hopes to find, and the one thing the letter
writer strives to create, is a receptive mood on the part of his prospect. The
moment a man answers the inquiry-letter, he has put himself into a frame of
mind where he waits for and welcomes your subsequent sales talk.

He looks forward with some interest to your second letter. At first there
was just one person to the discussion. Now there are two.

In this respect the letter is like the magazine advertisement. Give all the
details of a $500 piano in an advertisement of ordinary size, quoting the
price at the close, and it is extremely unlikely to bring the reader to the
point of deciding that he will buy the piano. It is better to deal with some
point of interest about the piano and offer a fine piano book free.

And right here it is worthy of mention that interesting books with such
titles as "How to Select a Piano," "How to Make Money in Real Estate,"
"Bank Stocks as an Investment," or "The Way to Have a Beautiful
Complexion," make letters as well as advertisements draw inquiries of a
good class.

In other words, offer an inducement, give your man a reason for
answering.

When you have written a letter calculated to draw inquiries, put yourself
in the position of the man who is to get it and read it through from his
standpoint. Ask yourself whether you would answer it if you received it.
Test it for a reason, an inducement, and see if it has the pulling power you
want it to have.

If you are offering a book, for example, impress the reader with the real
value of the book, magnify its desirability in his mind. A paper company
does this admirably when it writes:

"The new Condax specimen book is a beautiful thing—not a mere book
of paper samples, understand, but a collection of art masterpieces and hand-
lettered designs, printed with rare taste on the various kinds of Condax
papers. Many have told us it is the finest example of printing they have ever
seen come from the press.

"We feel sure you would treasure the book just for its artistic merits, but
we are not sending you one now because there is such a tremendous
demand for it that we do not like to chance having a single copy go astray
and we want yours to reach you personally. We are holding it for you and
the enclosed card will bring it, carefully wrapped, by return mail."

*****

Of course such a book must be designed to do the proper work when it
gets into the hands of the reader.

It is a mistake to tell a great deal in the inquiry-bringing letter, unless you
can reasonably hope to close a sale. A man will act on impulse in ordering a
dollar article, but he isn't likely to be impulsive about an insurance policy. If
you give him the entire canvass on an insurance policy at the first shot, it
will have to be of extraordinary interest and convincing power to close the
sale. The subject is new. The prospect has not had a chance to think over the
facts. He is suspicious of your power; afraid of hastiness on his own part.
He is likely to give himself the canvass and decide "No," before giving you
any further chance.

Appeal to curiosity. Arouse interest and leave it unsatisfied.

Remember that your inquiry letter is a definite part of your campaign.
Therefore it must be consistent with what is to follow and must pave the
way naturally for it. Seek replies only from those who can use and can
afford to buy the article you have to sell.

A maker of a specialty machine got out an inquiry letter along this line:

"If you are tired of a salaried job, if you want to get into a big-paying,
independent business of your own. I have a proposition that will interest

you."

*****

Of course he got a big percentage of replies, for what man does not want
a big-paying, independent business of his own? But when in his follow-up
letter he stated his proposition, offering state rights to his machine for
$5,000, he shot over the heads of 99 per cent of the men who had answered
his first letter. His inquiry letter had completely failed of its purpose. It was
not selective, it was general.

Dear Sir:

I should like to have you consider buying the enclosed series of talks on
advertising for use in your paper.

I am an expert advertising man and I have spent a great deal of time and
energy on these talks. I know that they will produce results that will be very
satisfactory to you for they are based on the real experience of an expert.

The price of these talks—that is, the right to use the talks and illustrations
in your city—is $15, which you must admit is dirt cheap, considering the
quality of the matter.

All the progressive publishers are jumping at the chance to get these talks
at the low price I am quoting them.

If you do not accept my offer, one of your competitors will certainly do
so, and you will lose prestige.

Hoping to hear from you at once and promising careful attention to your
valued favors, I am

Truly yours,
[Signature: G. L. Lawrence]

*****

This letter has an unfortunate beginning. The writer starts by considering
his own interests rather than those of the publisher. It is not tactful to begin
with "I want-to-sell-you-something" talk. The second paragraph is merely
an egotistic statement. No facts are furnished to impress the publisher. In
the third paragraph price is introduced before desire is created. The fourth
paragraph is a palpable boast that will not be believed and an insinuation
that the publisher addressed may not be progressive. The suggestion about
the competitor is likely to arouse antagonism. The close is hackneyed and
the entire letter is rather an advertisement of the writer's inability rather
than of his ability

*****

Do not deceive. Nothing is gained by deception in a high grade venture.
Your offer to give away a first-class lot in a first-class suburban real estate
campaign will make a good class of readers suspicious of you. And though
you may get many inquiries from those who are looking for something for
nothing, the chances are that the inquiries will be of a very poor quality.
Better get two per cent of first-class prospects than ten per cent that will
only waste your time. You must not forget that it costs money to solicit
people either by mail or by salesmen.

HOW TO INCREASE YOUR ADVERTISING RECEIPTS

[Sidenote: Heading and first sentence introduce a subject of vital interest to
publishers.]

What would it be worth to you to have a dozen more local advertisers
buying your space regularly?

[Sidenote: Facts and arguments which show that the writer knows
conditions.]

How much money would it mean to have in the paper regularly just a few
of those who advertise poorly and spasmodically for a short time, then drop
out and whine that "advertising doesn't pay?"

[Sidenote: As he has had such wide experience he understands the
situation and his words carry conviction—touch a tender spot with every
publisher.]

I know your problems. I have had soliciting experience as well as broad
copywriting experience. I served three years on the advertising staff of THE
BALTIMORE NEWS—the paper for which Mr. Munsey recently paid
$1,500,000. I know how hard it is to get a certain class of local advertisers
started. I know how hard it is to keep them going after they once start. Of
course YOU know why some advertisers come in the paper but won't stay.
They can't see where their money comes back, AND THE PLAIN TRUTH
IS THAT OFTEN IT DOESN'T COME BACK simply because these
advertisers don't advertise intelligently.

Your solicitors are not all skillful copywriters. Soliciting ability and
copy-writing ability rarely go together. Even if your solicitors were all good
copy-writers, they wouldn't have time to study each advertiser's proposition
exhaustively.

But if you expect to keep your advertising receipts up to the high-water
mark, you can't always do ALL SOLICITING and NO HELPING. You

must assist the advertiser to get the full value of the money he spends with
you. How? This letter answers the question.

[Sidenote: Clear and logical.]

Read the attached SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL ADVERTISING. They
are short, but they are interesting and they are practical. Note the plain
examples of the good and the bad. These talks will encourage advertisers to
begin and will help those who come in to get the worth of their money. If
you sent all of your customers and prospective customers a book on
Advertising—even if a suitable one were available—it might insult some.
Perhaps only a few would read it thoroughly. Besides, it would probably
cost you a hundred dollars.

These short talks can be used on days when you are not pushed for space.
You can see that they look readable. They can be read in a minute or two.
The cost is insignificant, considering the results that are sure to come from
this campaign of education. Suppose only two or three new patrons came in
as the result; you would get back your little investment over and over. Who
will educate your customers and prospective customers if you don't?

[Sidenote: An effective, confident close that commands respect and
consideration.]

I do not urge you. Just read the articles. I know what you, as a
progressive publisher, will think of them. Let me hear from you as soon as
convenient, for if you do not want the service, I shall want to offer it
elsewhere. You are the only publisher in your city to whom I am now
offering the service. I enclose stamp for the return of the sheets in the event
that you do not keep them.

Yours for more and better advertising.
[Signature: M. B. Andrews]

*****

The question of how to open your inquiry letter is a big one. Good
beginnings are as varied as the proposition which the letter presents.

The straight question usually commands attention. "Do you get the best
price for your goods?" "Are you securing all the advertising patronage to
which you are entitled?" "Couldn't you use an extra pair of good trousers?"
"Do you collect 98 per cent of your accounts?" Openings of this kind rivet
attention.

With some letter-writers, the direct command style of opening is popular:
"Get more advertising. How? This letter answers the question." "Wear
tailor-made clothes at the price of ready-made." "Make your money earn
you six per cent." If these openings are chosen with the care that the
advertising man uses in selecting headings for advertisements, attention will
be secured.

Gentlemen:

Your easiest profits are those you make by saving expense.

There is one way you can save rent; save wages; save damage to samples
and still sell more goods.

Install a Patent Extension Display Rack in any department you like—
picture, linen, notions, sporting goods, etc., and you will add 30 square feet
of display for every foot you use. You will enable one salesman to do the
work of two. You will save the time your salesmen now spend in getting out

goods and putting them away. You will prevent the samples from becoming
soiled.

Don't take the trouble to write us a letter, just pencil on the foot of this
the name of the manager of the department you would like to begin with,
and we will explain all about these display racks to him.

Yours very truly,
[Signature: Smith and Deene]

P.S. Marshall Field & Co., of Chicago, bought the first Extension Display
Rack we sold and they have been buying ever since. Their last order just
received amounts to nearly a thousand dollars. Can you afford not to
investigate?

*****

The reference to easy profits at once interests every business man and the
method of saving rent, saving wages and increasing sales is certain to be
investigated. The third paragraph presents good argument—short and to
the point. The letter is extremely easy to answer—just a few words with a
pencil and that is all. Proof of the merit of the article in its satisfactory use
by a large wholesale house is cleverly brought out in the postscript

*****

Another good way to win the interest of the prospect is to offer to help
him in his buying in some specific way. A firm selling diamonds by mail,
for instance, does it in this fashion:

"Unless you are an experienced judge of precious stones, it is almost
impossible to buy a diamond at random and be certain of getting value for

your money. But you need not take chances. Our best expert has written a
booklet telling just how to determine diamond value, how to detect flaws,
and explaining the choicest cuttings. Whether or not you buy of us, this
little book will be of inestimable value to you in buying stones. We will be
glad to send you a copy for the asking."

*****

Still other writers follow the declarative form of opening. "Allison
Preferred has advanced to 106 in a week." "Yesterday we sold for $10,000
cash a property that was put in our hands only Tuesday." But inasmuch as
the declarative form lacks a little of the inherent interest of the question or
the command, it should deal with some point of particular "interest value"
to the class addressed.

Style and interest value are just as important in the letter that is to draw
an inquiry as in the letter designed to make a sale. Some think that just
because a letter is fairly certain to reach a man if properly addressed, it is
easy to get a reply. Far from it. Unless there is a good reason for a man
answering a letter, he isn't going to do it.

Suppose that a furniture dealer, on receiving a new stock of furniture,
writes a letter like this to a list of several hundred women:

"Our fall stock of furniture arrived on Saturday and is now on exhibition
on our third floor. The showing is unsurpassed. Here you will find
something to suit you, whether you wish oak, mahogany, walnut or birch.
We invite you to pay us a call."

*****

Some who would probably have come anyway may come in response to
such a letter or may write for special information. But a letter of this kind is
sure to bring results:

Dear Mrs. Brown:

I remember that when you purchased the mahogany bed last March you
expressed a desire to buy a dresser that would match. In the new lot of
furniture that we put on our floors only yesterday are several dressers that
would match your piece perfectly. Come in and see them. I should like you
to see also the dressing tables and chairs that match your dresser, even if
you are not ready just now to get an entire set.

*****

The first letter has little point to it. The second has personality and
interest, and if signed by the salesman that sold the first piece of mahogany,
is certain to bring the customer in if anything would.

A strong method of closing letters of this sort is to have final paragraphs
of this style: "May we tell you more? This won't put you under the least
obligation. If we can't show you that it is to your interest to take up this
matter, it is our fault—not yours. Mail the card now and let us put all the
facts before you."

A post card or a postal card should be enclosed in all inquiry- bringing
letters. The request for further details should be printed, so that the prospect
has only to sign his name and mail the card. In other words, make it easy
for the prospect to answer. Another thing, don't print anything on the card
that will make it appear that the prospect is committing himself. Paragraphs
of this sort have proved effective: "Without committing myself, I give you

permission to furnish me full information about the subject mentioned in
your letter."

The card method is particularly good if the inquiry is to be followed up
by a solicitor, for the card may be sent conveniently to the solicitor who
will take it with him when he calls. It sometimes pays to have all the
inquiries from a territory sent on cards addressed to a certain solicitor,
though the inquirer may think at the time of inquiring that the one whose
name appears on the card merely is the correspondent that wrote the letter.
The advantage is that a prospect who sends in a card addressed to "Mr. H.
E. Carrington, care of the Smith Publishing Company," has seen Mr.
Carrington's name. When Mr. Carrington calls, the inquirer is sometimes
flattered to think that the gentleman has been sent from the home office. As
he has written a card to Mr. Carrington, he cannot with good grace deny an
interview.

The man who writes and offers to do something without putting the least
obligation on the inquirer who accepts the offer is hard to turn down. A
writer of advertisements, after a courteous criticism on advertisements that
he doesn't like, closes in this way: "I think I can show that it is to your
interest to use some copy of my construction. If I can't, certainly it won't be
your fault. May I show you what I think is a more profitable way of
advertising these goods? If when you see my copy you are not more than
satisfied to pay my bill, there won't be any ill-feeling on my part. The
decision will rest with you."

*****

THE INQUIRY BRINGING LETTER

WHAT IT MUST DO STIMULATE INTEREST AWAKE DESIRE FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION GIVE REASON FOR ANSWERING MAKE INDUCEMENT FOR
ANSWERING PAVE WAY FOR FOLLOW UP CALL FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION

WHAT IT MUST NOT DO AROUSE IDLE CURIOSITY CREATE EXAGGERATED IDEAS
GIVE FULL PARTICULARS MISREPRESENT PROPOSITION WASTE ARGUMENTS
CLOSE WAY FOR FURTHER LETTERS

*****

A townsite company, selling town lots by mail, uses a device that gets
replies when ordinary requests would be disregarded. As the close of a
three-page form letter this paragraph is used:

"We enclose letter that the railway company wrote us. Please return it in
the enclosed stamped envelope, and tell us what you think of our plan."

*****

The next sheet following is a facsimile letter from a prominent railway
official commending the plan, so making it easy for the prospect to add a
few words of commendation.

This is a clever scheme to coax a reply out of the prospect—and it is
certain that he carefully reads the letter from the railroad company before
he returns it. No matter what the nature of his letter it gives an opportunity
for a personal reply.

A clothing manufacturer has an effective method of drawing out a fresh
inquiry or indication of interest from his mailing list by inquiring what
satisfaction the reader got out of the last suit ordered, asking a criticism of
service if the buyer has any to make, saying that anything that was wrong
will be made right.

Writers of investment letters have found that it pays to emphasize the fact
that only a small lot of stock is available. If the letter leads the prospect to

believe that barrels of the stock will be sold, the effect will be prejudicial.
The "limited quantity" idea is effective in selling other things.

An investment letter that brought good results where the signer of the
letter knew all those to whom the letter was sent made the statement that
four or five shares of stock had been put aside for the prospect. Practically
no more information was given in the letter, but full information was
offered on receipt of request. The request gave opportunity for the salesman
to call. This "putting aside" idea may be applied to clothing and other
commodities. Its efficiency lies in the fact that it gives a definite point to the
letter.

In the letter that angles for an inquiry, do not tell too much. Whet the
appetite and arouse the curiosity. Make them hungry to learn all about it,
make them come back like Oliver Twist and ask for more. But it is fatal to
paint a proposition in such brilliant colors that there is a chance for
disappointment when the prospect gets his additional information. Nor
should an offer of a free booklet or free samples be made so alluring that
the letter will be answered out of idle curiosity when the recipient is really
not a prospect at all.

Schemes without number can be devised to get a reply and only enough
should be put in such a letter to stimulate a reply, saving up the real
arguments and the big talking points for the letter that aims on getting the
actual order.

How To Close Sales By
LETTER

PART V—WRITING THE SALES LETTER—CHAPTER 18

Suppose that your most obstinate "prospect"—a man in the next block on
whom your cleverest salesman had used every tactic and had been
rewarded only by polite turn-downs until he had lost hope— should call up
some afternoon and ask you to send over a salesman. Would you despatch
the office boy? Or would you send your star salesman? Yet if that prospect
lived a hundred miles away and sent in a letter of inquiry, one out of two
firms would entrust the reply to a second or third-rate correspondent—
entirely forgetful that an inquiry is merely a clue to a sale, and not a result
in itself. This chapter shows how to GET THE ORDER by letter

*****

The man who inquires about your goods isn't "sold" by a long ways. He
is simply giving you an opportunity to sell him. Inquiries aren't results,
they're simply clues to possible sales, and if you are going to follow those
clues up and make sales out of them, you need the best men you can find
and the best letters those men can turn out to do it. Inquiries of good quality
are costly, frequently several times as costly as the advertiser figures in
advance that he can afford to pay. Yet, strange to say, many advertisers will
employ $50 or $100-a-week ability to write advertisements that will
produce inquiries and then expect $10 or $15 men to turn them into sales.
As a matter of fact nine times out of ten the hardest part of the transaction is
to close the sale.

An inquiry is merely an expression of interest. The reader of the
advertisement says, in effect, "All right, I'm impressed. Go ahead and show
me." Or, if he hasn't written in reply to an advertisement, he sends an
inquiry and invites the manufacturer or dealer to tell what he has. To get the
highest possible proportion of sales from each hundred inquiries, requires
that the correspondent be as skillful in his written salesmanship as the

successful man behind the counter is with his oral canvass and his showing
of the goods.

If the truth were known, it is lack of appreciation of this point that
discourages most concerns trying to sell by mail, and it is the real secret of
a large percentage of failures.

A clock manufacturer notified the advertising manager of one of the big
magazines that he had decided to discontinue his advertising. "The inquiries
we get from your magazine," he wrote, "don't pan out." The advertising
manager thought he saw the reason why and he made a trip down to the
factory to investigate. Reports showed that in two months his magazine had
pulled over 400 inquiries, yet out of that number just seven prospects had
been sold.

"Will you let me see your follow-up letters?" he asked. They were
brought out, and the advertising manager almost wept when he read them.
Awkward, hackneyed, blundering notes of acknowledgment, they lacked
even the merest suggestion of salesmanship. They would kill rather than
nourish the interest of the average prospect. He sent the set of letters up to
the service bureau of his magazine and a new series of strong convincing
letters, such as the clock deserved, were prepared.

On the strength of these he got the advertiser back in and the next month
out of 189 inquiries, forty-six clocks were sold. Think of the actual loss that
manufacturer suffered simply because he did not really appreciate that
inquiries aren't sales!

Get this firmly in mind and then get the proper attitude toward the
inquirer. There is a big difference between the original sales letter and the
answer to the inquiry. You haven't got to win his interest now. You've got
that. But you have got to hold it and develop it to the buying point. Your

man has asked you something; has given you the chance to state your case.
Now state it in the most complete, convincing way you know how.

Dear Sir:

We are pleased to receive your request for "Wilson's Accounting
Methods," and a copy goes forward by today's mail. Do not fail to notify us
if it fails to reach you within a day of the receipt of this letter.

Your attention is particularly called to the descriptive matter on pages 3
to 9, inclusive. We are confident that among the forty stock record forms
there illustrated and described you will find a number that will save time
and labor in your office. You will see that our stock forms are carried in two
sizes—3 by 6-1/4 inches and 5 by 8 inches, the smaller size being furnished
at $2 a thousand and the larger size at $2.50 a thousand, assorted as you
desire.

Should you desire special forms to meet your individual requirements,
we can furnish them to order, printed from your copy, on one side of linen-
bond stock—your choice of five colors—at $3.50 a thousand.

On pages 116 to 139 you will find complete descriptions and order
blanks of our special introductory outfits, ranging in price from $1 to $22.

We make these attractive offers to enable our customers to select outfits
that can be installed at a very small cost, and we ship any of our stock
outfits with the distinct understanding that if they are not entirely
satisfactory they may be returned to us at our expense.

Under the liberal conditions we make, you incur no risk in placing an
order, and we trust that we may be favored with one from you right away.

By purchasing direct from us—the manufacturers—you eliminate all
middleman's profits and are sure to get proper service.

Let us hear from you.

Very truly yours,
[Signature: Anderson & Anderson]

*****

A letter that sums up well the principal features of the goods described in
detail in the catalogue and the strong points of the manufacturer's plan of
selling. The letter is closely linked with the catalogue. Such a letter as this
is a strong support to the catalogue

*****

A good way to get at this is to put yourself once more in the other man's
place. What do you like to get when you answer an advertisement? And how
do you like to get it? First of all you like a prompt answer.

"I have had some experiences lately," says one business man, "that have
made me feel that promptness and careful attention to all of a
correspondent's requests are fully as important as the literary part of
business correspondence. I am interested in an enterprise in which material
of various kinds will be used—sample jars, mailing cases, and so forth. I
have been writing to manufacturers in the effort to get samples and prices.

"In several cases it really seemed to me as if the manufacturer was trying
to test my patience by waiting from three days to a week before answering
my letter. Several of them forgot to send the samples they referred to in
their letters. In other cases the matter of samples was overlooked for a few
days after the letter was written or the samples were ordered forwarded

from a distant factory without any explanation to me that the samples would
be a few days late in arriving. In still other instances references were made
to prices and sizes that were not clear, thus necessitating another letter and a
further delay of a week or ten days.

"As I had to have all the material before I could proceed with any of it,
one man's delay tied up the whole job.

"Really when one has a chance to see the dowdy, indifferent way in
which a great many business concerns take care of inquiries and prospective
customers, the wonder is that there are so many successes and not more
failures.

"How refreshing it is to get a reply by return mail from an enterprising
man who is careful to label every sample and to give you all the necessary
information in complete form and to write in such a way as to make you
feel you are going to get prompt, careful service if your order is placed with
him. It is a pleasure to send business his way, and we do it, too, whenever
we can."

It is easy enough to look out for these things when a regular method is
adopted. With a catalogue before him, the correspondent should dictate a
memorandum, showing what samples or enclosures are to be sent and how
each is to be marked. By referring to the memorandum, as he dictates, the
references will be clear.

Cherish both carefulness and promptness. You don't know what you
sometimes lose by being a day late. An inquirer often writes to several
different concerns. Some other correspondent replies by return mail, and the
order may be closed before your belated letter gets in its work, particularly
if the inquirer is in a hurry—as inquirers sometimes are. You may never
learn why you lost the order.

When you cannot give full attention to the request immediately, at least
write the inquirer and tell how you will reply fully in a day or so or
whenever you can. If you can truthfully say so, tell him that you have just
what he wants and ask him to wait to get your full information before
placing his order. In this way you may hold the matter open.

Dear Sir:

Replying to your esteemed favor of recent date would say that we have
noted your request for a sample of Royal Mixture and that same has been
forwarded.

This tobacco is absolutely without question the finest smoking tobacco
on the market today. This statement will be substantiated by tens of
thousands of smokers.

We hope to receive your valued order at an early date and remain

Truly yours,
[Signature: Brown & Co.]

*****

The first paragraph of this letter is so hackneyed that it takes away all
personality, and there is nothing in the second paragraph to build up a
picture in the reader's mind of an enjoyable tobacco

*****

Now as to the style and contents of your letter, here's one thing that goes
a long way. Be cheerful. Start your letter by acknowledging his inquiry as
though you were glad to get it. "Yours of the 15th received and contents

noted," doesn't mean anything. But how about this: "I was glad to find on
my desk this morning your letter of the 15th inquiring about the new model
Marlin." There's a personal touch and good will in that. A correspondence
school answers a prospective student's inquiry like this: "I really believe
that your letter of the 6th, which came to me this morning, will prove to be
the most important letter that you ever wrote." An opening such as this
clinches the man's interest again and carries him straight through to the end.
Don't miss an opportunity to score on the start.

Dear Sir:

Your order for a sample pouch of Royal Mixture is greatly appreciated.
The tobacco was mailed to-day.

To appreciate the difference between Royal Mixture and the "others," just
put a little of it on a sheet of white paper by the side of a pinch from a
package of any other smoking tobacco manufactured. You won't need a
microscope to see the difference in quality. Smoke a pipeful and you will
quickly notice how different in mellowness, richness and natural flavor
Royal Mixture is from the store-bought kind.

If you are not enthusiastic over its excellence I shall feel greatly
disappointed. So many discriminating pipe smokers in all sections are
praising it that it makes me believe that in "The Aristocrat of Smoking
Tobacco" I have produced an article that is in fact the best tobacco money
can buy.

Royal Mixture is all pure tobacco, and the cleanest, best-cured and finest
leaf that the famous Piedmont section of North Carolina can produce. The
quality is there, and will be kept as long as it is offered for sale. Depend
upon that.

The more you smoke Royal Mixture the better you'll like it. This is not
true of the fancy-named mixtures which owe their short-lived popularity to
pretty labels, fancy tin boxes and doctored flavors. I give you quality in the
tobacco instead of making you pay for a gold label and tin box.

The only way to get it is by ordering from me. Royal Mixture goes right
from factory to your pipe—you get it direct, and know you are getting it
just right, moist and fresh.

Right now, TO-DAY, is the time to order. A supply of Royal Mixture
costs so little and means so much in pipe satisfaction that every hour of
delay is a loss to you. It's too good to do without. Money refunded promptly
if you are not satisfied!

If it is not asking too much of you, I would like to hear within a day or
two just how the tobacco suits you. Will you not write me about it? Be
critical, as I desire your candid opinion.

Respectfully yours,
[Signature: Wallace E. Lee]

*****

The letter is here rewritten, making it interesting from the first line to the
last. It makes one feel that Royal Mixture is something unusually good

*****

Second, be sure you answer the inquiry—every point in it. You know
how provoked you are when you ask a question and the correspondent in
replying fails to answer. Be sure you answer all the questions of the
inquiries you handle. Give letters a final reading, to be sure. It is often
advisable to quote the inquirer's questions or to use side-heads so he will
understand you refer to the questions he asked.

For example, suppose a real estate agent receives an inquiry about a
farm. The inquiry can be clearly answered by adopting a style like this:

We are very glad to give you details about the Abbott farm in
Prescott County.

LOCATION.—This farm is on the macadam road between Frederick and
Whittsville, three miles from Frederick. There is a flag station on the D. &
L. railroad one and a quarter miles from the farm gate on the macadam
road.

TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES.—There are six trains a day on the D.
& L. road that will stop at the flag station mentioned. These trains give a
four-hour service to Baltimore.

*****

This style of letter is a great aid to the writer in bringing related points
together and thus strengthening description and argument.

If the inquiry involves the sending of a catalogue, hook the letter and the
enclosure together by specific references. It adds immensely to the
completeness of your letter. And don't be afraid to repeat. No matter what is
in the catalogue or booklet that is sent along with the letter, the letter should
review concisely some of the most important points. The average person
will pay closer attention to what is said in the letter than to what appears in
the catalogue. The letter looks more personal. For example:

On page 18 you will see described more fully the cedar chest that we
advertise in the magazines. Pages 20 to 28 describe higher-priced chests.
All these chests are of perfect workmanship and have the handsome dull
egg-shell finish. The higher-priced models have the copper bands and the
big-headed nails. Use the order blank that appears on page 32 of the
catalogue, and be sure to read the directions for ordering that appear on
page 30.

*****

These descriptions and references tie the letters strongly to the enclosures
and thus unify the entire canvass.

The woman who gets a letter telling her that the refrigerator she inquired
about is described and illustrated on page 40 of the catalogue sent under
separate cover, and then reads some quoted expressions from people in her
town or state who have bought these refrigerators, is more likely to order
than if a letter is sent, telling her merely that the catalogue has been mailed
under separate cover; that it gives a complete description but that any
special information will be given on request. The first method of replying

makes it appear that the correspondent is enthusiastic about his refrigerators
and really wants to sell the inquirer one. The second method is cold and
indifferent. If your goods permit the sending of samples by all means
enclose some with the letter. They permit the actual handling of the article,
which is so great an advantage in selling over the counter. And then insure
attention. No man, for example, will throw away a haberdasher's letter
referring to spring shirts if samples are enclosed. The samples will get some
attention, though the one who received them may not need shirts at the
time.

Samples also give an opportunity to emphasize value. For instance, it is a
good plan to say: "Take these samples of outings to your local store and see
if you can get anything at $25 that is half as good as what we are offering
you." The fact is, few people make such comparisons, but the invitation to
compare is evidence of the advertiser's confidence. For that matter, few
people ask for refund of money on honest merchandise, provided the refund
is limited to a brief period; but the promise of instant refund when
unsatisfactory goods are returned, is a great confidence-creator.

It is not always possible for one correspondent to handle the entire
inquiry. In that case it is well to let the answer indicate the care exercised in
preparing it.

A part of a letter may sometimes advantageously refer to some other
correspondent who can deal more thoroughly with a technical matter under
discussion. A large mail-order concern employs a man who can tell
customers in a tactful way just how to make coffee and tea, and he makes
satisfied customers out of many who otherwise would believe that they had
received inferior goods. This same man is also an expert in adjusting by
letter any troubles that may arise over the company's premium clocks, and
so forth.

Unless such technical matters are extensive enough to require a separate
letter, they can be introduced into other communications by merely saying:

"On reading what you have written about the engine, our expert has this
to say:"

*****

Dear Sir:

Your esteemed inquiry has been received, and we are sending you one of
our booklets.

In case none of the samples suit you, let us know what colors you like
and we will send more samples.

We can save you money on trousers. A great many of the best dressers of
New York and Chicago are wearing trousers made by us.

You run no risk in ordering, for if the trousers are not as I represent them
or do not fit you, we will correct the mistake or refund your money.

We urge you to order immediately, as we may not have in stock the
patterns you prefer.

Trusting to receive your order at an early date.

Truly yours.
[Signature: Edward Brown]

*****

This letter starts out with a hackneyed opening and not enough emphasis
is put on the samples. It is a mistake to make the suggestion that the
samples sent may be unsuitable. The third paragraph starts out with an
assertion unbacked by proof and the second sentence is a silly boast that no
one believes. A man does not pay his tailor the full price until the trousers
are completed. It is a weak selling plan to try to persuade a stranger to send
the entire price to an advertiser whom he knows nothing about. The plea for
an immediate order on the ground that the pattern may not be in stock later
is a weak and unfortunate method of argument. The final paragraph is as
hackneyed as the first, and fails to impress the reader

*****

Dear Sir:

Here you are! This mail will bring you a sample book containing some of
the neatest trousers patterns you have seen in a long time. Tear off a strand
from any of them and hold a match to it; if it doesn't "burn wool" the laugh
is on me.

You may wonder why I can undersell your local dealer and yet turn out
trousers that "make good." Certain conditions, of which I shall tell you,
make this possible.

In the first place, trousers are my specialty. Other tailors want suit orders
above all, but I have built up my business by specializing on trousers alone.

I buy my fabrics from the manufacturers in large quantities at wholesale
prices. The saving—the money that represents your retailer's profit—comes
to you.

I don't need an uptown "diamond-front" store, with an exorbitant rental.
Instead, I employ the best tailors I can find.

The trousers I make are built, not shaped, to fit you. We don't press them
into shape with a "goose," either. All our fabrics are shrunk before we cut
them at all. Sewn throughout with silk, the seams will not rip or give. And
style—why, you will be surprised to see that trousers could have so much
individuality.

I could not afford to sell just one pair of trousers to each man at these
prices. It costs me something to reach you—to get your first order. You will
order your second pair just as naturally as you would call for your favorite
cigar.

I am enclosing three samples of $6 London woolens. These have just
come in—too late to place in the sample book. Aren't they beauties?

Please don't forget that I guarantee to please you or to return your money
cheerfully. I ask for the $1 with order only to protect myself against triflers.

May I look for an early order?

Yours, for high-grade trousers.
[Signature: Chas R. Greene]

*****

An interesting beginning, inviting proof of quality. Facts show why low
prices can be quoted, followed by graphic description and logical
argument. The samples give point to the letter and the plain, fair selling
plan makes an effective ending

*****

Then again, make your letter clear. Good descriptions are just as
important in answers to inquiries as in letters that have the task of both
developing interest and closing a sale. All that has been said in previous
chapters as to the value of graphic descriptions and methods of writing
them applies with full force to this chapter. The letter that is a reply to an
inquiry can properly give more detailed and specialized description than a
letter that is not a reply to an inquiry, for in writing to one who has inquired
the correspondent knows that the reader of the letter is interested and will
give attention to details if they are given clearly and attractively. Generally
speaking, a sales letter that is in response to an inquiry should make it
unnecessary for the reader to ask a second time for information before
reaching a decision.

And this leads to one big important point: do your best to close the sale in
this first reply. Don't leave loop holes and uncertainties that encourage
further correspondence. Give your letter an air of finality. Lay down a
definite buying proposition and then make it easy for your man to accept it.

*****

WHAT WILL MAKE REPLY EFFECTIVE

PROMPTNESS COMPLETENESS ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS GIVE FULL DETAILS
CLEARNESS MAKE FURTHER LETTERS UNNECESSARY LABEL SAMPLES PLAINLY
DEFINITE PROPOSITION GUARANTEE OF SATISFACTION MAKE ORDERING EASY
INDUCEMENT FOR QUICK ACTION

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Guarantees, definite proposals, suggestions to use "the enclosed order
blank," are important factors in effective closing paragraphs. Don't put too
much stress on the fact that you want to give more information. Many
correspondents actually encourage the inquirer to write again and ask for