No matter what type of sales presentation you are doing, you need to grab and hold the attention of your potential buyers right from the start.  This is especially true when you are writing sales letters.  If you do not gain the attention of your buyer within the first few words, it is more than likely that your letter is going into the recycling pile.

There are several ways to make sure that your sales letters are noticed and read by your potential buyers.

What is your objective?

Even before beginning to write the letter, make an outline of what you hope to accomplish. You need to know what you want the sales letters to do before you begin.  Making a list of objectives and determine which of the objectives is most important. This will help you to write a letter that will help you to meet your goal.

Who are you writing to?

The best salutation is one that is personal. Sometimes the cost of personalization of sales letters can be prohibitive but it is usually worth it.  Sales letters that begin with a generic salutation will not grab the attention of the potential buyer the way a personalized letter will.  You can also consider using the professional salutation such as “Dear Professional Buyer” or whatever is most appropriate. 

Also, think about who the target of your sales letters is going to be.  Put yourself in the buyer’s shoes as you write the letter and read it back to yourself. Your goal is to let the reader know that you have something that can help them. Make sure your sales letters are target specific.

How to you get the attention of your buyer?

Your sales letters need to start out strong with a statement that will make your buyer want to continue to read.  A statement like “You are not going to believe this!” followed by a story or explanation of a situation that your buyer can relate to is more likely to keep someone reading.  If you are limited in space or situational sales letters are not appropriate, you can offer the buyer something right off the bat. “I want to give you a special gift just for reading this letter.”  Providing an incentive for follow up for the letter right away is a great way to keep your buyer engaged and keep them reading.

How do you keep them reading?

Everyone is busy these days and very few people are going to take the time to read a long winded letter. Use a conversational style in your sales letters and make sure to keep it simple.  Short paragraphs and information that can be easily skimmed will help to make sure your sales letters are read. Make sure there is good, open spacing for easy reading.  Also consider using pictures and other attention grabbers.

What do you want the reader to do?

This is the goal of the letter. You need to be specific about what action you want the reader to take. Tell the buyer what the next step would be, how they need to do it and, most importantly, how taking that action will benefit them.  You want your reader to respond right away. If you give too many options or too long a window, you are not likely to hear from them.  Limited time offers will get a far greater response than something that has an indefinite time frame.

Sales letters can be a great way to introduce yourself, your product or keep your information in front of potential buyers.  You want your sales letters to be well thought out, specific to the needs of the buyer, attention getting and interesting. Writing good sales letters will help you to achieve greater sales success.