How many times have you sent out a letter telling people about a new product or service that your customers didn’t even notice? Or wish you’d never sent it because it caused a barrage of phone and email queries as a result? Dedicating care and attention to your written customer communications is often overlooked but can be an important step in keeping your customers interested in what you do. It can also have significant cost reduction implications by reducing the need for people to contact you.
- Keep the layout simple – less is more!
Keep it simple and stick to a one page. People don’t have time to read dense text and it can be overwhelming.
- Avoid the use of too many reference numbers and codes
Your customers have no idea what they mean and they could cause confusion. If necessary, put any internal references at the bottom of the page or overleaf so your customers can ignore them but they’re visible for auditing purposes.
- Make it customer friendly
Using capitals (especially for the salutation) can come across as ‘shouty’ and unfriendly and looks database generated and impersonal. Ambiguity and technical jargon can cause confusion and concern. Does your customer really need to know about ‘directional drilling techniques’?
- Get to the point
It’s amazing how repetitive many corporate communications are. Ask yourself, what is the most relevant information for the customer? Have I already said it?
- Use visual elements
Think about headings for your paragraphs use of colour or icons, so your reader can see at a glance what the letter is about and easily find the information that’s most important to them.
- Emphasise the benefits for the customer
If you want your customers to be on board with a project or react to your communications in a positive way, set out the benefits to them at the start of your letter. This way you set a positive tone for the rest of the communication and people will tend to be more cooperative.
- Include clear contact information
Don’t forget to make it easy for customers to get in touch or find out more. Provide a phone number, email address and webpage link that stands out. Showing a willingness to listen helps to make people feel more valued and can also be a great source of feedback for your company.