How to Format a Business Letter [+ 11 Free Templates]

A business letter is a written piece of formal business communication that is often templated. A business letter should follow a standard business letter format and include a header, recipient information, short greeting, concise body and formal closing. Common reasons to send a business letter include formal introductions, sales promotions, thank yous and more.

One of the best ways to manage your business letters is through a customer relationship management (CRM) tool like Freshsales. The CRM can populate business letter templates automatically with contact fields as well as account numbers and can help you keep track of when business letters were sent to customers, prospects or vendors. You can try out Freshsales for free today with their 30-day trial.

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Types of Business Letters

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Standard Business Letter Format

A standard business letter can be stylized to reinforce your company’s unique tone, color scheme or professional branding. However, it should always follow a basic business letter format, beginning with a heading that includes your contact information and specifies the intended recipient and a respectful closing that reiterates a call to action and invites continued conversation.

The standard business letter format includes the following elements:

Heading

The heading is the topmost section of a business letter and should include information such as your company name, your company’s address and logo. You should also list contact information in the header as well as include the date the letter is sent. If you do not already have you a professional logo, you can visit our article on Business Logo Design for our recommendations for best service providers.

Source: FitSmallBusiness

Recipient’s Address

The recipient’s information follows the header in a business letter. This section includes the recipient’s company name and address, followed by your contact’s name as well as anyone who should be included on the letter’s copy list. Be sure to include any relevant information such as a quotation number or customer account number that relates to the body of your business letter.

Source: FitSmallBusiness

Salutation

Open your business letter with a personalized greeting or salutation. If possible, avoid the phrases such as “Dear Sir/Madam” or “To whom it may concern.”

Toofr is an email finder and verification service that gives you the option to look up contacts by job title, company name or website domain. Toofr then searches through public information to find the first name, last name and email address of people matching your search parameters and can be a great tool for salespeople sending messages to new prospects.

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Body of the Letter

The body of your letter should be short and to the point, ideally less than a page, and detail the purpose of the communication. The body should use language relevant to the recipient’s role and industry. If you are asking the reader to take an action, be sure your request is clear with action words such as “call,” “download” or “schedule.” It is often a good idea to use bold text or bullet points to draw attention to specific information contained within the body of the letter.

The body of the letter will depend on the type of letter being sent, but should always be framed around a benefit to the reader. For example, the body of an introduction business letter should include information such as a business’ value proposition. The body of a letter inviting a recipient to a business event should include details related to the time and location and also explains what the recipient stands to gain by attending.

Source: FitSmallBusiness

Formal Closing

Include a respectful formal closing statement like “regards” or “warm wishes” and be aware of your audience. For example, when sending a letter to an international contact, consider how your words would be translated into another language. A closing remark may not have the same meaning in another country may not have the same meaning there as it does where you are located.

Signature

End your business letter with a signature. For this section, leave a space for a handwritten signature, but also include a printed name below it. Your signature should also include your professional title as well as the names of anyone else at the company the person receiving the letter can contact if they have any questions related to the letter’s contents.

Source: FitSmallBusiness

“When creating a business letter, it is important to consider the layout. No matter what type of layout you do choose, make sure it is consistent. You want to come across as professional, so consistency is key.” — Andrew Rawson, Chief Learning Officer, Traliant

Often, business letters are sent in bulk as part of a marketing campaign or general update. Freshsales works with Gmail, Google Docs and Zapier to help automate the sending of bulk business letters while also recording the date the document was sent. You can get started using Freshsales for free for 30-days to see how it can speed up your formal communications.

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11 Business Letter Templates for Any Situation

While every organization is different, there are several situations requiring formal communication that are common to almost all businesses. We have created several templates of business letters which you can download and adjust for your specific requirements and then send as a formal correspondence through standard mail or as less formal email.

1. Introduction Business Letter

The introduction letter is the copy letter you send along with either samples or marketing materials. If sent to a cold lead, this letter introduces you and your company’s goods or services. If sent to a warm lead, the purpose of the letter is to explain why you are sending the samples or marketing materials. In either case, the letter should explain why the materials have been sent and what you hope the recipient will do with them.

Introduction Business Letter Template

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2. The Sales Promotion Letter

The promotional invitation letter is what you sent to customers or potential customers inviting them to take advantage of an exclusive offer. The purpose of this letter is to encourage a sale. Therefore, this letter should contain either time-sensitive language that will entice a customer to take advantage of the offer quickly or should include a code that can be applied on a future order removing risk.

Sales Promotion Letter Template

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This template is designed around offering a deal to your best customers. However, it can also be adapted to incentivize new prospects into placing an order more quickly. Freshsales CRM gives you insights such as deal age or time taking to close deals that you can use to identify which deals are closing quickly and which deals are dragging. You can check out Freshsales’ reporting functionality for free for 30-days by signing up for a risk-free trial.

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3. The Business Event Invitation

The business event invitation letter is what is sent to customers, prospects, vendors or other contacts inviting them to participate in an upcoming event such as a supplier day, customer appreciation day or other events like a sponsored golf tournament. The purpose of this letter is to drum up excitement. As these events typically require scheduling considerations, it is best that they are sent out more between 30 to 60 days prior to the event.

Business Event Invitation Template

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4. Sales Proposal Cover Letter

The sales proposal cover letter is the cover page sent with a multipage sales proposal. This letter should be no more than a page in length and include sincere thanks for your proposal consideration. It also should refer a quote number or a prior conversation you have had regarding your pricing, goods or services or highlighting one or two of the potential benefits the recipient might expect to see within your proposal.

Sales Proposal Cover Letter Template

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Freshsales CRM gives you the ability to automatically set up follow-up events such as when a deal reaches a certain stage in your process. This automation can help to ensure you are following up with prospects in a timely fashion while helping you manage other deals that are in process. You can give Freshsales a try for free for 30-days by signing up for a free trial.

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5. Letter of Intent

The letter of intent is a formal letter used to inform another person of your acceptance of an offer or intention to do business with them in the future. These letters also serve as your acceptance of terms and conditions as well as confirmation of start and stop dates. The purpose of this letter is to inform vendors that a formal purchase is following, which gives them the incentive to start preparations for work sooner.

Letter of Intent Template

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6. Thank You Letter

The thank you letter is the formal letter sent to a prospect or customer following a business award or closed sale and paves the way for a future deal. This letter can also be used to remind a customer about the power of a positive review or give them a reason to become a vocal advocate for your company. This letter should be sent within a week of a successful completion of a deal in order to be most effective.

Thank You Letter Template

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Regularly review view awarded deals to identify the characteristics of your ideal customer. When you know the characteristics, it’s easy to identify similar prospects using a tool like Toofr. Toofr offers curated lists of contacts that have been segmented into categories like Startups in Palo Alto or Florida Home Builders and General Contractors. These lists can offer names of prospects and can be purchased for as little as $19.

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7. Apology Letter

The apology letter informs customers of service disruptions or is a response to a recent less-than-perfect customer service experience. In the case of service interruptions or events that could jeopardize a project’s schedule, it is a better idea to send a notification to affected customers in advance if possible so they have time to adjust their internal schedules accordingly, rather than hope for the best and wait until the last second.

Apology Letter Template

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8. Applicant Rejection Letter

This is the letter you send to applicants who have applied for an open position in your company but will not be invited to the next round of the interview process. This letter is typically sent via email rather than through regular mail in order to provide interested candidates with a quick a response out of respect for their time but can still be issued as a formal letter if an email is not an option.

Applicant Rejection Letter Template

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9. Proposal Rejection Letter

Proposal rejection letters, or no-bid letters, are sent from businesses to potential customers in response to request for proposals for opportunities that fail to offer sufficient margin potential, do not fit their core competencies or require unachievable schedules. These letters turning down immediate business but can help create trust and credibility, provided they include defendable reasoning, which can pave the way to a chance to bid on opportunities that are a better fit in the future.

Proposal Rejection Letter Template

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10. Change of Address or Company Name

The change of address letter is the letter you send when your office is moving to another physical location or if there are changes that can affect prompt receipt of deliveries or invoice payments. Address changes may affect incoming deliveries and billing cash flow. Therefore, it is a good idea to send it to customers and vendors a minimum of 30 days ahead of the change.

Change of Address or Company Name Template

Download this template in Google Docs, Docx or PDF file

11. Closing or Other Goodbye Letter

The closing letter or goodbye letter is the one you send to thank customers for their support prior to a company shutting its doors for good. This letter can be used to introduce your customers to another company in cases of a business sale or to invite customers to purchase goods or services one last time.

Closing or Other Goodbye Letter Template

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Tips for Creating Your Own Business Letters

The overall look and feel of your formal business letter should mirror the style and color scheme of your corporate branding strategy. Business letters should encourage conversation as well as a call to action. You should also assume your letter will always have more than one reader, so prepare accordingly.

Choose a Specific Layout and Style

The style and layout of your letter can affect your reader’s perception of your company. Therefore, you want to make its overall look and feel as professional in appearance as possible. Text needs to be written in a legible font that is easy to read, and the paper you choose should reflect your company’s values with regards to quality.

When creating your own business letters, consider the following:

• Text spacing: Text should be single-spaced using a legible, nondecorative font
• Margin: In order to avoid the appearance of cramping, the top and bottom page margins should be set between 1 inch and 1.25 inches
• Page layout: If possible, center the body of your business letter so that there is equal white space between the page header as well as the page footer
• Paper: Business letters should be printed on paper with a paperweight between 20 pounds and 32 pounds for formal communications

While you can print your formal business letters using an office printer, there are occasions, when you may wish to utilize a quality third-party service for your business’ printing needs. Vistaprint is a great option for businesses that need marketing materials, bound proposal or business cards printed up with an easy-to-use interface and digital proofs and quick turnaround.

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Encourage Conversation

The goal of any message should be to encourage additional conversation. By showing you want to build a relationship and not just conduct a quick sale, the client will be more likely to consider you as a trustworthy partner.

Ways to encourage conversation include:

• Ask open-ended questions: Avoid asking questions that can be answered with a quick yes or no as a more lengthy response can often provide you with details related to their pain points
• Match their style: If your clients are typically data-driven, use facts in your letters; if they are more relationship driven, be more personal in your tone
• Respect their time: Keep your messages short and to the point; you can always close it with an offer of a follow-up appointment or phone call to discuss further

Assume You Have More Than One Reader

While your business letter may be addressed to a single individual, there is a good chance your letter will be shared with at least one other person. Make sure you are using language that is in line with the values of your company and does not give away any secrets that can be seen as violating privacy agreements.

Describe How You Can Help Meet Their Needs

Always frame your benefits in terms of how your solution benefits the recipient. If your letter will be targeted to newer clients or leads higher up in your sales pipeline, such as an introduction letter, it is also a good idea to include mention of relevant customer testimonials or endorsements.

Include a Call to Action

The call to action is a statement designed to result in an action by the reader. The most effective calls to action are clear and direct instructions and typically start with a command verb like “Click,” “Download” or “Call” and give your readers a reason why they should take the action. Calls to action are also a great way to encourage additional conversation.

Bold text can also call attention to your request. The call to action, however, should never be inserted in a sales message before you have established your value. This is especially true in introduction emails.

The Bottom Line

Business letter templates can be built to support situations found within every stage of your sales process. They can help accelerate sales growth by allowing you to reduce the amount of time needed to draft common messages. If written correctly, templates can also help to ensure each message sent includes a call to action designed to move a lead along in the sales process.

You can manage your leads as well as your email templates in a single tool, depending on the CRM you choose. Freshsales is a CRM that quick-starts your business letters with its integrations with tools such as Google Docs and allows you to see exactly when an account has last been contacted. Start using Freshsales for free.

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