The Look of a Letter

from The Art of Self Promotion #18

Once a week, usually on a Sunday evening, I actually sit down and read the weeks mail. Thats the only time I have to focus my attention on it - and Im one of the more conscientious ones. Ive seen enough offices with piles of unopened mail to know that Im not the norm.

So keeping in mind that most people dont ever read much of their mail, know that in order to get your message across, you need to focus as much on the graphics of your letter as on the content. For example, if a letter isnt skimmable, if the paragraphs are too thick, the copy too dense, no matter what it says, it may not be read. In fact, you could be giving away money, and it wouldnt matter.

Veteran copywriter Don Hauptman offers these suggestions:

1. Dont use a dizzying variety of fonts, type sizes or graphics just because you can. When people open an envelope, they expect to see a letter, with its familiar conventions. The personal communication may be an illusion, but its one that most of us have come to expect.

2. Write short paragraphs. To avoid a gray wall of type that discourages reading, paragraphs shouldnt be more than seven lines. A visual and dramatic break can be provided by an occasional paragraph of one sentence, one line or even one word.

3. Use familiar attention devices.

Underscore key words and sentences with a continuous line.

Use bullets of any shape to set off an easy-to-read list of benefits or past clients.

Use subheads, set in a slightly larger type size, to break up the copy.

Use inset paragraphs, centered and blocked, to call attention to an important point.

4. Handwrite something. People used to be afraid that handwriting anything on a business letter would make it look unprofessional. Now, the opposite is true. Handwriting a P.S. or even the salutation on a generic letter lets your prospect know theres a human being behind the computer; its a sign of life that people desperately need in this era of pseudo-personalized everything.

5. Less is more. Dont write more than one page if you can help it. Dont send something that will be eligible for the To Read pile.

6. Always use a P.S. Its the first read (and the most read) element of a letter. Use it to either restate your main point, just in case your reader missed it, or to highlight a premium offer or major benefit.

About the Author

Ilise Benun is the publisher of the Web site for The Art of Self Promotion, a quarterly (print) newsletter of manageable marketing ideas, and the author of Self Promotion Online, an invaluable resource for anyone interested in learning effective strategies to promote oneself via the internet.
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