Letter tips

Here are some best practices to follow when communicating with your clients by mail.

Don’t generalise. Use ‘Dear Mr. Smith’ instead of ‘Dear client’
Respect individual preferences. Should you use first name (e.g. Mike) or last name (e.g. Mr Smith)? Or Miss/Mrs or Ms? Check with your client or your team to get this right.

Length - less is more - you should make reading the letter as painless as possible for the client. Too much information can be overwhelming and can cause important information to be missed.
Use special formatting (bold, spacing, headings, bullets) to highlight key sections or points - but use sparingly!
Use FreeAgent’s suggested messaging but adapt it to suit your tone of voice.
If you are directing clients to a website, make sure you include the full URL. If it’s a long one, you can use Bitly to shorten it to something easier for clients to type.
Special elements (fonts, images) - make sure you use a font that is easy to read. As for images, keep them simple and use sparingly - unless you have a fantastic printer!
Keep contact details clearly visible in the letter heading. If you’re asking the client to get in touch, you might want to repeat your phone number or email address in the body of the letter as well.
If you’re sending an individual letter, add a personal touch if possible. A reference to something you know your client cares about, e.g. Did they go on holiday? Did they have a child?

A handwritten signature at the bottom will add credibility to your letter
Use P.S. for important information or calls to action. When people scan letters, the content in the P.S. stands out.