SKIPS

Persuasive Communication

Business Communication

Example 1: Persuasive Favor Request Dear Mr. Mansker Have you ever added a unique job title but had no idea what compensation the position demanded? Has your company ever lost a valued employee to another organization that offered 20 percent more in salary for the same position? To remain competitive in hiring and to retain qualified workers, companies rely on survey data showing current salaries. Ithaca Research Institute has been collecting business data for a quarter century and has been honored by the American Management Association for its accurate data. We need your help in collecting salary data for todays workers. Information from the enclosed questionnaire will supply companies like yours with such data. Your information, of course, will be treated confidentially. The questionnaire takes but a few moments to complete, and it can provide substantial dividends for professional organizations that need comparative salary data. To show our gratitude for your participation, we will send you comprehensive salary surveys for your industry and your metropolitan area. Not only will you find basic salaries, but you will also learn about bonus and incentive plans, special pay differentials, expense reimbursements, and perquisites such as a company car and credit card. Comparative salary data are impossible to provide without the support of professionals like you. Please complete the questionnaire and return it in the prepaid envelope before June 1, our spring deadline. Participating in this survey means that you will no longer be in the dark about how much your employees earn compared with others in your industry. Sincerely Michelle Moreno Director, Survey Research Enclosures Example 2 Claim Letter Mr. Jason M. Amato TEK Copier Solutions 13429 North 59th Avenue Glendale, AZ 85307 Dear Sir

I hate to write to you with a complaint, but my company purchased four of your Multifunction SX500 photocopiers, and weve had nothing but trouble ever since. Your salesperson, Gary Kazan, assured us that the Multifunction SX500 could easily handle our volume of 3,000 copies a day. This seemed strange since the sales brochure said that the Multifunction SX500 was meant for 500 copies a day. But we put our faith in Mr. Kazan. What a mistake! Our four SX copiers are down constantly, and we cant go on like this. Because they are still under warranty, they eventually get repaired. But we are losing considerable business in downtime. Because your Mr. Kazan has been less than helpful, I telephoned the district manager, Victor Martineau. I suggested that we trade in our Multifunction SX500 copiers (which we got for $2,500 each) on two Multifunction XX800 models (at $13,500 each). However, Mr. Martineau said he would have to charge 50 percent depreciation on our SX500 copiers. What a rip-off! I think that 20 percent depreciation is more reasonable since weve had the machines only three months. Mr. Martineau said he would get back to me, and I havent heard from him since. Now Im forced to write to your headquarters because I have no faith in either Ms. Kazan or Mr. Martineau, and I need to see some action on these machines. If you understood anything about business, you would see what a sweet deal Im offering you. Im willing to stick with your company and purchase your most expensive modelbut I cant take such a steep loss on the SX500 copiers. These copiers are relatively new; you should be able to sell them with no trouble. And think of all the money you will save by not having your repair technicians making constant trips to service our underpowered Multifunction SX500 copiers! Please let me hear from you immediately. Sincerely Example 3 Sales Letter Analysis Your Task. Study the letter and then answer these questions: a. What techniques capture the readers attention? b. Is the opening effective? Explain. c. What are the central selling points? d. Does the letter use rational, emotional, or a combination of appeals? Explain. e. What reader benefits are suggested? f. How does the letter build interest in the product or service? g. How is price handled? h. How does the letter anticipate reader resistance and offer counterarguments?

April 15, 2012 Mr. James Wehrley 1608 Montlieu Avenue High Point, NC 27262

Dear Mr. Wehrley You walk into the elevator and push the button for the top floor. The elevator glides upwards. You step back and relax. But the elevator never reaches the top. A glitch in the electronics prevents it from processing the information it needs to take you to your destination. Do you see a similarity between your growing company and this elevator? Youre aiming for the top, but a lack of information halts your progress. Now you can put your company into gear and propel it toward success with a new publication Small Business Monthly. This first-of-its-kind magazine brings you marketing tips, hard-headed business pointers, opportunities, and inspiration. This is the kind of current information you need today to be where you want to be tomorrow. One executive wrote: As president of a small manufacturing company, I read several top business publications, but I get my bread and butter from Small Business Monthly. Im not interested in a lot of pie in the sky and theory. I find practical problems and how to solve them in SBM. Mitchell M. Perry, Bowling Green, Ohio Mr. Perrys words are the best recommendation I can offer you to try SBM. In less time than you might spend on an average business lunch, you learn the latest in management, operations, finance, taxes, business law, compensation, and advertising. To evaluate Small Business Monthly without cost or obligation, let me send you a free issue. Just initial and return the enclosed card to start receiving a wealth of practical information that could keep your company traveling upward to its goal.

Cordially Cheryl Owings Vice President, Circulation P.S. Act before May 15 and Ill send you our valuable booklet, Managing for Success, revealing more than 100 secrets for helping small businesses grow.

Example 4 Persuasive Claim: Botched Print Job As president of Holiday Travel, you delivered a very complex print job to the Jiffy Printers in Brighton, New York. It took almost 15 minutes to explain the particulars of this job to the printer. When you left, you wondered whether all of the instructions would be followed precisely. You even brought in your own special paper, which added to the cost of printing. When you got the job back (a total of 1,500 sheets of paper) and returned to your office, you discovered a host of problems. One of the pages had 300 copies made on a cheap 20-pound paper. This means that the printer must have run out of your special paper and substituted something else for one of the runs. The printer also made copies of your original photos and graphics, so that all the final prints were run from second-generation prints, which reduced the quality of the graphics enormously. Whats more, many of the sheets were poorly or improperly cut. In short, the job was unacceptable.

Because you were desperate to complete the job, you allowed the print shop to repeat the job using its paper supply. When you inquired about the cost, the counter person Don was noncommittal. He said you would have to talk to the owner, who worked in the Rochester shop. The repeat print job turned out fairly well, and you paid the full price of $782. But you are unhappy and Don sensed that Jiffy Printers would not see Holiday Travel again as a customer. He encouraged you to write to the owner and ask for an adjustment.

Your Task. Write a claim letter to Mr. Howard Moscatelli, Jiffy Printers, 3402 South Main Street, Rochester, NY 14634. What is a reasonable claim to make? Do you simply want to register your unhappiness, or do you want a refund? Supply any needed information.