When we sit down to write something on business, we always want something.
For example, we want to sell a product — and we write a commercial offer. We want to get a job — and we write a letter to a potential employer, and attach a resume to the letter. We want the leaking roof to be fixed — and we write a statement to the Housing Office.
In other words, we are trying to convince the addressee to do something — that is, we take on a persuasive letter. At the same time, the addressee — the buyer, the employer and the housing office — does not necessarily want to be convinced. More often than not, he’s not eager to buy from us, hire us, or fix our roof. How to achieve yours?
Remember the Russian fairy tale «The Frog Princess»? In it, Ivan Tsarevich, foolishly burning his wife’s frog skin, sets off to rescue her (his wife, not the skin) from Koshchei’s clutches. On the way, Ivan meets a bear, a hare and a duck. From hunger, and from a lack of environmental education, Ivan Tsarevich strives to shoot them all. And in response he hears the famous phrase: “Do not kill me, Ivan Tsarevich, I will still come in handy for you.” This phrase is your letter in miniature. It has a goal — «do not kill», and arguments — «I will be useful to you.» And pay attention. Each of the animals most likely has a thousand reasons why they should not be eaten: they have a family, children, and in general they want to live … But the animals do not tell Ivan about this — because it is of little interest to him. They say that they will be useful to him. That is, they convince according to the scheme “Do it my way and you will get this and that.”
And how do we convince, for example, our customers?
Let’s say our company sells document management software products. These programs allow you to convert a client’s paper archive into electronic form and work with it on a computer without any problems. The thing is certainly useful — but customers do not yet scour the market in search of such programs. We need to offer them these programs. We sit down and issue something like this:
We offer you software products for electronic document management. These products allow you to scan documents, upload them to an electronic database, index and search by keywords, store a history of document modifications and, if necessary, print hard copies…
Do customers see that all this is useful to them? If they had, they would already be scouring for such programs. But if they don’t see it, how can they be convinced? Imagine how many documents are created and sent across the enterprise today. How many folders, folders, racks, cabinets, rooms! How many couriers, storekeepers, archivists! How long paper dust! How long fuss to find a piece of paper a year ago! What a headache if this piece of paper is suddenly lost! That’s where we can «useful», that’s what is worth writing about.
We offer you software products for electronic document management. These products allow the enterprise to get rid of the eternal headache associated with paper workflow. You no longer need to drag and drop bulky document folders, allocate space to store them, worry about your paper mountains before every fire inspection. No need to spend hours or even days looking for the right letter or memo…
Start with a problem or an opportunity
What else can be done, how else to conjure with the cherished words? Let’s take a closer look at our «Do it my way and you’ll get this and that» formula. The formula is dangerous! We say: “Do it my way,” and the reader replies “I don’t want to!”, Turns around and leaves. We write “We offer you software products”, and he thinks “I don’t need it”, and throws the letter away. All our arguments do not save us — they simply do not reach the point. How to be? Flip the formula! “Do you want this and that? Do it my way and you’ll get it!»
How could this be adapted to our sales of software products? Paper workflow is the headache of the modern enterprise. Bulky folders with documents, rows of shelves, a separate room for the archive. Constant paper dust, eternal claims of fire inspectors, checks… Finding any document is a problem, and losing a document is doubly a problem, because it cannot be restored. You can get rid of this headache — just switch to electronic document management. The entire archive will be placed on one disk array. Any document can be found in a few seconds. Automatic backup will protect you from losing documents… Now the buyer immediately sees what worries him in the letter and will read further with interest. So, the lesson of Russian fairy tales will help us to sell the goods.
However, this technique is suitable for any persuasive letters. Take, for example, a cover letter — the one with which we send a resume to a potential employer. And you can start it like this:
The vacancy for a banking product manager for Russian enterprises immediately attracted my attention! I currently work for a manufacturing company where I am responsible for finance and development. However, for more than 4 years I worked in a senior position in the banking sector …
But is it sure that the addressee will be interested? Can it be seen from here that “we will still be useful to him”? It is better to show more clearly at the beginning of the letter how the employer will benefit:
I propose to CJSC SuperInvest my candidacy for the position of manager of banking products for Russian enterprises. I am ready to offer the company my experience in the banking sector, knowledge of the financial needs of Russian enterprises and an extensive client base. I am sure that this will allow me to ensure a steady growth in corporate sales even in times of crisis for CJSC SuperInvest…
And here it turns out both more convincing and more attractive. And here the principle “Do you want this and that? Do it my way and you’ll get it!» works. It remains only to use it!