As a matter of courtesy, if a customer has made a big order with your company, you should express your appreciation by sending them a thank you follow-up letter, in order to make them feel appreciated and more amenable to dealing with your company in the future. Letters are a more concrete expression of appreciation as opposed to a follow-up call, and are less intrusive as the client can read the letter during their free time.

The tone of the letter should be professional and cordial, but should also be concise and to the point, you don’t want to take up too much of the customer’s time. The main elements of this follow-up letter are a reminder of the order that the customer placed and your expression of gratitude for it. The letter can end with the writer expressing the hope that they would be able to continue serving the client in the future.

It should always be addressed to a specific individual even if the order was made by a company. If this is the case, then the letter could be addressed to the purchasing manager, for example, or one of the company’s senior managers. You may also mention a contact person and number, in case the client has any further concerns regarding their order.

Below is a sample of a basic follow-up letter thanking a customer that you can adapt for your specific need.

Sample Letter

July 23, 2010

Olivia Harrelson
President, Christos Foods
San Francisco, California

Maureen Summersberg
Purchasing Manager
The Mykonos Restaurant
San Francisco, California

Dear Ms. Summersberg,

Greetings!

As you know, our company, Cristos Foods, has been in existence for 25 years, offering customers the finest foods from Greece and the Mediterranean. We are suppliers of ingredients to some of the most acclaimed gourmet restaurants in the San Francisco Bay area.

On behalf of the company, we would like to express our appreciation for the six cases of olives and the ten crates of pita bread you purchased from us last July 21, 2010. By now, you should already have received your order. We hope it meets your needs and, if you have any further concerns, please feel free to contact us at 060-182-5254. We are also enclosing our latest catalog of products that may be of interest to you.

Thank you again and we hope to continue being of service to you in the future.

Respectfully yours,

Olivia Harrelson
President, Christos Foods

Follow-up letters to review decisions and assignments are used by the writer to set up appointments to appraise decisions that have been made in past meetings or to review the progress of certain tasks that have been given to employees. They also serve as a reminder of what has already been decided and what output the employee is expected to have already produced. Using this type of letter saves time and effort consumed by writing and sending out a single letter compared to calling every person who is expected to attend a meeting.

The most important element in these letters would be a recap of the assignment given or the decision that has been made and the time, date and venue of the follow-up meeting. If the participants are expected to prepare anything, such as documents or certain data, these should also be mentioned in the letter. The tone of the letter should be professional and straightforward, as its main purpose is informational.

Below is an example of a follow-up letter to review a decision or an assignment that can be adapted to the user’s particular needs.

Sample Letter

June 10, 2010

Linda McArthur
Head, Documentation Department
New Jersey Historical Society
New Jersey, New York

Joan Warren
362 4th St.
New Jersey, New York

Dear Ms. Warren,

Greetings!

This letter is to remind you of the assignment that was given to you last April xx, 20–. Although the date for final submission of output is on Sept. xx, 20–, I would like to schedule a meeting with you to discuss the progress of the assignment.

To reiterate, the task given to you was to examine and catalog the papers of the late Mrs. Smith, and to set aside documents relating to her work with the Aurora Society. These papers will be collected in a file and sent to our client. I would like to know how much of the assignment you have already accomplished and how much of the file you have already compiled. Please prepare the relevant information and bring it with you to the meeting.

I am scheduling the meeting for June 25, 2010, 2:00 pm at my office in the Main Annex. If you need any clarifications or have further concerns, please feel free to contact my secretary, Mrs. Jones, at 123-4567890.

Respectfully yours,

Linda McArthur
Head, Documentation Department
New Jersey Historical Society

Most companies usually request additional money or information before they can fill an order. The purpose of this request is to ensure that a buyer is really serious in purchasing your products. You can use this additional money for the improvement of your product and services.

On the other end, the information, normally personal, can be considered as a means of getting through to the customer. You can use this information to send the order, or as a means of contact in case something goes wrong while filling the order.

This request can be made by a company to its clients through a letter. This letter is one of the best ways to request for additional money and information. Here is a sample letter of request in which you can pattern your own.

Sample Letter

Incognito Digital Photography
789 North Stamford, Fairfield County
Connecticut 09602, USA
Incognito.photography@gmail.com

June 11, 2010

Greg Michaels
657 South Harpeth, Nashville
Tennessee, USA
37215

Dear Mr. Michaels:

You are requested by the company to pay for an additional fee of $20 so that we can fill your order. This is due to the new company policy which requires each of our clients to pay for an additional fee. This policy is implemented in order to make sure that you receive the best from our company. You are definitely going to experience the difference this additional fee can make once you have already received your processed and filled your order.

In addition to the fee, you are also requested to fill out this information sheet before we can fill your order. This is for the new system that the company has just recently operated on. This can further help our company to improve our products and services. We can also accommodate you better with the information you can provide in case you encounter any problem. We assure you that the information you give us is private and solely used for these purposes.

Telephone number:
Shipping address:
Ship-to name:
Credit card number:
Credit card expiration date:
Purchase order number:

We hope that you understand our new company policy and system. These measures are done to better serve you. We greatly salute you for your cooperation.

Sincerely,

Paul Rimes
Head of the Management

Being an officer in an organization can be stressful especially when you need to collect a membership fee or any other fees, duties or pledges. You cannot deny the fact that there are still those organization members who do forget to pay for their fees. There are also those organization members who are not even willing to pay for their share.

So, as much as you do not want the extra work, you still need to send reminders to your members of their scheduled dues. Usually, what organization officers do is send them a reminder through a letter.

Through this letter, you can remind your members who have forgotten that they have an obligation in your organization. To guide you on what to say to your members in your letter, here is a sample.

SAMPLE LETTER

Incognito Digital Photography
789 North Stamford, Fairfield County
Connecticut 09602, USA
123-456-7890
Incognito.photography@gmail.com

June 11, 2010

Michael McGregor
345 South Harpeth, Nashville
Tennessee, USA
37215

Dear Mr. McGregor:

The organization would like to remind you to pay for the fees for the upcoming photo shoot on Sunday, June 13, 2010. The fees included are the:

Membership fee $ 50
Organization t-shirt 10
T-shirt printing 10
Photo shoot studio 100
Total $170

These fees are needed for the success of our upcoming photo shoot. With these fees, you can be assured to have an excellent experience in this photo shoot practice. The best photography equipments are already available in the photo studio. There are also hired experienced models present on the said date. And for the identification of the members of the organization, the officers have decided to create a design and logo for the t-shirts, which resulted to related fees.

As a member of the Incognito Digital Photography, you are required to pay for these fees. Failure to do so is considered as not joining for the photo shoot practice on June 13, 2010. Again, you are reminded that the deadline for the payment of the fees is tomorrow, Saturday, June 12, 2010.

We appreciate your participation and cooperation regarding the said event. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Jeff McPaul
President

There are those times when a debtor cannot immediately pay for his debt. The tendency of this debtor is to create a letter that describes his financial situation and that asks his creditor to still give him the chance and the time to accumulate his finances in order to pay for his debt. Individuals and companies alike do write these letters.

They promise that they are surely going to pay their debt, though delayed and not on their initially agreed date and terms. You just might be given the favor if you send an effective letter containing your promise of delayed payment to a creditor.

Just state a valid reason and be able to give a specified time when you can already pay your debt from them.

SAMPLE LETTER

Mark McGregor
891 South Harpeth, Nashville
Tennessee 37125, USA
(e-mail address)
333-4545

June 11, 2010

PERSONAL

Mr. Alexander Hobbs
C&B Finance Company, Inc.
123 North Stamford, Fairfield County,
Connecticut 09602, USA

Dear Mr. Hobbs:

This letter would like to notify your good company of a delayed payment of my personal debt. I would also like to request your company to give me a grace period of two to three weeks before the payment. This could certainly help me pay you the full amount, which includes the interest and principal. I would also like to assure you that you are going to receive the full payment within this additional time.

As additional assurance, I, Mark McGregor, am promising to pay C&B Finance Company, Inc. in full after two to three weeks. The delay is caused by a hospital emergency involving my wife. I need to pay for a certain amount of hospital bills though she is already secured with an insurance. This is temporary, and after two to three weeks, I have already accumulated the money I need to be able to pay my debt from your company. This is simply a delay in payment, I promise to pay you in full after I am able to recover my finances.

Thank you for your consideration and I am sorry for the inconvenience that I might be causing your company. I hope I am still worthy of the trust of your company.

Sincerely,

Mark McGregor

The best tool for enticing and encouraging your customers to pay early for the products and services you have sold and rendered to them is a discount. Most of the time, companies offer discounts for early payment on products and services to be able to immediately collect their accounts receivable. Every now and then, your company might want to remind your customers or clients about these discounts through the use of a financial business letter.

This letter must be concise, clear and accurate so your client can easily comprehend about the benefit and opportunity you are giving them by offering discounts. And particularly, you must provide the specific discount rate and the discount terms in the body of your letter.

Here is a sample letter that can guide you to an efficient financial business letter.

SAMPLE LETTER

C&L Company, Ltd.
345 North Stamford, Fairfield County
Connecticut 09602, USA
0013549874

cnlcompany@gmail.com

June 11, 2010

Glenn Lim
1234 South Harpeth
Nashville, Tennessee 37125

Dear Mr. Lim:

Good day! Our company is glad that you have chosen our product software among other brands from the internet. For this very reason, our company has decided to give you a special discount offer of 2% from the total amount of your purchases if you pay within 15 days from the date of your purchase.

This special discount offer is limited so it is recommended that you immediately settle your accounts after your purchase. Through this discount offer, we are able to express our appreciation to our valued customers like you. You easily gain from this benefit by saving an amount of money which you can use for your future purchases from our company. There are surely several offers that you can avail in the future if you stay with us. This is done to comply with our mission of providing quality products, services and special offers to our customers.

You are assured that we care for you, as we do with our other customers, through the quality of our products and other special offers which can help you save your money. Just pay within 15 days from the date of your purchase and avail of this 2% limited discount offer.

Thank you for availing our company’s products.

Sincerely,

Charles Bines
Management Head

Financial institutions are usually the ones that offer personal loans to individuals. Typically, these personal loans expose financial institutions to a higher risk since they are unsecured loans. This means that the financial institution cannot go after the borrower’s assets in case he cannot pay for the personal loan.

The only remedy that these financial institutions have is to request payment of a personal loan. This request is usually in the form of a letter to be sent to the borrower. A request for payment must still be polite despite the borrower’s unpaid accounts. This can help a financial institution establish a good reputation, which can even lead to the immediate payment of the personal loan.

Here is a sample letter of request for payment of a personal loan. This might give you the idea on what to include in your own letter.

Sample Letter

Golden Finance Company
908 North Stamford, Fairfield County
Connecticut 09602, USA
Golden.finance@qmail.com

June 11, 2010

Glenda Miles
675 South Harpeth, Nashville
Tennessee, USA
37215

Dear Ms. Miles:

Our company would like to request for the payment of the personal loan you have made 8 months ago, on October 2, 2009. The terms of this personal loan, in which you and our company have agreed upon, include monthly payment of an interest of 5% and the payment of principal last April 2, 2010. You have only complied with this agreement for three months that includes the payment of 5% interest rate compounded monthly.

Please be informed that the remaining three months, from January to March, are not yet paid. In addition to that, you are also now required to pay for the principal. We have granted your request to give you two months grace period before you pay for the three months’ interest and the principal. However, we still have not heard from you since then.

The company has already given you two months grace period. We can still modify the terms for this loan to help you pay for it. You are still in our best interests. We want to hear from you soon regarding this personal loan. The company really appreciates an immediate reply to this letter. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Mary Gold
President

All companies have their own policies and rules when it comes to their workplace. These policies serve as the employees’ guidelines for the job-related matters. These policies are made to clarify matters regarding compensation, benefits, vacations and holidays. They may also institute the house rules of the company. When the management decides to endorse an existing or new company policy, it has to be communicated to everyone so that they will be aware of the changes.

Letters that endorse an existing or new company policy must be well-written. It does not have to be that formal but make sure that your employees will understand them well. You should also address and direct the letter to all of the employees that will be affected by the policy. Include the effective date of the revised or new policy. If you are implementing a revised policy, include a description of the old policy.

Explain to them the need to revise the existing policy. Should there be any questions from the employees; make sure you provide a means for them to communicate their concerns. And lastly, make sure that your letter has been approved by the Human Resources head. Below is a sample letter on how to endorse an existing or new company policy:

Sample Letter

June 20, 2010

Mr. Gale Forceberg
R & D Manager
Fast Lane Production Company
75 Kilometer Drive
Detroit, MI 55555

Production Department
Fast Lane Production Company
75 Kilometer Drive
Detroit, MI 55555

Dear Team,

Effective June 10, 2010, the company will impose a 10% daily salary deduction from all employees that come to work late. The company used to impose only a 5% daily salary deduction. However, we’ve noticed that within the past few months, the number of employees coming to work late has increased.

If an employee is tardy, the company’s overall productivity is also affected since less work is accomplished in a day. If employees come on time, we could reach our quota for the day, or may even exceed it.

As a part of our rules and regulations, everybody is required to abide by this new policy. Failure to follow this will result to breach of company policy.

We are looking forward to the employee’s improvement. Let us all work cooperatively for our company’s success. Should you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at 123-45-67. Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

Gale Forceberg

There will come a time wherein you will have to write a reference letter for someone. It could be for a friend or for an employee. Reference letters are mostly needed in resumes. You could always help someone to have that impressive resume on the way you advertise or endorse a previous employee’s performance.

If you don’t know how to start your letter, you can always ask for your employee’s resume and a list of his or her accomplishments. This will serve as a guide when you compose your letter. State in the letter how long you’ve known the person. Also, don’t forget to write the dates of employment and the details of the work. Include positive characteristics of the person and the reason why he or she is a good candidate for the job position.

SAMPLE LETTER

June 2, 2010

Joanna Tabor
ABS Engineering Company
4321 Sundance Street
Athens, CO 88823

XYZ Performance Parts Company
Production Department
9876 Starlight Drive
Ephesus, CO 88821

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing to endorse to you Ms. Jenna Brookes, my previous employee. I was his manager in ABS Engineering Company for almost five years. I didn’t make a mistake in promoting her to mechanical engineer last term. She makes it a point that she submits good outputs that even exceed the requirements’ necessitated quality.

Ms. Brookes is an enthusiastic employee. She can work well with other people and also individually. But she is really more of a leader than a follower. She can manage and supervise other employees as well. Little or no supervision is needed when she is working. She has a reliable working habit that gives you the assurance that you can always count on her.

Ms. Brookes is also good in management planning and implementing programs and techniques. She is also open and willing to learn new things. I assure you that hiring her will be a good decision as she is one of the best employees that I had. She could be an asset to your team and the whole organization as well. In cases of emergency, she is always willing to help.

Should you need more information, please feel free to contact me. Thank you very much and have a nice day.

Sincerely,

Joanna Tabor
Projects Supervisor
ABS Engineering

Business transactions nowadays are done personally, through email or via snail mail. For convenience purposes, some companies also allow payments to be sent via snail mail. This will lessen the hassle to their customers because they will no longer have to go to the business establishments themselves for the payment. However, there are cases when the customers forget to include the payment in the envelope.

Thus, you will have the need to inform a customer that the payment was not in the envelope.
In making a letter to inform a customer that the payment was not in the envelope, you have to be very careful. There is a tendency that the customer will not believe you, so you have to build good will and trust. Assure them that the transaction will then be processed right after they send their payment.

Show your appreciation for their business with your company. Tell them that you are looking forward to doing more to serve them. And leave your contact details should they have questions or concerns. Below is an example letter on how you can inform a customer that the payment was not in the envelope.

SAMPLE LETTER

Date

Sender’s Address
Title
Department
Company Name
Address

Customer
Address
City, State Zip

Dear (Name of customer),
Good day. This letter is to inform you that we have received the letter that you sent us regarding your payment for your last month’s credit bill. However, I am afraid to inform you that the payment was not in the envelope so we haven’t processed your payment yet.

We assume that you may have just forgotten to include the money, so we are giving you until next week to send us your payment. For faster processing of your payment, you can also go to our office personally to have your account processed in real time. As a part of our terms and agreement, we will be forced to charge you with penalty fee if you exceed our one-week deadline.

We appreciate doing business with you. We are looking forward to serving you in the future. Please feel free to contact us at 123-4567 should you have any concerns.
Thank you very much and have a nice day.

Sincerely,

John Smith
CS Representative
CooLio Industrial Company