COLLECTION LETTERS

collection letters

Collection Letters  

No matter how carefully a company chooses its credit customers, there will be times when a bill goes unpaid and steps to collect must be taken. The problem when writing a collection letter is how to get payment and at the same time keep a customer. The writer of a collection letter wants to get the money owed and maintain goodwill.

       

      Collection letters, therefore, should be persuasive rather than forceful, firm rather than demanding. A fair and tactful letter gets better results than a sarcastic or abusive one. In fact, collection letters should be “you-oriented”; courteous, considerate, and concerned about the customer’s best interest.

       

      The purpose of collection letters is:

1.      To get the money.

2.      To keep the customer and future business.

3.      To build goodwill.

Collection is a sensitive issue so the following practices may be avoided

·         Falsely implying that a lawsuit has been filed

·         Contact the debtor’s employer or relatives about the debt

·         Communication to the other persons that the person is in debt.

·         Harassing the debtor

·         Using abusive or observe language

·         Using defamatory language

·         Intentionally causing mental stress

·         Threatening violence

·         Communicating by postcard (not confidential enough)

·         Misrepresenting the legal status of the debt

·         Communicating in such a way as to make the receiver physically ill

·         Misrepresenting the message as a government or court document

·         Communicating by postcard (not confidential enough)

·         Misrepresenting the legal status of the debt

·         Communicating in such a way as to make the receiver physically ill

·         Misrepresenting the message as a government or court document

·         Any emotional reaction on the part of the debtor may reduce the chances of recovery.

Successful collection depends to on the following factors:

·         Understanding of Human Nature

·         Knowledge of collection policies and laws

·         Using persuasive / positive appeals effectively

     The following appeals are generally used:

·         Appeal to fairness & justice

·         Appeal to pride

·         Appeal to Goodwill

·         Appeal to sympathy

     Right attitude for successful collection:

·         Begin with assumption that most people will pay

·         Give no impression that you doubt the honesty of the debtor

·         Use a courteous, reasonable tone but become firmer

·         Be more demanding during the later stages of the series

·         Remain with the law, don’t harass

·         Show understanding and flexibility while writing delinquent accounts

·         Send collection notices quickly and regularly

·         Never imply in you messages that payment can be avoid or postponed.

·         Retain goodwill throughout the series

·         Present your evidence and stick to the facts

·         Persuade the debtors of the benefit he will receive by paying

·         State clearly the specific action the debtor must take

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ADJUSTMENT LETTER

adjustment Letter

Writing Letters Refusing Adjustments

When The Buyer Is At Fault

1. Support the Reader’s Point of View in Your Buffer Paragraph

Since the customer probably thinks he or she is right, try to make him or her accept the logical solution. Be sure the customer realizes that you understand the problem and that you will be fair.

2. Assure the Customer That the Request Is Appreciated and Has Received Individual Consideration.

The requested adjustment is important to the reader in your letter; show that the reader’s point of view is also important to your organization.

3. Present the Explanation before the Decision

Stress what can be done and emphasize your purpose to be fair to all customers. Don’t blame and don’t argue. Avoid unfriendly, negative expressions, such as your complaint, your error, you misinterpreted, you neglected, your claim, you are mistaken, our records show, and your ignorance. With a truthful and tactful presentation, lead the customer to accept your solution as the only reasonable one.

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Request For Buying Credit Cards

Request for buying Credit Cards
In order to get your credit report you can either place order online or mail them about it. It is important to check the rules of your state so that you can be saved.

Name of the Credit Bureau:

Address:

Date:

Dear Sir/Madam,

This is to request for a copy of my credit report maintained in your credit database.

Your Full Name:

Your Birth Date:

Your Social Security Number:

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Follow Up Credit Companies

Follow up Credit Companies
This letter is meant for those who have created a contact with the credit bureau but not getting the expected results. Time has come when you need to follow up the matter and pose serious threats to them. Please don't forget to keep a copy of this letter with you and make it a point to send the letter by registered mail.

Your name: your address:

Credit Bureau's name: Address:

Date:

Re: Dispute letter of [your account no.] Dear Sir/Madam,

It is a formal notice to remind you that you have forgotten to respond to my earlier dispute letters, [date]. I am enclosing herewith all the copies of those letters and the return receipt signed by you, [date].

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Contact Credit Companies

Contact Credit Companies

Time comes when you might need to talk to your creditors and ask them if they can work out on an alternate payment plan for you. You might also need to reduce your interest rates and debts as well. It is important to convince them and let them understand your problem so that they can take a step.

Company Name:

Address:

Date:

Re: Your account no

Dear Sir/ Madam,

I am presently going through some financial difficulties and fear that I will not be able to meet my monthly payments to you. I do not want to declare bankruptcy and want to try and work out an alternate payment plan so that I don’t have to default on this debt.

I would like to suggest a strategy if it is acceptable. If you could close my account, waive the interest payments and accept a new balance of (50% or whatever you propose) of what I currently owe, then I can afford to make a monthly payment of $_____.

(Relate your financial trouble, only as much is required for official purposes)

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Letter-Writing Errors

The Twenty-Eight Most Common Letter-Writing Errors

If you’ve ever seen a batch of letters sent in response to a want ad, you know they can be

hysterically funny. A random sampling usually demonstrates every mistake in the book

(like sending the letter to the wrong company). Here are twenty-eight common errors to

avoid:

1. Addressing letters, “Dear Sir:” or “Dear Sirs:” As you know, many readers today

are women. If gender is unclear, the salutation should be something like “Dear

Hiring Manager,” or “Dear Human Resources Manager.”

2. Addressing letters, “To whom it may concern.” Find out who will receive the

correspondence, and address it personally. One company received a letter

addressed to “Dear Whomever,” to which an employee replied, “I'll answer to

anything but this!”

3. Enclosing a photo. Skip the photo unless you’re a model or an aspiring actor.

4. Handwriting or typing over an old resume or letterhead. If you’ve moved, start

over. Changes on old documents aren’t acceptable.

5. No signature. Even if you type your name at the end of correspondence, you

should sign the page in your own handwriting to give it a personal touch.

6. Spelling errors. One applicant said he was well suited for “writting and editing

chores... contac t (sic) me at the adrwss (sic) below.” Would you give him your

editing work? Another writer said she would enjoy “hearing form (sic) us.” Word

processing spell checkers make mistakes; so proof everything.

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Business Letters For Busy People

 BUSINESS LETTERS FOR BUSY PEOPLE, 4TH EDITION

EDITED AND TYPESET BY NATIONAL PRESS PUBLICATIONS

Cover design by Johnson Design

Printed in the U.S.A. by Book-mart Press

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BETTER LETTER WRITING

5 RULES FOR BETTER LETTER WRITING

Better writing can result in proposals that win contracts, advertisements that sell
products, instruction manuals that users can follow, billboards that catch a driver’s attention. stories that make us laugh or cry, and letters, memos, and reports that get your message across to the reader. Here are 12 tips on style and word choice that can make writing clear and persuasive.

1. PRESENT YOUR BEST SELF

Your moods vary. After all, you’re only human. But while it is sometimes difficult to
present your best self in conversation, which is spontaneous and instant, letters are written alone and on your own schedule. Therefore, you can and should take the time to let your most pleasant personality shine through in your writing.
Be especially careful when replying to an e-mail message you have received. The
temptation is to treat the message as conversation, and if you are irritated or just outrageously pressured and busy, the tendency is to reply in a clipped and curt fashion — again, not showing you at your best.
The solution? Although you may be eager to reply immediately to e-mail so you can get the message out of your inbox, a better strategy for when your reply is important is to set it aside, compose your answer when you are not so time pressured, and read it carefully before sending.

A Tip: Never write a letter when angry. If you must write the letter when angry, then put it aside without sending it, and come back to it later. You will most likely want to throw it out and start over, not send it at all, or drastically revise it.

Remember, once you hit the Reply button, it is too late to get the message back. It’s out there, and you can’t retrieve it. Same thing when you drop a letter in the mailbox

(it’s actually a felony to reach into the mailbox and try to retrieve the letter!).

2. WRITE IN A CLEAR, CONVERSATIONAL STYLE

Naturally, a memo on sizing pumps shouldn’t have the same chatty tone as a personal letter. But most business and technical professionals lean too much in the other direction, and their sharp thinking is obscured by windy, overly formal prose.

The key to success in business or technical writing? Keep it simple. I’ve said this
before, but it bears repeating: Write to express — not to impress. A relaxed, conversational style can add vigor and clarity to your letters.

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Good News Letter

Good News

• General guidelines for answering request letters include:
     
• Be prompt and courteous
• Be sure that your responses are complete--that they include all needed information
• If you are giving some positive and some negative responses, give the positive responses first. Try to emphasis what you can do--not what you can't do.
       
• The body of the very simplest "good news" letter is often just two paragraphs. In these letters the "good news" is given in the opening. Any "call for action" and your marketing statement are put in the second paragraph. Simple details, such as when a package will be shipped, can be put either at the end of the first paragraph or the beginning of the second.
    
• More complex "good news" letters would include those where conditions must be met in order for the request to be granted, or those letters where only part of the request can be granted . These letters are usually three or more paragraphs in length.

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Request Letters

Simple Request Letters

• The body of the very simplest request letter is usually only one or two paragraphs. This is especially true if there is some incentive for the receiving party to respond to your request in a positive way. An example of this would be a letter where you are requesting additional information that might lead to a purchase of merchandise from the company.
    
• In more complex request letters where there is no incentive for the receiver of your letter to grant your request, your letter will need to include some persuasive writing.  Often the sales letter format, discussed later, is used for the most complex request letters, such as when you are asking for monetary donations.
  

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"Good News" Response to Request/Complaint Letters

"Good News" Response to Request/Complaint Letters:
A letter represents your company’s public image and your competence.

General guidelines for answering request letters include:

• Be prompt and courteous
• Be sure that your responses are complete--that they include all needed information
• If you are giving some positive and some negative responses, give the positive responses first. Try to emphasis what you can do--not what you can't do.

Therefore, there are some more technique to write a letter such as:
¡  Analyze Your Audience: 
  o   Who is my audience? 
  o   Will my audience be favorably or unfavorably disposed to what I am going to say? 
  o   What kinds of information will my audience expect me to supply? 
  o   How will my audience use the information I am sending? 
  o   What impression do I want my letter to make on readers? 
¡  Have a clear sense of your purpose and theirs 
¡  Select the best communication strategy 
¡  Draft, revise, and edit your letter

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