Persuasive letters in business may take many forms. This can be anything from writing a letter to the people you share an office with about keeping the restroom clean, to persuading your manager to start implementing paper-saving and recycling techniques, to having a letter convincing your subordinates to increase worker productivity or cut unnecessary indirect materials cost. Each of these letters can be hit or miss, hinging on persuasion that is tactful, audience focused, and convincing. For example, as an Entrepreneurship Major and future Entrepreneur, I will be faced with two of these instances at the early stages of my business development. These may include letters to venture capitalists or angel investors (or even mom/dad/grandpa) requesting investment to facilitate the start of a business, or a letter to one of my colleagues or friends convincing them to join my team. While both of these will necessitate in-person pitches/discussions closely following the letters, these letters can be crucial in determining if you even receive a follow-up. Yes, the power of persuasion is CRITICAL here.
With the business proposal (akin to what your pitch and business model presentation will contain), you must essentially argue in favor of your product/service by outlining why the product/service is needed (What is the compelling need?) To do this it may be beneficial to start with any personal anecdote and facts and figures to outline exactly why your product is needed by society. Next you must convince the investor that your solution truly solves the problem. Obviously using positive rhetoric is important, but gross exaggerations will be recognized immediately by any investor. When using persuasive letters to have an investor consider you, it is instead more successful to use facts and figures in your letter to express a need and solution then simply "talking it up". After need and solution comes the subject of strategy. This is the part of the persuasive business proposal letter that will be the most technical. This would include the discussion of finance, marketing, competition, barriers to entry, your unique value, revenue streams, and much more. Consider Ash Maurya's lean canvas elements when writing this section. Again, having facts and figures and projections will be convincing here. However, it is important to not give all of your information away here, instead you will want to save that for your pitch. You will not make any more convincing of a message by actually revealing everything about the product (elements, name, financial figures) and by doing so, you risk the possibility of an investor stealing your idea. You also may scare them away if the true cost of the startup is high. Be conservative here, but do provide enough information to provoke the interest of the investor and leave them optimistic that you know what you are talking about and have convincing financials and a solid target market. It is also important, early on in the letter to introduce yourself in a way that may give you credibility. Your experience in related fields, degrees, and knowledge can establish credibility.
Writing a letter to a potential partner will follow a similar but less detailed format. This also will contain information about why the potential partner may want to join your team, how the two of you will be successful, and what shares they may be given in the company. Be more conservative here, as a potential partner is more likely to steal your idea than an investor that is pestered with business ideas daily. Try to focus more on persuading the potential partner to consider your idea than actually selling them your business plan; save this for a face-to-face discussion
Forbes provides tips for persuasion. While these tips are supposed to aid oral presentations (which will support the pitch), your proposal letter can also benefit from these tips. They focus on constructing your argument. Their second tip is extremely useful when thinking about how to win over your audience. This includes this sub-point, which I find useful: "Use logical, ethical and emotional appeals, as well as a variety of evidence to support your argument. This could include expert testimony, statistics, real-life examples or personal experiences." Your audience also can be persuaded using this rhetoric that Forbes includes:
- The Grabber. Grab your audience’s attention with an anecdote, a question, a startling statistic or a thought-provoking quotation.
- The Message. Follow the grabber with a one-line statement that succinctly tells the audience what your presentation is about.ting.
- Signposting. Signposting lays out the skeleton of the argument for the audience and is as simple as saying, “There are three reasons why you must vote for me: knowledge, ability and passion.”
- Benefits 1-3. Focus on benefits rather than features. At least 75% of your presentation should be dedicated to developing your three main points. Each benefit or theme should be supported with a careful selection of statistics, demonstrations, examples or personal experiences.
- Closure. Sum up your main points in one sentence and give your call to action. This could be a direct close such as “visit our website” or an indirect close that reminds people of the hardship they will endure if they don’t take action. Really powerful speeches also reconnect with the beginning of the speech in some way. This also avoids the embarrassment of having to tell the audience that you have finished. The challenge is to have a grabber that allows an easy referral back.
BBC also provides tips for persuasion in writing. These are basic techniques that are known to convince readers that your business is worth investing in. They say "be definite, be positive, and be pushy" among other ideas that may improve your arguing technique. Harvard Business Review provides arguably the best tips for persuasion (this is business focused persuasion) and these tips really outline exactly how to construct a compelling argument for an audience of business professionals, like investors. This article is really worth considering when writing your business proposal letter, as it even includes "Five Ways To Not Be Persuasive".
Of course the strongest argument in the world, perfect use of rhetoric, and passion towards your idea alone are not going to persuade the investors or your future partner. Your business idea must make sense, it must be feasible, it must have ways of bringing in revenue, and that revenue must bring returns on investment. The best salesman in the world, the greatest arguer, or the most passionate person in the world cannot persuade investors that a Super Target is needed in Todd, NC, or that Boone, NC needs an upscale Miami-themed night club, or that your rubber-duck bath toy startup are good ideas worth investing in. Your product/service in itself are a part of the persuasion.
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