You're so mad you could spit. That #*^$% company got your order wrong again. You're gonna fire off a letter that'll make made their head spin. Nobody's gonna treat you like that!Sound familiar? If it does, you're not alone. We've all been there. The difference is that some of us write letters that get results. Others write letters that get us ignored or ridiculed.
Written correctly, a letter of complaint can be very effective at getting you
results you want. You might even get more than you expected. Some letter writers report receiving surprize gifts and merchandise in response to a well written complaint. Many businesses appreciate knowing when something is going wrong, and they will do what they can to create goodwill with a dissatisfied customer.
The following suggestions will help you write a letter of complaint that's likely to be read and acted upon.
Complain only when appropriate. Sending numerous, frivolous letters of complaint will get you nowhere. Send your letters only for genuine complaints, and only after initial communication with company representatives has failed. In other words, if widget you bought didn't work as expected, you would ask sales person or customer service department to correct problem before you fire off a letter of complaint to head office.
Address letter to correct person. You need to reach person who has authority to correct problem. Inevitably, this will be a supervisor, a manager or a company executive.
If your complaint is with a local business, address letter to owner or manager.
If you're dealing with a local branch of a large corporation, you'll need to find out whether your complaint lies with local branch or if problem was created by policies set by a corporate office. If it's with corporate office, you'll send letter there.
It might take some detective work to find out who should receive your letter. If you can't find out by asking, try company web site, annual reports, or business directories in your local library.
Be courteous and professional. Avoid sarcasm. No matter how angry you are, sending a rude, discourteous, inflammatory letter will not help you get problem corrected.
Keep it short. One page is all you need. The manager is more likely to read and act on your letter if you keep it brief, factual and to point. No one has time or patience to wade through a six-page tome.
Be factual. Identify problem and outline efforts you have made to correct problem. Remember five rules of journalism: Who, What, When, Where and How.
Identify what you want. You have a complaint. What will it take to make things right? Do you want your money refunded? Do you want product exchanged? Do you want a service contract extended? Do you want an apology? Stipulate what you want.
