Letter of Inquiry
Whenever a buyer wants to get some information about the quality, price, availability , etc. of goods to be purchased, or about the terms of the sale, he/she writes a letter of inquiry to the seller. Therefore, letters of inquiry are information seeking letters. They are of the following types:
- Solicited Inquiry: An inquiry made in response to the seller’s advertisement and publicity.
- Unsolicited Inquiry: An inquiry made at the buyer’s own initiative.
- Routine Inquiry: An inquiry made by an old buyer in the usual course of business.
- Enquiry for some favor: An inquiry for some favor like some special price, relaxations of terms and conditions.
A Letter of Inquiry Should Be:
- Brief and to the point
- Clean, complete and correct
- Positive and confident in tone
- Strait forward , but courteous
Criteria for Writing Letters of Inquiry
- Successful letters of inquiry contain all the letter essentials, maintain an effective technical writing style, achieve audience involvement through pronoun usage, and avoid grammatical and mechanical errors. In addition, you must accomplish the following tasks.
1. Introduction:
Clarify your intent in the introduction. Also tell your reader immediately what you are writing about( Subject matter of your inquiry). You can state your intent and subject matter in one to three sentences.
2. Discussion:
Specify the needs in discussion: Ask precise questions and need. You must quantify.
3. Conclusion:
Conclude precisely. a. First, explain when you need a response( date). Don’t write like, “Please provide me the above mentioned items as soon as possible.” b. Second, Explain why need answers by the date given.
A Letter of Inquiry
Dear Mr. Liss:
Thank you for your sales letter regarding the Model CP95 tractor with fuel-saving devices. My company plans to purchase 30 new tractors by the end of this year. Your tractors may be what we need.
Before we decide , however, we would like more information. Please send us a brochure of your CP95, along with answers to these questions.
1. What is the cost per tractor?
2. What are the financing options for quantity purchases?
3. What are your tractor’s comfort features?
4. When can you deliver 30 tractors?
Please send this information by August 15. Then my shop supervisor and I can study the material. I plan to present a proposal for purchase to our board of directors on September 1. I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Kathy Brewington
