How to Write A Complaint Letter That Will Be Read By A Corporate Executive

I have a blog that is named dontgetmemad.blogspot.com and it is basically set up to show my readers the proper way to send letters of complaint or compliment to companies.

Now, over the years I have learned that if your letter doesn't get to the top person at that company (President, CEO or other top executive) nothing will happen and you may get a form letter reply.

I have had a great deal of success reaching the top executives at companies and I want to share some tips with you that really work. I have corresponded with Shari Redstone *Sumner Redstone's daughter) at National Amusements a $500 million dollar company and many other top executives.

My methods started many years ago I read a book that was a tutorial on how to write letters to corporate executives and actually get them to read them. The trick was to order and use the engraved stationary from Tiffany because, their stationary was water marked with the Tiffany name and was quite impressive to the recipient.

Remember, 20-30 years ago Tiffany was known for their beautiful engraved personal stationary items and usually purchased by those that had good taste and a good bank account.

The concept of using their stationary is quite ingenious. You see most key executives receive tons of mail and have their staff sort through it for them. Only those letters that appear to be important or of a personal nature written by the execs wealthy friends, would ever make it to the executives desk.

Here are some tips to help you get your letters read by top executives and I will assume for this example, that we are going to write a complaint letter.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Engraved or similar printed personal stationary. The best quality you can afford. You will only need a small amount, maybe 100 letterheads and matching envelopes.
• Time to research on the internet to find the president or CEO of the companies mailing address.

1. 
    
   Cranes Personalized Cards, Sheets or Notes

   Purchase that expensive, engraved stationary, from any upscale company (Crane is one of them) that watermarks the paper with their name. The better the stationary, the better your chance of getting it read by the executive and not my his assistant.
   
   Expect to pay around $200-$300 or more for around 100 sheets and envelopes.

2. 
    
   Always Write To The Top Executive

   Do your research on the net and find out who the top person is at the company you want to write and address the letter to them. When you address the envelope, you always address it to the executive, c/o of the company and mark "Personal" on the outside.
   
   Your letter will look and feel impressive and expensive so it will get read by the executive you sent it to.
   
   Remember that your envelope has your engraved name and address on it and the quality of the paper is of course the finest quality, the secretary or assistant and will put this on the executives desk "unopened" thinking you are a personal friend of their boss.

3. 
    
   Explain The Facts, Accurately

   Keep the letter as short as you can, but do explain the facts, accurately to them in your letter. Take your time and make sure it is letter perfect in both grammar and spelling and have your facts straight. Be sure to mention the names of the people at the company you dealt with and be careful to write the true facts and the reason for your letter. Be sure to be honest and truthful in all respects. You don't want to be caught in a lie.

4. 
    
   Tell Them What You Want

   If you can, give them your recommended solution to the problem. They have no idea what you want and companies will always ask you what you want before making any offers, if an offer for compensation is what you want.
   
   In one of my cases, I had a problem with a theater manager. I clearly explained that this manager needed to improve his "People Skills". I did not ask them to fire him or demote him, just to send him for training. I did not ask nor want any compensation or free movie passes, I simply wanted them to know what this manager was doing wrong. This worked in my favor.

5. 
    
   Be Professional, Never Get Angry

   Never get angry in the letter or you will lose their interest and they will simply think you are another nut case writing one of these letters. Be clear, accurate and professional...do not become emotional in your letter. Remember, you are dealing with a highly paid executive that has many issues to deal with each day. You don't want him to simply throw your letter in the waste basket.

6. 
    
   Have someone you trust read your letter.

   Once you have completed your letter, read it a few times and make changes. It will take you hours at times writing a good letter, but you have a lot invested in the stationary and your time, so make sure it is perfect before you mail it.
   
   You may want to have others read it and give you their opinion on how the tone of the letter sounds and if it sounds professional. Only have those people you know are intelligent enough to understand what you want to say in your letter and can point out errors or corrections. They may not be college graduates, but you certainly want a valid opinion from someone that can read your letter and know where you may have gone off track. This may be your supervisor at your company, an educator, a writer, you get the idea.

7. Be sure to print out a number of drafts of your letter and read it over a couple of days so you are sure that it is correct and is what you want to say. I tend to write and then re read my articles, letters and copy over and over and make changes days after my first draft.

8. 
    
   Once you are satisfied mail your letter.

   If all is a go now, be sure to format your printer for the paper size you are using, if it is not full size, then cut other paper to the size of your stationary and print on that to make sure that the pages break properly when you print it and everything looks OK. Remember, your stationary costs can be substantial, so when you print the one you want to send, you don't want to find a minor error or formatting problem, not at $3 per page.
   
   If it prints OK and you are satisfied, make sure to put the proper amount of postage stamps on the envelope and remember to mark the outside of the envelope, Personal - Confidential or a similar phrase and mail it. I like to use stamps so it looks like it might be an invitation to an event or other important mail. Now take it to the post office mail it there. You don't want it to get beat up in a postal mail collection box.
   
   If you try this method I will guarantee positive results and I want you to write me if you do. Good Luck.

9. 
    
   I love my Georgie

   I also appreciate your support by rating me if you liked this article. This feedback enables me to continue to publish articles you want to see. Any negative comments or suggestions, please email me privately, this way I can adjust the articles if need be.

Tips & Warnings

• I have used my Tiffany & Company (they no longer offer this) engraved stationary now over the past 25 years about 2 dozen times and each time I have had amazing results.
• At the time I paid about $100 or so for a few hundreds sheets and matching envelopes, but that was 20 years ago or longer. I figured it cost me around $1-$3 or so for each letter I had to send, but I can assure you it was well worth it. Today it can cost you over $10 to send that letter, but it can be worth it.
• Over the years I have received thousands of dollars in compensation and free gifts from companies and all of this was deserved, but would never have happened if I didn't take the time to write my letters on my engraved stationary.
• If you can't locate the correct address for your executive, you call a companies main office, you can tell them you need to send a letter to compliment him on one of their employees and get the address that way as well.
• Never be rude or threaten in your letter. Remember, you are writing to a top executive at a major corporation who may want to know what his company or people are doing wrong. So your letter will be read and if it makes sense to him, they will act upon your suggestions for improving their products or services. Think of this as if you were part of a consulting team they hired to find out what they are doing wrong. Now we all know that GM and the banks, could have used more of these letters over the years to reach their top executives.

Resources

• See Actual Letters and Replies At My Blog

[axleskat]

on 10/15/2009 Great advice! thanks

[lweber4]

on 6/22/2009 wow, this is great! 5*s and a recommendation! =D

[aliciaanswers]

on 6/20/2009 What a great suggestion! I have written letters of complaint and compliment before ..but I doubt they were ever read by the executive. I will definitely try your suggestion next time! 5*

[ericbar]

on 6/13/2009 You provide great information in this article. Thanks for writing it and keep up the good work. 5*

[lenrapp]

on 6/12/2009 Sally...thanks for the comment and rating. Well to answer you properly, put things in perspective. To sit down to write a good complaint letter means that something or someone must have really done you wrong...bit time. At that point you can either rant or rave or do something about it. The investment is not the cost of the stationary, but rather the investment in your time.

Think about the worst experience you may have had with a company's product or service and how mad you might have been. What would it be worth to either receive compensation from them for what they did to you or your family or at least the satisfaction they wouldn't do it to anyone else.

I have been compensated over and over when I have written these letters, $3,000 from Andies Candies, $1,000 from Necco Candy, Movie Passes, and much more over the years, so for me the monetary compensation more then covers ...