How to Write a Letter of Business Closure

Having to write a letter of business closure isn't always an enjoyable time for a business owner, but it is a necessary process in shutting down operations. There are a number of components that a letter of business closure needs to include and certain specifics that you should address within the content and scope of the letter. This is the basic process for writing a clear, concise, and cohesive letter of business closure.

Instructions

1. Begin by creating an outline that lays out all of the important parts of your letter of business closure and organizes your points effectively. The number of points in your outline will depend upon the nature of your business and the people you are writing to. In any event, your outline should include basic topics like: When your business will be closing, What are the ramifications of this, What this means for your customer, clients, contacts, etc., and some brief instructions on what the future holds and what their next move should be in response to your business closing.

2. Following your outline, start your letter of business closure by stating the intent of the letter. This means telling your reader right away that the business is closing and when. This needs to be written right away in the letter because it will immediately notify the reader of the main issue at hand and set the stage for the rest of your letter. You don't want to ramble on about conjecture, nonsense, and then at the end of your letter state that the business is closing.

3. Continue working down the points of your outline and write a paragraph about the ramifications of the closing of the business. Your customers, clients, and whomever this letter is being written to will want to know exactly what the closing of this business means to them and how this will affect them. If you have commitments to people or services that you provide then they will need to know that these services will be stopping and any other changes that will result from your business being closed.

4. Covering the last major point of your outline, discuss the future and what is going to happen with your business. It could be that you only intend to close for a certain period of time, or maybe your closure is permanent. If you foresee it being temporary then it is imperative that you discuss the future in your letter because you don't want to lose contacts and clients permanently. Make sure that your plans for the future are clear to your readers.

5. Once you've covered the basics of when, why, and the future you can add in anything else that you find relevant or specific to your industry or situation. The outline and main points cover the basics, but you'll need to fill in a few other areas. If you have equipment to sell or things to liquidate that could be one example, if you need to meet with anyone that could be another example.

6. Offer to answer any questions that your reader might have. When closing a business there is a tremendous amount of things that need to be done, and many of these are outside the scope of one letter so make sure to offer contact with a physical person that can answer questions for people and put a voice to anyone's concerns.

7. Customize your letter depending upon who it is going to. Don't just send out the same letter to everyone. Customers will need a different letter from business contacts and so on, so make sure to address each group individually.

Tips & Warnings

• Proofread your letter multiple times or have someone else do it for you. The last thing that you want is to have to close your business and look unprofessional on top of it.

• Double check the list of everyone that you need to mail letters of business closure to. You don't want to have any accounts or groups of people that you forget or omit on accident.

• If you are still not confident in the strength of your letter, you can obtain a sample letter of business closure, or a letter that a fellow business owner has previously written and compare it to your letter and see how it measures up.

• This information is intended as a basic guide for writing a letter of business closure. It is also only the opinion of the author and should be regarded as such, and is not intended to cover every possible situation that a closing business needs to deal with. In any event of business closure, it is best to consult an attorney to get comprehensive legal advice on the steps that you need to take in order to properly close your business and communicate with your your customers, clients, etc.