Drafting a Letter
You must follow the formatting instructions provided in the Panopto lecturer titled “How to Write a Business Letter.”
Submit your letter as a PDF. There is no minimum word count, but may not exceed one page.
Prompt
Assume that you have an opportunity to travel to Japan during the summer as part of a Global Business Initiative project at your school. The goal of the trip is to visit businesses in that country, learn more about the differences between American and Japan businesses, and make some international contacts. The school will provide the funding for your trip. Each student, however, is asked to request donations from local companies to support the project. You decide to approach Keith Dinsmore, the president of a shoe manufacturing company in your community, to request a donation. You selected this person because he graduated from your university and because many of his company’s products are manufactured in Japan.
Your purpose: You want to establish credibility with Mr. Dinsmore and persuade him to donate funds to support the initiative. You would like to illustrate how he/his company would benefit from investing in you.
Your objective: You want Mr. Dinsmore to respond to your letter with a check of $300-$500 and an invitation to meet him after your return to discuss your trip.
Questions to consider…
What should be the specific purpose of your communication? What specific outcome do you want? Will you ask for a specific amount of money, or will you have some other message?
What information will Mr. Dinsmore need?
What reasons or benefits can you offer Mr. Dinsmore to support why he should donate?
What objections do you anticipate? Prepare possible responses for each objection.
What medium should you use to communicate with Mr. Dinsmore? Should you make your request by email? By phone? Or should you ask to meet in person? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each option?
