If you are using the mailmerge technique then obviously you will want to use the name of the recipient at the start of the letter, as in...

Dear John,

If you don't know the name or you are not using mailmerge then you are reduced to using "Dear Colleague" or "Dear Sir or Madam".

But the question is rarely asked - do these salutations (named or generic) actually help?

We have experimented with the use of salutations and with letters without salutations, and found that in most cases the lack of salutation has helped response rates.   

The most obvious reason for this is the use of the headline.  The convention is to write the salutation, then below that the headline, and then below that the start of the letter.   But if one makes the headline large (for example 20 point Ariel or above then the salutation gets lost above it and looks thoroughly odd.

Which then in turn leads many creators of sales letters to use smaller headlines, in order to make the salutation look ok.   Which is fine, except that it greatly reduces the effect of the headline.   And this is why the salutation can indeed reduce the effectiveness of a sales letter - because it is difficult to find anywhere to put it without reducing the size of the headline.

And if you reduce the size of the headline, you cut the effectiveness of the letter.

Free analysis of your mailshot

This article is written by Tony Attwood, Chairman of Hamilton House Mailings Ltd.  If you would like to discuss the writing or design of your mailing campaign, or indeed a single mailshot, with Tony, without cost or obligation, just call 01536 399 000, or email Creative@hamilton-house.com   You can also send Tony a copy of your latest advert and he will call you back with his thoughts on how your response rate could be raised - again without cost or obligation.