Business Introduction Letter
Introduces your business to a prospective customer.
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Dear Sir / Madam,
I am writing to introduce [your business]. [what you do, in one sentence]
[why it is relevant to this particular company]
[the specific, small next step you are asking for]
What is a Business Introduction Letter?
A business introduction letter tells a prospective customer who you are, what you do that is relevant to them, and what you would like to happen next. Its job is to earn ten more minutes of attention, not to close a sale. Most fail because they describe the sender at length and the reader not at all, which is why the majority of them are deleted before the second paragraph.
New businesses use these to open a market; established firms use them when entering a sector, following a trade show, taking over an account from a departing colleague, or approaching a company whose supplier has just failed. Suppliers write to procurement teams to get on an approved vendor list; consultants and agencies write to named decision makers. It is also common in trade between countries, where a formal letter on headed paper still carries weight with buyers who would ignore an email from an unknown address.
Unsolicited business communication is regulated in most places you are likely to send it. Electronic marketing rules — the UK's PECR, the EU's ePrivacy rules alongside GDPR, CAN-SPAM in the US, Canada's anti-spam legislation, the Australian Spam Act and India's telecom commercial communications rules — govern consent, sender identification and opt-out mechanisms, and several distinguish between messages to individuals and to corporate addresses. Company law also requires certain particulars on business letters in many jurisdictions: registered name, number and registered office. Check the marketing rules and business letter disclosure requirements where you and the recipient are located.
An introduction letter is not a proposal, a quotation or a contract. It should not contain pricing detail, terms, or claims you have not evidenced — a specific claim about performance, savings or accreditation can be caught by advertising and consumer protection rules on misleading statements. It also does not qualify the prospect: you have no idea yet whether they have a budget, a problem or authority. Treat any response as the beginning of a conversation, and keep the letter itself to a single page.
What to put in a Business Introduction Letter
These are the details this template asks for. Anything left blank is marked in red on the preview so you can see what is still missing.
| Field | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Business name | For example: Barton Supply Co. |
| Your address | For example: Unit 7, Barton Road, Columbus, OH 43212 |
| Customer name | For example: Halliwell Interiors Inc. |
| Customer address | For example: 44 High Street, Columbus, OH 43215 |
| What you do | For example: We supply timber and fixings to small builders, stocked and picked specifically for jobs… |
| Why them specifically | For example: I noticed you run several small residential extensions at once, which is exactly the… |
| Your ask | For example: Could I send you a sample price list for the ten lines you buy most? If it is not… |
| Signatory name optional | For example: K. Srinivasa Rao |
| Signatory designation optional | For example: Honorary Secretary |
| Issued to (full name) | For example: James Whitfield |
| Their address | For example: 588 Kinnear Road, Columbus, OH 43212 |
How to write a Business Introduction Letter
Open with the reason you are writing
The first sentence should be about the recipient, not you. Reference the specific thing that prompted the letter: a new site they have opened, a tender they published, a supplier change, a mutual contact by name, a talk they gave. ‘I read that you are opening a second unit in Coventry’ earns a paragraph of attention. ‘We are a leading provider of integrated solutions’ does not.
Say what you do in one concrete sentence
Name the service or product in words a buyer would use, not in category language. ‘We machine stainless components to drawing, in batches from 50 to 5,000, on two-week lead times’ tells a buyer whether to keep reading. ‘We deliver world-class engineering solutions’ tells them nothing and reads like every other letter in the pile.
Give one piece of relevant proof
Name a comparable client you are permitted to name, an accreditation, a certification, the number of years you have supplied their sector, or a specific problem you solved. One is enough and it must be verifiable — if you cannot substantiate a claim, do not make it, since misleading claims are actionable under advertising and consumer protection rules in most jurisdictions.
Ask for something small and specific
Do not ask for the business. Ask for a fifteen-minute call, a place on the tender list, permission to send a sample, or a meeting when you are next in their area, and propose a concrete time or a date range. A vague ‘look forward to hearing from you’ puts the work of deciding onto the reader, who will decline by doing nothing.
Sign it properly and include the required particulars
Real name, job title, direct line, email and the company's registered details as required where you are incorporated — many jurisdictions require the registered name, registration number and registered office on business correspondence. Sign it personally rather than from a department. If sending by email, add the opt-out or unsubscribe mechanism the applicable marketing rules require.
Common mistakes
- Spending the first three paragraphs describing your own company, so the reader never reaches the part relevant to them.
- Sending an identical letter to a list, so an obvious mail merge fails at exactly the moment personalisation was supposed to work.
- Addressing it to ‘Dear Sir or Madam’ or to a job title when the name is on the company website and takes a minute to find.
- Making a specific performance or savings claim you cannot substantiate, which risks a challenge under advertising and consumer protection rules.
- Ending with no ask, so a reader who was mildly interested has nothing to say yes to and moves on.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a business introduction letter be?
One page, and preferably three or four short paragraphs. The reader is deciding in the first fifteen seconds whether this is relevant, and length works against you. If you have supporting material — a capability statement, a case study, a catalogue — reference it and offer to send it, rather than attaching everything and hoping. Detail belongs in the follow-up you are writing the letter to earn.
Should I send an introduction letter by post or email?
Email is faster and easier to follow up; a posted letter on headed paper still stands out with senior recipients and in sectors where inboxes are saturated. Posted letters also sit outside most electronic marketing rules, though data protection law still applies to the address you used. A common approach is to post the letter and follow up by email or phone a few days later.
Is it legal to send unsolicited business emails?
It depends on the jurisdiction and on whether you are writing to a corporate or an individual address. Most regimes require accurate sender identification, a working opt-out and, in some cases, prior consent — CAN-SPAM in the US, PECR alongside UK GDPR, the ePrivacy rules in the EU, CASL in Canada, the Spam Act in Australia. Check the rules applying where both you and the recipient are based before sending a list.
Who should I address a business introduction letter to?
A named individual with responsibility for the area, found on the company website, a professional network or by ringing the switchboard and asking. Getting the name right signals you did the basic work; getting it wrong, or defaulting to a generic salutation, signals a mailshot. If you genuinely cannot find a name, address the role precisely — ‘Head of Procurement’ beats ‘Dear Sir or Madam’.
What is the best way to follow up an introduction letter?
Say in the letter when you will follow up, then do it on that day — ‘I will call on Thursday morning’ makes the follow-up expected rather than intrusive. Keep the follow-up short and reference the letter. If there is no response after two attempts, stop and try again in six months with a new reason; persistence past that point damages the relationship you are trying to start.
This page explains general practice and is not legal advice. Requirements differ between countries and, in some cases, between states — check what applies where the document will be used.