A fax cover sheet is a necessity for any business who uses both online faxing services and traditional faxing methods. The cover sheet serves as the envelope for the message which shows for who the message is for (TO), to whom it's from (FROM) and what it is all about (SUBJECT). While there are people who send fax messages without cover sheets, a message sent via facsimile that contains a cover sheet is deemed more important and formal. Can you imagine sending a letter without an envelope? I don't think so.
Different companies have their own fax cover sheets that are specially designed for them. It would often include their company's logo or a signage. There are also other information contained in the fax front letter like pertinent details about the company. Especially in companies where fax messages are not immediately read, it is important to have a fax cover letter because that would distinguish your fax from the rest of the messages that came through. Often, one fax machine accommodates the entire office composed of twenty or more employees. It would be pretty hard to know who the fax message is for if you don't have a cover letter.
More than the company's information, the sender's contact number is also often included in the fax cover letter. It should always contain the fax number of the recipient and his or her name. Page numbers are also included in the cover letter so even if the next fax sender does not use a cover letter, the recipient will know how many pages are included in your fax. Page numbers also enable immediate identification of missing pages, which is a common problem with traditional fax messages. With online fax, however, this is rarely encountered because every fax message is sent via the internet. Online fax is always more reliable than the good ol' bulky faxing machines.
You may want to include your company's website in your fax cover letter. It can be a good avenue to market your company and services subtly.
There's no specific layout of pattern for cover letters. All you need is a clean layout so that every bit of information can be clearly seen and read by the recipient. It is important that the sender and the fax recipient are never confused. It is often suggested that faxing cover letters should use of a ruled line to separate the heading section with the rest of the fax message.
Cover sheets need to be printed and filled out for traditional fax messages. On the other hand, since online fax uses the email technology, the body of the email will serve as the fax cover letter and your attached file will be the body of the fax message.
If you are a small, home-based business and you want to establish yourself through faxing systems, you can check out the internet for fax cover letter suggestions that you can modify on your own to suit your company's needs and your own preference.
