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How to Write a Formal Thank You Letter: The Complete Guide

Are you looking for the best way to say thank you to someone? A formal thank you letter can go a long way whether you’re trying to boost your career, help your reputation with a client, or ace a job interview. 

Thank you letters are both professional and show a great sense of how genuine you are as long as you know how to write them correctly. 

Showing gratitude can be done at any time and place because it is as easy as writing a simple and formal thank you letter! 

Keep reading for our guide on how to write a formal thank you letter so you can always be ready to thank anyone and everyone. 

formal thank you letter in bouquet of flowers with heart embellishement

How to Write a Formal Thank You Letter: The Complete Guide

Start With a Greeting

Regardless of who your thank you letter is to, you should start your letter by greeting the recipient.

If you know the person more casually, you can start the letter off by using just their first name when greeting them. 

On the other hand, if you’re writing a letter to someone you do not know as well, such as after a job interview, you will want to use their full name.

Make sure you also use a formal greeting to start your letter offers Preply

One crucial thing when writing a formal thank you letter is that you will want to triple-check that you are spelling the recipient’s name correctly.

Writing a thankful letter to someone and incorrectly spelling their name makes the message seem completely insignificant, which is not your intention. 

pen writing thank you

Say Thank You

You will want to open your letter just by saying thank you.

After all, that is what your formal thank you letter is for. 

This will be an essential part of your letter, but everything that comes after it will help give your letter context and make it seem more genuine to the recipient.

You will achieve much more than you expect by keeping it simple.

Everything is on the details, and these are the ones that cause the most impact when the recipient opens up the letter.

Some professional thank you letter examples will be of great help.

So make sure you check a couple of them before ordering or paying for any service.

Follow Up With the Reason

Once you’ve said thank you in your letter, you’re going to want to follow up with why you’re thankful.

If you’re thanking someone for their time, you can say what impact it had on you. 

Following up on your thank you and why you’re thankful is very important because it can help show the person exactly why you’re grateful.

 It is the whole point of you writing the thank you card. 

If you’re writing a thank you letter after a job interview, then you will want to find a way to make a lasting impression, and this is your opportunity. (Forbes)

Let them know how thankful you are for meeting with them as well as for the great discussions that you shared during the interview. 

Use a Looking Forward Statement

You will often want to wrap up your thank you letter with a looking-forward statement.

This could mean that you will see or talk to the person in the future, and you can use this to end your letter. 

For example, after a job interview, many thank you letters will end by saying that you look forward to hearing from them in the future. 

On the other hand, if the thank you note is a bit more personal, you may be looking forward to seeing them at a function coming up. 

Using a looking forward statement is a great way to make the letter seem more personal as well as make it seem like you will speak again soon. 

Thank Them Again

Before officially ending the letter, you should thank them again but in a different way!

Try to point out something else that they did that you’re thankful for in this section of the letter. 

This could be something small but still something you noticed or something they went out of their way to do for you.

Thanking them again can genuinely show that you appreciate them for what they do. 

End Your Thank You Letter

Now you’ve come to the end of the letter, and you will want to sign off in a formal way.

A great way to end your message is with “sincerely” or “best regards,” as these are both formal and professional. 

Make sure you write your name at the end of the letter so that they know precisely who is thanking them. 

If possible, you should make sure that you can sign the letter in your handwriting above your typed name as this makes it more personable.

Unfortunately, because most things are digital, this isn’t always possible. 

formal thank you note with red ribbon

Send With a Gift

When it comes to sending your formal thank you a letter, you may also want to send a thank you gift as well.

Thank-you gifts can definitely make you stand out, especially if you’re going up against a few people for a job or want to make a good impression on someone (Harvard). 

There are many other occasions where sending a thank you gift along with your thank you letter is also appropriate.

Friends and family who help you out in special ways will appreciate receiving something that you picked out in the mail. 

A thank you letter and gift can go a long way, especially when trying to say thank you genuinely.

Take the time to choose something that you think the person would enjoy. 

thank you note with forget me not flowers and macarons

How to Write a Formal Thank You Letter to Anyone

When it comes to learning how to write a formal thank you letter, you can go about many different ways.

Make sure that you take the time to personalize the thank you letter for each person to whom you’re writing it to. 

Letters are meant to be genuine, especially if you’re trying to thank someone.

So make sure to spend some time and get your thoughts out, even if you do it formally and professionally. 

Make sure to keep scrolling our blog for other lifestyle advice that you can use every day! 

About Julee: Julee Morrison is an experienced author with 35 years of expertise in parenting and recipes. She is the author of four cookbooks: The Instant Pot College Cookbook, The How-To Cookbook for Teens, The Complete Cookbook for Teens, and The Complete College Cookbook. Julee is passionate about baking, crystals, reading, and family. Her writing has appeared in The LA Times (Bon Jovi Obsession Goes Global), Disney's Family Fun Magazine (August 2010, July 2009, September 2008), and My Family Gave Up Television (page 92, Disney Family Fun August 2010). Her great ideas have been featured in Disney's Family Fun (Page 80, September 2008) and the Write for Charity book From the Heart (May 2010). Julee's work has also been published in Weight Watchers Magazine, All You Magazine (Jan. 2011, February 2011, June 2013), Scholastic Parent and Child Magazine (Oct. 2011), Red River Family Magazine (Jan. 2011), BonAppetit.com, and more. Notably, her article "My Toddler Stood on Elvis' Grave and Scaled Over Boulders to Get to a Dinosaur" made AP News, and "The Sly Way I Cured My Child's Lying Habit" was featured on PopSugar. When she's not writing, Julee enjoys spending time with her family and exploring new baking recipes.
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