A letter of thanks, letter of gratitude, thank you card, or thank you letter is a

letter Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech or none in the case of a silent letter; any of the symbols of an alphabet * Letterform, the g ...

greetings card A greeting card is a piece of card stock, usually with an illustration or photo, made of high quality paper featuring an expression of friendship or other sentiment. Although greeting cards are usually given on special occasions such as birthdays ...

that is used when one person/party wishes to express appreciation to another. They are frequently sent after an event (a birthday party, a religious festival or holiday) and especially when a gift has been received.> Personal thank-you letters and cards are often hand-written and the addressee is typically a friend, acquaintance or relative. Letters of gratitude are usually written as formal business letters, either to a client, a supplier, an employer (or prospective employer after an interview) or an employee as part of creating an engaged workforce.

Benefits

Some psychological research indicates that expressing gratitude by writing such letters can have emotional benefits, but this does not apply to all circumstances. News media have covered the tradition of handwritten letters of thanks from a cultural perspective, suggesting in particular that the extra effort represented by handwriting (as opposed to

text messaging Text messaging, or texting, is the act of composing and sending electronic messages, typically consisting of alphabetic and numeric characters, between two or more users of mobile phones, tablet computers, smartwatches, desktops/laptops, or ...

, for example) makes these letters more emotionally significant for sender and recipient alike.

Benefits

References

Further reading