Thanks Sincerely

At my place of business, we've instituted the practice of writing thank-you notes to new clients. A brief thank-you note really adds a special touch and shows clients that we are genuine both in wanting to help them and in being grateful for their business. Sounds like a fairly simple task, right? Apparently not for everyone :-) Given that my upbringing and my Southern mother and grandmother demanded that I know how to write thank-you notes, I can do them in my sleep. So after my boss asked me to address the situation, I sat down and thought for a few minutes and came up with the following tips and examples:

1. Start with a more formal greeting like "Dear Mike," instead of "Hi there!": they don't know us that well yet, so let's not talk like we're all buddies.
2. Write at least 2-3 lines (see examples below).
3. Use an appropriate closing such as "Thanks again" or "All best" or "Yours in health" and then sign your name.
4. Use cursive unless you absolutely must print; it looks much nicer and more formal.
5. Try to give your note a "personal touch" whenever possible (see examples below).
6. Do your thank-you note after you see your new client or at the end of your shift: if you wait to do it until another day, you're likely to forget. And thank-you notes always need to be timely.

Here are some examples:

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Dear Karen,

Just a note to let you know how much I enjoyed having you as client today at Blank! I hope your neck will feel much better in the coming weeks, and we look forward to seeing you again in the future.

Best,
Lynna

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Dear Inez,

Thank you so much for choosing Blank for your first massage ever! I hope you found it wonderfully relaxing and will be visiting us again in the future.

Yours in health,
Lynna

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Dear Nancy,

It was wonderful to have you as a client today at Blank. I was happy to be able to help you with your neck pain, and I hope that now you're feeling better, you'll really be able to enjoy your visit with your daughter.

Many thanks,
Lynna

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Dear Bob,

I really enjoyed having you as a client today at Blank. I know the elevator repair business will keep you very busy over the holidays, but remember to take breaks and take care of yourself. I hope to see you on my schedule again soon!

Happy Holidays,
Lynna

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This short list of tips and examples seemed to help amazingly! I actually got several verbal thank-yous for the tips and examples. Not that anyone will ever really love the task. As the truly tasteless joke told at many Southern universities goes: "Why do sorority girls hate orgies? Because they have to write all those thank-you notes!" But, well . . . . at least it's getting easier :-)