From the day I learned to write, my parents would constantly tell me why writing thank you cards was necessary. During my entire childhood I always dreaded writing those thank you cards.  But, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to appreciate the meaning behind them. Now, writing thank you note cards has become something I look forward to doing, as I realize that showing appreciation and thanks is so important.

There really is no “correct” time to send a thank you card. However, I typically send them after a birthday or after the holidays. Basically, whenever I receive a gift from someone is when I send a thank you card. I’ve even made it into a bit of a system. Once I receive a gift, I’ll write down who it was from and what it was. This way, when I sit down to write my thank you cards, I’ll have a list ready to reference instead of trying to remember who gave it to me and what the gift was.

Another time that I write a thank you card is directly after any job interview. Obviously, these thank you cards are a bit different than thank you cards that you would write to a family member or a friend. For any interview that you have it is customary to send an email “thank you” following the interview but sending a handwritten message (if time permits) add the extra touch of dedication and personalization that your employer will be looking for. Below are some templates that I use when writing thank you cards:

Thank You Card to a Family Member

“Dear [Their Name],

Thank you so much for the _____. I’m looking forward to using it for ____. It was great getting to see you during the [holidays/birthday/celebration]. Looking forward to seeing you soon!

Love you!
[Your Name]”

Thank You Card to a Friend

“Dear [Their Name]

I’m so glad you were able to help celebrate [holiday/birthday/celebration] with me. Thank you so much for the _____ , it means so much to me! Can’t wait to see you again soon!

Love you!
[Your Name]”

Thank You Card to a Potential Employer

“Hi [Their Name],

Thank you for setting aside time to meet with me today. It was a pleasure getting to hear more about the team and company. I appreciate and am excited about the opportunity to join [Company Name] and help [anything you’d like to do at the company] the team. Looking forward to hearing about next steps.

Thanks!
[Your Name]”

Yes, thank you cards are perfect for after you receive a gift, but they can also be the perfect gift on their own. I’ve given thank you cards as a gift many different times. Specifically, I find them to be the perfect gift for an employer. In the past year I transitioned from one job to another. To show my gratitude to the last employer I sent them a box of “handwritten sentiment of choice folded note cards”. The sentiment that I chose for these cards was “from the desk of (their name)”. I knew these cards would be the perfect gift for them because they were constantly sending out letters to clients and potential clients, and the touch of personalization could only elevate the letters. Additionally, these specific sentiment cards could be a perfect gift for teachers. They could use these letters to write home to parents and the personalization would send a message of professionalism.

Whether you’re gifting thank you cards or using them yourself, a handwritten note is always more heartfelt than just sending a text or calling to say thank you.