How does your brand say ‘thank you for your purchase’? Wait, don’t tell me... ‘by giving them a fantastic product'.That’s what people who don’t truly appreciate their customers say.  And you don't want to be one of those brands.A simple thank you for your purchase note is a great way to show gratitude and delight your customer. Not to mention, you also ensure that you’re remembered for going above and beyond.Anyone can set up a generic ‘thank you for your purchase’ email to go out when a sale is complete. But genuine personalisation is what makes the difference.Whether it’s a friend, customer or client, a handwritten thank you note can make anyone feel special.Combine a thank you note with some branded custom packaging and you've got a first impression that cannot be better.It's small gestures like this that keep your customers satisfied and buying from you again and again.In this article, you’ll learn:

• How to write a thank you note to your customers
• Why 'thank you for your business’ is the worst thing to say to a customer
• How customer appreciation can be one of the best investments for your brand

Let's take a look at a few reasons why simply saying thanks can bring your brand so many benefits.

Why use a thank you note?

“We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives.” ― John F. Kennedy

Many of us wouldn’t be where we are if it weren’t for the help and guidance of others. Even more so when you’re selling a product - your brand wouldn’t be around if it weren’t for your customers. When your customers know they make a difference to your brand, it empowers them. It increases their emotional investment in you.How does this benefit you?Your customer values your brand more and because of this, they're more likely to buy from you again.A little ‘thank you for your purchase’ note is unexpected, it goes against the grain of buying something online. Traditionally when you buy something online, you pay for your purchase and you get what you pay for.It's uncommon that a buyer receives genuine gratitude - that is, something more than an automatic email.There is very little gratitude in the online shopping realm. But a personalised thank you note is a guaranteed way to bring a bit of that traditional ‘ma and pa store’ appreciation into your online store. Store owner Jordan explains:'We saw a massive change in numbers when we started sending out thank you notes. People came back and bought from us again. As we're trying to create a brand people want to associate with for the long run, this was such a valuable move'. The Etsy marketplace is another community where sellers thrive in customer service. They provide fantastic buying experiences for their handmade products.Many other craft sites encourage sellers to do the same. Sellers find success by adding some kind of personalized, handwritten thank-you.This makes it easier to get your customer to buy from you again.In the example below, you'll see a handwritten thank you note that Amazon Fresh sent a customer.

If Amazon can do something like this to show their customer appreciation, you can do it, too.In the next section, you'll see how customer appreciation helps drive more sales. But that's just one way to drive more revenue on a marketplace.If you want to discover more tactics on creating a successful Etsy brand, read the following article.

The Etsy Encyclopedia: The best online resource for growing your brand (read now)

Customer appreciation is an investment in yourself

If you’re reluctant to spend the time and effort into sending out thank you for your purchase notes, consider it an investment. Just like Facebook Ads and other advertisement investments, you can get a good ROI if you plan accordingly. Thanking a client for their business pays off in the long-run.Ask yourself the following?

• How much money do you spend on getting new customers?

Now, ask yourself:

• How much time do you spend retaining people who have already bought from you?

By thanking a customer for the purchase, you’re investing time in delighting your customers.This makes them feel special. The end result is your customer having a much higher lifetime value with your brand. A happy customer is one that will convert easier and may even become a brand advocate.Unless you send out hundreds of orders a day, taking 90 seconds per note isn’t going to destroy your business.Let’s take a look at the benefits of saying thank you for your purchase:

• Increased customer satisfaction
• Increased customer engagement
• Increased loyalty
• Increased word-of-mouth marketing

Basically, everything good for a business comes when you thank a customer for their business.But let’s expand on these points a little more:

Increased customer satisfaction

How often does a hand-written birthday or Christmas card put a smile on your dial? Your customers have that same ‘aww’ feeling when they receive a ‘thank you for your purchase’ note from you. They’re even gladder they made their purchase with you and talk about your brand to their friends.

Increased customer engagement

Customer engagement means that your customer is paying attention to your brand. The more your customers engage with your brand, the more they are invested in it. Customer engagement is also the main driving force for customer loyalty.

Increased Loyalty

When your customer is loyal, they’ll come back and buy from you again.  A loyal customer is willing to buy from you again and willing to spend more on a single purchase. ‘First impressions last’, so by making your first experience a memorable one, your customer will come back.

Increase word-of-mouth marketing

Social proof is the idea of people sharing pictures of your product on social media pages with their friends. Your well-designed product next to the handwritten thank you note will increase the likelihood of your customer sharing a photo of their purchase on social media.So regardless of what you sell, the benefits of a simple thank you note are clear.Let's take a look at some of the best practices when writing a thanking a customer for their support.

The dos and dont's of saying thank you for your purchase

There’s a handful of important things to remember before putting pen to paper. But none is more important than this:

Never actually say “Thank you for your business” or "Thank you for your order".

By referring to your customers' interactions with you as ‘business’, 'patronage’ or just an 'order', you make them feel like a number, a statistic.Think about it for a moment - what other phrases sound a little sterile and cold?

• Thanks for your order
• Thank you for shopping
• Thanks for your business

By using phrases like this, you alienate your customer and imply you’re only happy that you have their money.Rather than a thank you for your business in your note, try:

• Thank you for your support

• Thanks for choosing us

• Your support is much appreciated
• Thank you for shopping with us

Remember:

Business = business transaction

Support = relationship

What else do you need to know when writing a thank you for your order note?Do:Don't:

• Use the same tone of voice that you use in your product descriptions, social media posts and return policy.

• Be too cynical. Positive, happy and gratuitous vibes!

• Be genuine in showing gratitude and customer appreciation.

• Ramble on or go off topic

• Use appropriate stationery. Not the back of a business card or an overly branded letterhead

• Use a red or green pen. Stick to blue or black pens.

• Send the note in the customer’s purchase

• Go into ‘sales’ mode. A thank you note isn’t the time for that.

Remember: Focus on the thank you itself, not on the materials it’s written on or the potential sale you’ll get.

Below, you can see a thank you note from the team at Xfinity. Nothing branded, nothing fancy, just a plain simple card that says thanks.

But even the most stunning stationery means little if you don't get your 'thank you for your business' wording correct!Ready to learn how to write a thank you note?

How to write a thank you note

Thank you card wording can be a little tricky.But luckily, you’re going to see the separate elements you need to use to create the perfect thank you note.Use the following guide to create a thank you for your business sample letter that you can use over and over again.

Greeting

First things first, you need a greeting. Always always always use the person's name.

• Hi John,
• John,
• Hey John,
• Dear John,
• Hello John,

Saying thanksGet the point of the message out as soon as possible.

• I thought I’d send you a quick thank you note to say hi and thanks for shopping with us. Thank you very much for your purchase.
• Your support is much appreciated and I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on your purchase!
• In a world full of options, I wanted to take a moment and say thanks for choosing us

Extra personalisation

This is the part of the message that will take you above and beyond - writing something extra personal and specific to that buyer - without getting too creepy.

• I really hope you’ll enjoy <product name>, as it’s been one of our best sellers and a personal favourite of mine.
• Your address caught my interest - North Dakota is where I spent a lot of my childhood!

The personalisation in your thank you for your purchase note should be noticeable, honest and relevant in order to really hit home.

Closing

Finish things off with a casual yet friendly sign off.

• Cheers
• Thanks again
• Sincerely

Of course, each element needs to be fine-tuned for who you’re sending it to. A ‘thank you for your purchase’ letter isn’t going to work when you’re trying to thank someone for their business advice.Take a look at the following thank you for your business quotes to see how all these elements can create the perfect thank you note:

Customer thank you note examples:

Now that you’ve seen the important parts of creating a thank you note, it’s time to learn how to put it all together!Remember these examples are exactly that - examples. Each note will have to be tailored to you, your brand, your product and who you’re writing to. Feel free to copy/paste these and use them as your own thank you note template!

Thank you for your purchase note example for customers:

“Dear Mike,Just thought I’d send you a quick note and say thanks for shopping with us. The products you’ve bought - beard oil and shampoo - are a killer combination. I’d love to know what you think. Once again, thanks for choosing us, if you’ve got any feedback, I’m just an email away.Cheers-Phil “

Business thank you note example:

“Dear Peter,Our recent conversations have made me feel more in control and comfortable with the direction of our brand. Thank you so much for your help.We’re looking forward to working with Sublime Manufacturing for the foreseeable future.Bring on 2018 and go Wildcats! -Phil“

Thank you for shopping with us example:

“Hey Crystal,I just saw that you've recently stocked up on some of our products. Thanks a lot, I'd love to know what you think of everyone once you've had a chance to try it all!Also, for being such a great first-time buyer, here's a little something extra: Use the code CRYSTAL15 to get 15% off your next order with us.Thanks once again, looking forward to hearing your feedback!-Phil“

Thanks for your order example:

“Dear Paul,Thanks a lot for placing an order with us. You've picked one of my personal favourite shirts. It's my go-to formal shirt and looks great with a dark coloured sports jacket.I'd love to hear your thoughts once you've got your hands on it!Thanks once again!-Phil“

Thank you for supporting our business example:

“Hi MikeJust following up on your recent purchase with us. There are plenty of brands out there that do something similar to us, but we're ecstatic that you've decided to choose us.Thank you for your support!-Phil"

Thank you for your continued business:

“Hey Steve,I just wanted to take a moment of your time to thank you for continually choosing us. A recent look at the books proved that your guys are one of our most frequent (and loved) repeat customers. I'm looking forward to more of this in the future.-Phil“

So now that you know how to write a thank you note for a variety of situations, let’s take a look customer appreciation beyond the note!

Customer appreciation is not just a thank you note

Perhaps you’re already seeing the benefits of sending a thank you note. If so, take your game even further by doing something else to bring value to your customer!

• Every few months, send a gift pack to a random customer (Great idea for Social Media!)
• Surprise Upgrade - The element of surprise exponentially increases customer happiness. Randomly send a customer a more expensive version of their purchase.
• Send a treat. Is there a product that compliments your own product range? Pick a lucky customer or a regular buyer and send them something that complements your own products. Or cookies. Everyone loves cookies.
• Show that their feedback is valuable. If you’ve just changed the way that you operate because of feedback from your customers, be sure to let them know.
• Loyalty program - Lifetime value is the most important metric to follow in ecommerce. Creating a loyalty program to keep customers coming back is one of the best investments for a small brand.  
• Send Gift Cards - Everyone has an Amazon account. Throw a $10 Amazon gift card in with a random purchase every few months. Just another way to surprise and delight your customers.
• Be Charitable - People like brands who give back to the world. Align yourself with an environmental or social charity and donate a percentage of funds to helping a bigger cause. Some of our favourites?
• The Blue Cross
• The Prostate Cancer Foundation
• Save the Elephant Foundation

Other things to remember when writing a thank you note

This will take you time, but not a lot

As mentioned earlier, you will need to invest some time if you’d like to send a thank you note to every customer. But that time spent delighting your customer is an investment that will see them coming back and buying from you again. Once you have your generic ‘thank you for purchasing’ note established, you will spend less and less time writing.

Make it short and sweet

What makes your note special is that it’s quick and to the point. Less than 50 words is an ideal way to push the love home quickly.

It’s the thought that counts

Don’t forget that the point of this is to build a relationship with your customer. Being too sales-ey is a major turn off. Avoid using branded letterheads if you really want to get that ‘authentic’ vibe!

Messy handwriting adds character

No one is ever happy with their handwriting - that’s a fact. You’ve no doubt heard people say ‘I can’t write on the card, my handwriting is awful’. But when writing thank you notes for your brand, imperfect handwriting is what’s important. It’s the handwritten part that adds character and charm.

Thank you notes - What else?

If you’ve spent a lot of time and effort on your branding, you’ll probably have some fancy letterheads or some kind of branded stationery. But rather than jumping straight toward the fancy letterhead, consider using just a simple piece of notepad paper. You’re trying to build a relationship here, and if your attempt at building that relationship is branded, well, it’s a little too ‘sales-ey’!If you’re certain that you do want to put in something branded, consider a few branded stickers. Take a look at the example below to see how Buffer gave us some real customer appreciation!

Buffer send out a little thank you pack to anyone that’s involved with their #bufferchat and sure enough, we got our pack, too!

Conclusion

It doesn’t take a lot of effort from you to make your customer smile. In doing so, you’ll delight your customer and cement a place in their mind as a great brand to be involved with.Going out of your way to make your customer feel appreciated is something worth investing in!Do you regularly send out thank you notes with your purchases? Leave a comment below to tell us what you think of the concept!