
There are many situations where you would have to send a congratulations letter to a friend or colleague to express your wishes for some achievement or occasion. However, there are many people who do not know the exact way to write such a letter. This article would give you proformas of congratulatory letters, and some guidelines too on how to write a congratulations letter.
Situations that require compliments
You have just come to know that your dearest friend has received an award for the Best Businessman of the Year, or you got a text message informing you that your colleague has had a baby girl. These situations require you to send a letter of congratulations for his achievement or good news. In the same way, you would also have to send congratulatory letters to friends and relatives on special occasions like weddings, retirement, promotions, graduation, or anniversaries.
Formal and informal
Be it any occasion, a letter of congratulations is a good way of showing that you are happy for the receiver. The letter can either be formal or informal, which would decide the structure and tone of the letter. For instance, a letter to a friend would surely be informal, whereas, that to a subordinate should be written in a formal way. However, whatever be the reason or whoever be the recipient, there are some things that have to be followed to write a gratulatory letter.
Proformas of Congratulatory Letters
Here are a few sample congratulatory letters for you to get a better idea.
Sample Congratulations Letter to a Friend on His Success in an Examination
Elizabeth Hanson
12 First Avenue
New York, NY
Dear Tom,
The ‘NY Herald’ of today brought the good news of your excellent success in your Intermediate Examination. Your name figuring in the list of candidates passed with merit goes to add to the appreciation for your school teachers and parents. The way is now clear for you to join the best university anywhere in the nation.
What kind of university do you intend to join and which subjects do you propose to choose in your further studies? I would suggest that you should go in for commercial subjects as they would fit you for a managerial post in your family-run business. This way, it will be a double benefit for you and your family. Not only would you be getting an executive position suited to your abilities and capabilities, but it will also make it very convenient for your father to have his own son as the manager of his firm, thereby saving him a handsome amount of salary, which he will otherwise have to pay to an outsider, besides the trust aspect.
This is only a suggestion from my part. You are perfectly free in your choice in the end, and should be doing something of your own interest.
Please accept my heartiest congratulations on your well-deserved success.
Yours sincerely,
Elizabeth
Sample Congratulations Letter to a Friend on His New Job
Elizabeth Hanson
12 First Avenue
New York, NY
Dear Tom,
Words really fail to express my joy at the news of your selection as Administration Officer at XYZ Corp. Your selection was however no surprise because a man of your caliber and intelligence was bound to fare excellently sooner or later.
An Administration Officer’s post in XYZ Corp. is one of the most highly prized posts in our country, both from the point of view of emoluments and the wide and quick opportunities for promotion. A person selected on this post at such a young age as yours, stands a chance of reaching the highest post in the officer’s cadre in XYZ Corp. It is an added pleasure for us all that the place of your posting is just at a distance of 15 miles from our city, and we can always expect to see you almost every week.
We all send you our heartiest congratulations and best wishes.
Yours sincerely,
Elizabeth
Sample Congratulations Letter to a Friend Who Won an Award
Elizabeth Hanson
12 First Avenue
New York, NY
Dear Tom,
I have read, with great delight, your name published in today’s morning newspaper. You have won the George Washington Award for 2012, one of the most coveted prizes for men of Literature in our country. Your untiring industry, perseverance, devotion and immense service to English Literature have won you this honor.
My sincerest wishes to you. I join with your friends and admirers in offering you my heartiest congratulations. May your unremitting endeavor in the service of English Literature go on with undiminished vigor!
Yours sincerely,
Elizabeth
Sample Wedding Congratulations Letter
Elizabeth Hanson
12 First Avenue
New York, NY
Dear Sophie and Luke,
Hearty congratulations on your marriage, I am writing to send you my best wishes for your married life and bright future. I know that you two are made for each other, and now you have tied the bond of love and can look forward to a lifetime of happiness together.
Charles Dickens wrote “Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts”. My sincere wish is that your married life together will have this principle all through, and that your love for one other grows with each passing day.
Thank you for inviting Peter and myself to your wedding. It was such a wonderful occasion to be at. We were both so pleased being there to be able to share your very special day and to celebrate your marriage.
Sending you our heartfelt best wishes for your future together.
Congrats again!
Your friend always,
Love,
Elizabeth
Sample Baby Congratulations Letter
Elizabeth Hanson
12 First Avenue
New York, NY
Dear Sophie and Luke,
I send you my heartiest congratulations on the arrival of the little bundle of joy in your life. I know you both were waiting for this moment since a long time and I am thrilled to see your dream come true.
It is surely a moment of great happiness and both of you must be really overjoyed. I am extremely happy to hear that little Sandra is doing fine, and I wish her a healthy and happy life ahead. You must be really proud of her!
It must definitely be a busy time for both of you, but I am sure you must be enjoying the whole thing, and every moment. Wish you many more enjoyable and memorable days ahead with your precious little one.
Congrats again!
Love,
Elizabeth
Guidelines to Write a Congratulatory Letter
An immediate letter
A letter of congratulations should be sent instantly, immediately after one comes to know about the good news. This is important because delaying the letter would not have the same impact as a letter sent immediately. The recipient may not feel that you are not genuinely happy about his achievement.
Include personal address
If you are writing a formal letter, for instance to a customer, it is important to include your personal or office address at the top right corner of the letter. You also have to write the receiver’s address on the top left side of the letter.
Proper salutations
Begin the letter by addressing the receiver with proper salutations like Ms. or Mr., in case of a formal letter, or dear, if it is an informal letter. This sort of an epistle must be short and precise, so write the reason for writing the letter in the beginning itself without beating around the bush.
Express your happiness
Congratulate the receiver for the work done and express your happiness for him. Though praising is necessary in a congratulatory letter, do not exaggerate it to the extent that the receiver feels it is fake or sarcastic. Be genuine about your feelings.
Focus on the receiver and reason
Many people make the mistake about talking about themselves in the letter. This should be totally avoided, and you must focus only on the receiver and the reason for writing the letter of congratulations. Another important thing to remember is not to include negative thoughts or comments. For example, if you are writing a letter to wish your friend for his wedding, do not mention anything about their previous marriage or ex-wife.
Proofread
End your letter with congratulatory notes and good wishes. Once you finish writing the letter, proofread it well to check for grammatical or spelling mistakes before sending it out.
Creative writing is not a big deal if the thoughts behind it are genuine. I hope these sample letters of congratulations would help you in writing one yourself. The significance of a congratulatory letter is to show the receiver that you care for him or her, and his/her happiness means a lot to you. Keeping this in mind, when needed, go ahead and write a letter of congratulations, and I am sure the receiver would appreciate your feelings behind it.