While I am glad that Chicago addressed this issue, until the issue is included in the print manual itself, I strongly caution against using nontraditional punctuation in a formal email salutation after all, the recipient of the formal email may think that your nontraditional punctuation is a typo or think that you are a punctuation renegade (which may not be the persona you want to present in a formal email). Update: CMOS Shop Talk, the official blog of The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago), published a post stating that Chicago’s punctuation rules don’t apply to email salutations.
To whom it may concern capitalized how to#
Even the online Q&A section for The Chicago Manual of Style conceded that efficiency trumps formality in casual communication so don’t worry too much about starting that next email to your grandparents with “Hi Grandma and Grandpa,” rather than “Hi, Grandma and Grandpa.”Īfter you write your salutation and your email or letter message, you may want to jump over to “ How to Close Emails and Letters, Part 1” and “ How to Close Emails and Letters, Part 2.” Let’s be honest: the comma and period format can look too fussy for messages to family and friends. Hi, Sam! Casual Salutations between Friends and Family In this situation, a comma follows the interjection and a period or exclamation point follows the recipient’s name: Realistically, most of us will use an interjection such as “Hi” or “Hello” instead of “Dear” when inviting a coworker for coffee. Let’s grab a cup of coffee afterward, okay? Informal Salutations with Interjections I look forward to seeing you at tomorrow’s sales meeting. Thank you for the birthday gift! I really love my new bagpipes and intend to play them at every family gathering from here on out! Letters and emails to family are pretty much always informal however, the level of formality in business letters and emails will depend on your work environment and your personal relationship with the recipient:
Commas can be used after informal salutations that include an adjective such as “Dear.” 2 The trick is that you have to decide if your message is formal or informal. Agreed, thats why I have the following issue on 'To whom it may concern'. There is a common misconception that commas should never be used after salutations. 'To whom it may concern' are unaddressed offers in the mailbox that end up promptly in the rubbish bin.