Which is better in a formal letter?
Dear Sirs,
Thank you for the information contained in your letter dated 18 September of this year, and also for the catalogue enclosed with your letter.
or
Dear Sirs,
We thank you for the information contained in your letter dated 18 September of this year, and also for the catalogue enclosed with your letter.
or
Dear Sirs,
Our company thanks you for the information contained in your letter dated 18 September of this year, and also for the catalogue enclosed with your letter.
I was told by a (Russian-native) English business writing teacher that we should not drop subjects in formal business letters. Is this true?
Regarding the comment:
I would get a better definition of "formal" from your teacher.
I believe that by 'formal' she meant 'any kind of letter between two business entities'. Any letter on business matters.
Best Answer
In the Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language (2003), thanks is considered a minor sentence, or more specifically, a type of minor sentence that is a "formula for stereotyped social situations."
In chapter 8 of "An Advanced English Grammar with Exercises" (1913):
The first example of such an elliptical sentence is:
"Thank you" without an explicit subject has been used since at least the 15th century, according to an article in the ICAME Journal (vol. 26:63–80):
So, although it is generally regarded as grammatically correct,
it might sound too informal for business communications. That is entirely subjective, though. Of the alternatives you provided, I think the one beginning with "we" sounds best(see edit below):Alternatives to thank you can also give the letter a more professional tone:
Edit:
Rather than rely on my own assumptions, I tried to find more references for business writing etiquette with regard to thank-you letters or letters of appreciation. I think now that my opinion was wrong about the implied subject for thank you being too informal for business communications.
I found a reference from the American Management Association, The AMA Handbook of Business Writing (2010), which gives examples of several types of business letters. In it, there is an 8:3 ratio in favor of using the implied subject form, "Thank you," rather than for example, "I want to personally thank you..."
In another book with business letter examples, 300+ Successful Business Letters for All Occasions, the first example of a Thank-you letter (pg 51), begins with "Thank you..." The second example on page 52 also starts with the implied subject form, although the last sentence uses an explicit subject "We thank you..." The examples of other types of letters often use of the implied subject form, too.