The 26 types of cards (classified and explained)

Although they are not at their best, the truth is that letters have been the main method of transmitting information at a distance in history. Since writing and paper existed, human beings have contacted each other by sending letters in which they talked about all the topics that occurred to them.

Nowadays letters have lost popularity that is why there are much faster and faster means of communication. with the ability to transmit image and sound, but are still used for both formal and informal.

Next we will discover what are the main types of letters that exist, in addition to seeing some of its most notable features.

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The 26 main types of cards

There are different types of letters depending on what purpose they are written for. We cannot use the same type of text for absolutely any area or person with whom we want to communicate.

Each situation requires a different formality, vocabulary, tone and format. For this reason we find different types of letters, such as business, complaint letters, recommendation letters, for a friend, for a boss, for a relative ...

The brief definition of a letter is that they are written documents that contain information that someone wants to transmit to another person in a brief way, worth the redundancy. Furthermore, in several European languages ​​they are literally called "brief" or use a term derived from this word, as is the case with Swedish, Norwegian and Danish which is "brief".

But leaving aside the curious thing about its name in foreign languages, what we must understand is that there are several types of letters, each one adapting to the communication needs of the person who writes them and that can have very long extensions. varied.

In a very general way, We can classify the letters into two large groups based on their degree of formality: formal letters and informal or personal letters..

Formal letters

One of the most defining features of formal letters is that they are issued by a competent body, be it a company, a organization, a labor department or an individual who holds an important position within a company or institution respectable.

Also considered as formal letters are those issued by natural individuals, in order to be read by an organization or company to whom they want to address. Among these letters we find the following types:

1. Business letters

Business letters are any written document that occurs in the professional environment. These letters are headed by a greeting and end with the signature of the person who issues it, who usually has a relevant position within an organization.

These letters can also be issued by the organization's departments, such as human resources.

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2. Order letters

Order letters are issued by a consumer and received by the supplier. These types of documents are sent with the intention of asking the supplier to bring a certain amount of products.

In the order letters we can identify the following aspects:

• Quantity of product required
• Name of the product needed
• Product model
• Color, size and any other distinguishing characteristics
• Price expected to pay for the same
• Way to pay

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3. Sales letters

Sales letters are intended to get the person to whom they are addressed to purchase the product advertised in them. Persuasive statements are often used with the intention of arousing the attention of the potential buyer. In order to achieve this, in these letters we can identify the following aspects:

3.1. Appeal

A relationship is established between the issuer and the reader, making the latter feel identified with the content of the letter even when it has not been written personally for him.

An example of an appeal would be: Tired of paying for your car insurance?

3.2. Product or service description

It would be all relevant information about the product or service offered, answering questions such as what it is for, how it is used, how much it costs, how it can be paid ...

3.3. Contact information

We can find in the sales letters close with the numbers, emails and others ways of contacting the company or the store. Sometimes it also includes the physical address where the product or service can be purchased, and the organization's website.

• Related article: "The 9 parts of a letter"

4. Claim letters

Letters of claims or complaints are used for, as the name suggests, make complaints about a product purchased or a service received with which one has not been as satisfied as expected. These letters are sent by the users themselves. Despite being complaints, you should try to use a respectful tone and keep your composure.

We should not get carried away by emotions when we write one of these letters, because even if we feel anger or anger because of bad service or product received, we must maintain good manners so that the complaint is as clear as possible and see how they can return the money.

This type of letter should include the following aspects:

• General data of the issuer: name, age, address ...
• Data on the acquisition of the product or service: Date of acquisition, establishment in which it was acquired, invoices and purchase receipts ...
• Information about the product defect or poor service.
• Possible solution that you want to receive as compensation.

5. Recommendation letters

Letters of recommendation they are documents that serve as proof or that give good faith of the quality of work of a person.

This type of letter is sent when someone wants to get a new job and asks an employer with the one who previously worked to write a recommendation for the new organization in which he intends get in. These letters can also be issued by former tutors and teachers of the job applicant.

These letters include information on the attitude and aptitudes of the applicant, what activities he has carried out throughout his working career, the reasons why It is considered that they are suitable for the job and many more aspects of their personality or training that could be considered as positive and suitable for the position they aspire to exercise.

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6. Dismissal letters

Dismissal letters are issued when an organization wishes to communicate to one of its workers that they no longer require their services and that they must leave their job permanently. These letters include the date on which the worker is expected to stop providing services for the company and the reason for being fired.

7. Resignation letters

Resignation letters are sent when an employee wishes to leave their current job. This letter is sent to her superior immediately and it includes the date on which the employee will leave his job permanently..

Generally, the reason for leaving work is included, although it is not an essential requirement if it is considered a gesture of good manners and cordiality.

8. Letters of authorization

Letters of authorization are sent to give someone else the authority to act on behalf of the writer of the letter. These types of missives are made when the person writing is unable or unwilling to keep an appointment, a meeting or an important event in which her presence was required.

9. Acceptance letter

Acceptance letters are issued by an organization to communicate to an applicant who has been accepted. These documents include the reason the application was finally accepted, the date it is expected to enter as an active member of the organization, the position that she will hold and the period of time in which she will remain in the herself.

10. Receipt letters

Receipt letters are sent to let someone, either an individual or a business, know that the letter you sent has been received. It should be mentioned that these types of letters do not guarantee that the information that was sent with the previous letter has been read.

11. Letters of permission

When we talk about letters of permission we can refer to two types of documents.

One is the one issued by an employee to his superior to grant him permission to be absent from work for one or more days. This type of letter includes the reason why you must miss work and the number of days you are expected to miss.

The other is the document that a boss issues to his employee when he has accepted your request. This type of missive includes the acknowledgment by the boss and the date of departure and return of the employee.

12. Application letters

The application letters sent when a person wishes to apply for a position within an organization. This type of document can be issued in various contexts, such as to opt for a place within a university, a job, a role in an important play ...

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13. Transfer letters

Letters of transfer are issued by an organization to inform one of its workers that will be transferred to another department or headquarters. These letters also include the date on which the change will take effect, to which department or headquarters the employee will be transferred, and the position he will hold in his new job.

Informal letters

Informal or personal letters are those in which sender and receiver have some kind of minimally intimate relationship, which does not involve the business world. In this sense, informal letters are usually transmitted between friends, family and lovers. Informal letters are something of the past because, with the appearance of instant messaging services, their popularity has been decreasing and giving way to social networks and chats.

One feature that greatly differentiates informal letters from formal ones is that they do not have a specific pattern. Its format will depend a lot on what the sender wants to transmit, the type of relationship he maintains with the receiver and his ability to express himself in writing. Among the informal letters we can mainly find the following types:

14. Birthday letters

Birthday letters are issued to congratulate a friend or relative on her birthday, as might be expected. Good wishes are often included for the person being congratulated.

15. Thank you letters

Thank you letters are issued to show the person to whom the letter is sent how very grateful you are for the favors or actions you have carried out that have benefited the issuer considerably.

• Related article: "Psychology of gratitude: benefits of being grateful"

16. Congratulations letters

Congratulations letters can be written for a wide variety of reasons. They can be issued to commemorate someone's promotion, to have won an award, to have participated in an award at the university ...

Whatever milestone you congratulate yourself, The purpose of these letters is to make the person who receives it feel honored by what they have accomplished..

17. Welcome letters

Welcome letters are sent to welcome someone new to the neighborhood or high school. With these letters an attempt is made to express the good wishes of the person who writes them to the newcomer.

18. Farewell letters

Farewell letters are written when one of the two interlocutors goes to another place, be it a different city, region, state or continent.

19. Duel cards

Grief letters are issued to offer condolences to someone who has just lost an important person in her life, such as her spouse or a very personal friend. The sender exposes in them that he accompanies the receiver in the feeling and tries to console him, offering him his unconditional support.

20. Apology letters

In the letters of apology the issuer tries to communicate his desire to apologize for any action taken that has harmed another person. We include it in informal letters because, although they can acquire a formal tone, the truth is that can be sent to absolutely anyone, from a family member to a teacher or higher.

21. Friendship letters

Friendship letters are those that friends exchange with each other, in order to maintain contact despite the distance. This is probably the type of letter that has suffered the most from the rise of new technologies and instant messaging services.

22. Love letters

Love letters they are the ones that the lovers send to each other, expressing through them the affection and other positive feelings that they have. You can also send one of these letters to a person for whom you feel appreciation, without necessarily being a partner or someone with whom you have love wishes.

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23. Christmas letters

Christmas letters are sent in the month of December with the intention of wishing you a Merry Christmas, or in its more religiously neutral version, Happy Holidays to other people. These letters are usually accompanied by postcards that contain a family photo with Christmas decorations.

24. Letters to the Magi

Letters to the Magi, or from Santa Claus, are the ones that children write to ask these and other Christmas characters for gifts. These usually include a list of the gifts that you want to receive for the day these characters visit the houses, in addition to thanking them for the gifts received the previous year.

25. Letter of Invitation

Invitation letters are sent to ask recipients to attend a party or gathering organized by the issuer. These letters can be sent for different important events, such as a birthday, a wedding or a Christmas party.

26. Letters of various topics

Finally we include the letters of various topics, those that cannot be included in the other categories because they are not write for a specific reason, but are simply a casual exchange of correspondence between two or more persons.