17 Team Appreciation Emails to Steal

KEY POINTS

• Why is it important to send appreciation emails to team members?
• When and how often should you send a thank you letter to employees?
• How to write a good appreciation email (and 17 examples to steal).

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This article was originally published on September 14, 2021. It has been updated for relevance.

Appreciation emails are a great way to keep your entire team motivated and engaged. They also serve as an excellent reminder of why you hired them in the first place. A recent study found that 52.5% of employees want more recognition from their immediate manager, and 41% want more recognition from their immediate coworkers. But where to start? Start with an email!

Why is it Important to Send Appreciation Emails to Team Members?

Sending appreciation emails is a form of appreciation and recognition. According to research by Harvard Business Review, recognition in the workplace boosts productivity levels. But you shouldn’t stop there, studies also show recognition and appreciation are necessary.

What’s the difference?

• Recognition: An acknowledgment focusing on one person at a time—usually someone who performed well during a project. You may recognize someone with a reward, such as a gift card, cash bonus, etc., but not everyone needs to be recognized individually. Recognizing groups of people motivates and encourages teamwork.
• Appreciation: Recognizing something specific about someone. For example, saying “Thank you so much for helping me finish my presentation.” Or “I really enjoyed working together on the marketing campaign.”

Tying together the two will ensure you’re providing the attention and admiration your team needs to feel valued.

When Should You Send a Thank You Letter to Employees?

If it’s not on your calendar, it most likely won’t happen. Start with planning around a meeting or event that has a regular cadence. Perhaps write your thank you letters after a regular one-on-one, after a monthly team meeting, or an impressive presentation you know they worked hard on.

If you have a small team, try handwritten thank you notes. If your team is large, create an email template, but make sure to personalize it each time you press “send.” And whenever possible, share your same sentiments publicly. Public praise not only boosts morale, but it signals to the rest of your team what behaviors or achievements you value.

How Often Should You Send Thank You Letters?

The frequency depends on the size of your workforce. If you work with just five people, then sending out a few emails once per month would probably suffice. However, if you manage 100+ individuals, then you may want to send out a couple of notes per month. And if it’s a big event like a holiday or National Employee Appreciation Day, you might want to look into a Sending Platform, a cheat code to make bulk (but personalized) appreciation gifts a cinch.

The idea is to send just enough to ensure your team knows you truly appreciate all the good things they’ve done. Like when someone achieves a goal (both personal and professional).

Remember that your goal isn’t necessarily to get a response back — you want to acknowledge their hard work and dedication.

How Do You Write a Good Appreciation Email?

A simple but effective approach is to start with a general thanks followed by a list of specifics. Here’s what you could say:

• “Thank you for helping me complete my goals on X. It was great working alongside you!”
• “Thanks again for being such an amazing teammate! I really appreciated your help while completing Y.”

You can also make note of any particular contributions made during the course of the year. Maybe you mentioned in your annual review that they helped you secure a promotion. In which case, you could follow up with a brief note saying something along the lines of:

• “It means a lot that you took the initiative to recommend me for the position. Thanks for stepping forward and making my career path brighter.”

Next, let’s review 17 examples of appreciation emails you can use for your team.

17 Appreciation Email Examples to Send to Your Team

1. Sample Appreciation Email to Team

Hi Guys – Just wanted to drop you a quick line letting you know I enjoyed meeting everyone last night. The food was delicious, the company was fun, and the conversation flowed easily. Your efforts were greatly appreciated. All of us look forward to seeing you next Thursday. Have a wonderful day.

2. Sample Appreciation Letter to Employee

As always, thank you so much for doing such an excellent job managing this department. Everyone loves having you around because you’re very efficient and organized. Keep up the good work!

3. Sample Appreciation Email for a Project

I’m writing to express my gratitude towards you and your team for taking care of everything with the new website launch. You guys did an awesome job from beginning to end. Everything went smoothly and we had no hiccups whatsoever. Thank you for staying up late nights to get this project done. I’m glad we chose to partner with you instead of going through another web design agency.

4. Sample Appreciation Email to Colleague

Just wanted to take a moment to tell you how grateful I am for your assistance on the project. As usual, it was a pleasure working with you and I hope to continue collaborating in the future.

5. Sample Appreciation Email Thanking a Vendor

We would like to extend our sincere thanks for providing us with quality products at competitive prices. Our customers are extremely happy with the results—we will definitely be ordering from you again soon.

6. Sample Appreciation Email for Teamwork Skills

This week was one of the most challenging weeks of my life. However, despite all the hurdles, we still managed to accomplish our goals. I think that means we’ve got some pretty strong teamwork skills going around here. This makes me feel proud as a leader. So, please accept my heartfelt congratulations on a job well done.

7. Sample Appreciation Email for Continuous Service

Thank you for continuing to provide great customer service over the past few years. It’s nice to see someone who genuinely cares about their clients’ needs. I truly appreciate your hard work and dedication. Please keep up the outstanding performance!

8. Sample Appreciation Email Promoting Employee Wellbeing

Thanks for being there when I needed help. I really value your support and advice. It helps me stay focused on what matters most. I wish you continued success in your professional endeavors.

9. Sample Appreciation Email After Promotion

Congratulations on your promotion! I want to wish you well on your new journey—I know you’ll be an awesome boss and do a fantastic job leading this group.

10. Sample Appreciation Email for Out of the Box Thinkers

You’re not only smart but also creative. That’s why I love working with you. Thanks for thinking outside the box and helping make our business better. I’m sure you can come up with many other ways to improve our operations. Let’s brainstorm ideas together.

11. Sample Appreciation Email for Work Ethic

It takes courage to stand out from the crowd. Your willingness to go above and beyond is admirable. I enjoy working with people who put others before themselves. In fact, I’d say you’re the perfect person to lead this division. Thank you for going the extra mile!

12. Sample Appreciation Email for Leadership

Your leadership style inspires confidence within everyone under your supervision. The entire department looks forward to seeing what you bring next. Keep doing whatever it is you’re doing because it works!

13. Sample Appreciation Email for Work Anniversary

Happy anniversary! I just wanted to send along a quick note congratulating you. I know you deserve every bit of happiness in your life. I look forward to celebrating another year with you. Have fun tonight!

14. Sample Appreciation Email for Increased Customer Satisfaction

I wanted to thank you personally for taking such good care of our customers during these tough economic times. You always respond quickly and professionally whenever they need something fixed or replaced. I appreciate your efforts so much!

15. Sample Appreciation Email For Help With Project Management

As promised, I wanted to give you a small token of my gratitude for all your contributions to our company. I sincerely believe that without your expertise, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

16. Sample Appreciation Email for Referring a Candidate

I’m writing to express my sincere thanks for referring XYZ to the XYZ position we have open. I enjoyed getting to know you through this process and would like to take advantage of this opportunity by expressing how grateful I am for having had the chance to meet you. Thank you again for making this possible.

17. Write Your Own with our Appreciation Email Template

Here’s a framework to write your own impactful, thank-you email:

• Start off by thanking them for everything they’ve done for your organization.
• Move into specific details about their performance. For example, “I am thrilled to share that the project you spearheaded has landed us X amount in return, and our X leader was very impressed with your final product. A job well done!”
• Keep it short and sweet. Don’t go overboard with lengthy paragraphs. Instead, stick to two to five sentences at most.
• Try not to use too many exclamation points. They could come across as fake or insincere.
• Keep it personal. Make sure you include how much you admire them. Explain why you think they deserve praise. Let them know that you truly appreciate them.

3 Ways to Start Appreciating and Recognizing Your Team

Recognition starts with a simple “thank you” — and it goes a long way. Sending a quick note or gift of gratitude will remind your team you value their contributions. And it shows you care about them personally and professionally.

• Good: Start by making recognition public and easy to give, such as at a forum or team meeting where team shoutouts are built into the agenda.
• Better: Send an appreciation email. It’s personalized. It only takes a few minutes to write (or copy from our 16 examples below). And according to a study by OC Tanner, 65% of Americans claimed they weren’t even recognized one time in a year. Just writing that appreciation letter or email will help your organization stand out!
• Best: Implement a sophisticated employee recognition program, which typically yields a 31% lower voluntary turnover rate. According to SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management), when companies invest just 1% or more of payroll on recognition, 85% notice a positive impact on engagement. Whether you’re starting your program from scratch, or are looking to integrate corporate gifting into your employee recognition program, Sendoso can help.