How to Use the Salutation To Whom It May Concern

How to Use the Salutation To Whom It May ConcernHow to Use the Salutation To Whom It May ConcernTo Whom It May Concern is a letter salutation that has traditionally been used in business correspondence when you dont have a specific person to whom you are writing, or you do leid know the personenanthroponym of the person to whom you are writing. Of course, you should make every effort to find a contact name to use on your letter or inquiry, but sometimes thats just not possible. When its not, you can use To Whom It May Concern. There are also now other better options that can be utilized to start a letter,or the message can be written without a salutation. Here is when and how to use To Whom It May Concern, as well as a few examples of alternative salutations to use when writing letters. How to Find a Contact Name Ideally, you will try to learn the name of the specific person to whom you are writing. For example, if you are writing a titel letter for a job application, and do not know the name of the employer or hiring manager, do your best to find out. There are a number of ways to discover the name of the person you are contacting. If you are applying for a job, the name of the employer or hiring manager may be on the job listing. However, that is not always the case. Some employers dont list a contact person because they may not want direct inquiries from job seekers. You can look on thecompany websitefor the name of the person in the position you are trying to contact (you can often find this in the About Us, Staff, or Contact Us sections). If you cannot find the name on the website, try to find the right person on LinkedIn, or ask a friend or colleague if he or she knows the persons name. Another option is to call the office and ask the administrative assistant for advice. For example, you might explain that you are applying for a job and would like to know the name of the hiring manager. If you take all of these steps, and still do not know the name of the person you are contacting, you can use To Whom It May Concern. When to Use To Whom It May Concern When should you use the term? It can be used at the beginning of a letter, email, or other forms of communication when you are unsure of who exactly will be reading it. This might happen at many points in your job search. For example, you might be sending a cover letter, letter of recommendation, or other job search material to someone whose name you do not know. It is also appropriate to use To Whom It May Concern when you aremaking an inquiry(also known as a prospecting letter orletter of interest), but dont have a person of contact. Capitalization and Spacing When addressing a letter To Whom It May Concern, the entire phrase is typically capitalized, then followed by a colon To Whom It May Concern Leave a space after it, then start the first paragraph of the letter. Alternative Letter Greetings to Use To Whom It May Concern is sometimes considered outdated, especiall y when writing cover letters for jobs. Dear Sir or Madam is another salutation commonly used in the past, but it may also come across as old-fashioned. There are alternatives you can usefor letter salutationswhen you arewriting lettersto apply for jobs or other communications when you dont have a name of a person to write to. Here are some options Dear Hiring ManagerDear Recruiting ManagerDear Hiring CommitteeDear Search CommitteeDear HR ManagerDear Human Resources RepresentativeDear Personnel ManagerDear Customer Service ManagerGreetingsHelloRe (Topic of Letter) You can also write a greeting that is still general but focuses on the group of people you are reaching out to. For example, if you are contacting people in your network forhelp with your job search, you might use the greeting, Dear Friends and Family. Another Option Leave Off the Salutation Another option for starting your letter is to leave off the salutation entirely. If you decide not to include a salutation, startw ith the first paragraphof your letter.