Why Handwritten Notes Still Work in Business (And Why Almost No One Uses Them)
Most business communication today is fast, efficient, and completely forgettable.
Emails get skimmed. LinkedIn messages blur together. Follow-ups feel transactional even when they’re well-intended. Everyone is trying to stay top of mind, but most messages sound exactly the same.
What’s interesting is that the solution isn’t another platform, system, or productivity tool.
It’s something far simpler, and largely overlooked.
The handwritten note.
Handwritten notes in business remain one of the most effective and underused ways to build real professional relationships.
Why Handwritten Notes Still Work as a Business Communication Tool
In business, attention is currency. Right now, attention is exhausted.
People are overwhelmed by digital communication. Inboxes are crowded. Notifications are constant. Even thoughtful messages get lost in the volume.
A handwritten note interrupts that pattern.
It doesn’t arrive demanding immediate action. It doesn’t feel automated. It doesn’t compete with twenty other messages on a screen. It sits there quietly, signaling effort and intention before a single word is read. The feel of good paper alone communicates care before anything is written.
That alone changes how it’s received.
From a neuroscience standpoint, writing by hand engages different cognitive processes than typing. From a human standpoint, it signals something even more important.
This wasn’t rushed. Someone took the time and trouble to do something more meaninful and memborable than an email or text.
And in business, that matters.
Where Handwritten Notes Quietly Outperform Digital Follow-Ups
Handwritten notes are especially effective in moments that are otherwise transactional:
-
After a meeting
-
Following a referral
-
Thanking a client
-
Acknowledging a team member
-
Closing a loop without selling
These are the moments where most people send a quick email and move on.
That’s also why handwritten notes stand out. Almost no one uses them anymore.
Two Examples of Professional Handwritten Notes That Actually Work
These aren’t scripts. They’re examples of tone and intention.
Example 1: After a Meeting
Thank you for taking the time to meet with me. I appreciated the way you approached the conversation. Thoughtful, direct, and generous with your perspective. It gave me a lot to think about, and I’m grateful for it.
That’s it. No pitch. No ask. Just acknowledgment.
This kind of note reinforces respect. And respect is remembered far longer than a follow-up attachment.
Example 2: To a Client or Colleague
I don’t say this often enough, but I really appreciate the way you handle your work. You make things easier for the people around you, and that doesn’t go unnoticed.
This isn’t flattery. It’s observation. It’s sincerity.
And people trust sincerity.
A Time When a Handwritten Note Did What an Email Couldn’t
Years ago, I reached out to foreign rights publishers about a book project. I could have sent emails, and many people would have. Instead, I wrote handwritten notes.
Nothing elaborate. No grand language. Just thoughtful, personal messages acknowledging their work and why I believed the project might resonate.
Not everyone responded. But the ones who did didn’t just reply.
They remembered.
Conversations opened that wouldn’t have started otherwise. Relationships formed faster. Trust built more easily.
The note wasn’t a gimmick. It was a signal.
In a business environment where most outreach feels automated, the note felt human. That made the difference.
Why Most People Don’t Do This (And How to Make It Easy)
Most professionals don’t avoid handwritten notes because they don’t believe in them.
They avoid them because:
-
They overthink what to say
-
They don’t have anything nearby
-
It feels like extra work
The solution isn’t motivation. It’s friction reduction.
I keep a simple note card set and a pen within reach so this never turns into a project. When the moment feels right, I write the note while the thought is still fresh instead of adding it to a to-do list.
That’s usually the difference between doing it and not.
Why This Still Matters in a Digital-First Business World
I’ve written before about the science behind handwritten notes and why writing by hand creates deeper connection, especially when it comes to memory and attention.
In a digital-first world, handwritten notes in business still offer a quiet but meaningful advantage.
They don’t scale the way digital communication does, and that’s their strength.
They don’t try to reach everyone.
They deepen the right relationships.
In business, that’s where momentum actually comes from.
The people who feel seen.
The ones who feel remembered.
The ones who trust you before they need you.
You don’t need to write dozens of notes.
You just need to write the right ones.
The Quiet Advantage No One Talks About
Handwritten notes won’t replace email. They aren’t meant to.
They sit alongside everything else as a signal of care, effort, and intention in a world that moves too fast to notice most things.
If you want to make this habit easier, having something simple on hand matters. This is the stationery set I reach for most often when I want to write a professional note without overthinking it.
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
