Salutation is the greeting that can be used in a letter, SMS and Email or any other text. The style of a salutation can be both informal and formal. Valediction is related with salutation as each type of salutation is associated with the complementary closing letter which is termed as valediction. Both valediction and salutation varies according to the style and reader of the text.

Salutation can be used in different way depending upon the style of text. The most standard and general way of using salutation in the business letter is by opening the letter with “Dear” and it is also considered as one of the standard way of using a salutation in the social letter. “Dear” can also be used as an open salutation in the letter where the reader of the letter is not well known by the sender. If the sender knows about the gender of the receiver of the letter, “Dear Ms / Dear Mrs / Dear Mr” can be used. When an individual is writing a letter to two person simultaneously, both the names should be used in the salutation. In the case, the gender of the receiver is not known, the whole name should be used in the salutation or “Dear sir and Dear madam” can be used to address the individual. In case of writing a letter to the company, the name of the company should be used in the salutation after “Dear”. In case of simple business letter, salutation is not used.

Valediction also varies with the style of the text. The most commonly used valediction is the “Yours”, but it can only be used in the certain situation. When the receiver of the text is known, “yours truly or sincerely” can be used. When the reader is unknown, “yours faithfully” can be used. The valediction used in the formal letters is “Best Regards or only Regards”.