Writing Effective Emails CITE HR

8/10/2019 Writing Effective Emails CITE HR

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Writing Effective E Mails

Some Tips


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Tip 1:Make the Subject Line clear and concise

When someone scans through a new email, the only thing he/she initially

reads is the subject line. This helps the recipient to decide whether to open,forward, file, or trash a message.

So make sure:-

The Subject clearly summarizes your e-mails intentions.

Keep it short - you never know how wide the text display on the person'semail reader is - long subject lines will get truncated.

Don't ever send an email with an empty subject line.

Don't have the subject as "Hi" or "Hello there" unless the purpose of youremail is to simply say hello.

If your reply is not relevant at all to the subject line, start a new thread witha fresh subject line which more accurately reflects the e-mails actualcontents.


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Tip 2:Use an appropriate greeting

The first line of your email should be a greeting, followed by an empty line

and then your message body.

If it is the first time you are emailing somebody, "Hi (name)," should bepreferred. Using "Dear (name)," is too stuffy and awkward.

Salutations are tricky, especially if you are crossing cultures.

Frequently, titles are different for men and women, and you may not be ableto tell which you are addressing.The family name is first in some cultures and last in others.Honorifics may vary based on status or age.Make sure you have got all this right before you proceed with the email.

E.g.: It is safer to use "Ms." instead of "Miss" or "Mrs." unless you know thepreference of the woman in question.


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Tip 3:The Page Layout

Usually people find it hard to read words on a computer screen than on

paper. To make your email easy to read :-

1. Use Shorter Paragraphs - Consider breaking up paragraphs to only a fewsentences a piece. That way the readers can easily see new paragraphs as

they end and begin. They don't have to scroll.2. Use Less Words - Long sentences are not appropriate for most e-mail,

especially business e-mail. Keep your sentences to a maximum of 12-15words.

3. Keep it Short- A good rule of thumb is to keep everything on one

"page" or one "screen." In most cases this means about 20-30 lines.4. Provide blank linesbetween each paragraph.


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Tip 4:Formatting

Put all important details at the top of the email body (or even better, in

the Subject line).Don't bury a key piece of information in a large paragraphand expect a busy person to extract it upon first reading. The larger theparagraph (and the more paragraphs there are), the more likely are thechances of the reader missing a particular point you are trying to make.

Keep the rest of the email short (8 sentences max.). After you've madeyour main point, the rest of the sentences in your email should provideadditional supporting information.

Your goal is to have the person read your email and hopefully respond to it

within a short time period so keep your e-mail as short as possible to make

it easier for your reader to com prehend.


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Tip 5:Keep the message focused and readable.

Often recipients only read partway through a long message, hit "reply" assoon as they have something to contribute, and forget to keep reading. Thisis part of human nature.

If your e-mail contains multiple messagesthat are only loosely related, in

order to avoid the risk that your reader will reply only to the first item thatgrabs his or her fancy, you could number your points to ensure they are allread.

The final sentence- Either provide something concrete to reply to or make

it clear that a reply is not necessary.

E.g.: "Please let me know what appointment times work best for you." or "Ilook forward to seeing you tomorrow at 1pm in my office."


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Tip 6:Use Appropriate Language

1. Do not use:-(a) Smilies. E.g.: :-), :-(etc.(b) Abbreviations. E.g.: IIRC for "if I recall correctly", BTW for by theway, LOL for "laughing out loud," etc.(c) Non-standard punctuation and spellings(like that found in instantmessaging or chat rooms). E.g.: gimme (give me), tht (that), dificlt(difficult), vil (will), etc.

These linguistic shortcuts are generally signs of friendly intimacy so arenot considered appropriate for business e-mails.

2. All-caps means shouting. Regardless of your intentions, people willinterpret this as your being aggressive.

3. Use active instead of passive. Try to use the active voice of a verbwherever possible.For instance, 'We will take care of your request today', sounds betterthan 'Your request will be taken care of today'.


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Tip 7: Proof-read

If you are sending a message that will be read by a client, or someone higher

up on the chain of command (a superior or a manager, for instance), or if

you're about to mass-mail dozens or thousands of people, take an extra

minute or two before you hit send .

Poor spelling and grammar show a lack of attention to detailand sends thewrong message about yourself and how you do business.

By reading your e-mail over before you send it you can catch and correctall sorts of mistakes before they get to the recipient and possibly create a badimpression or put you and/or your company in hot water.

Spell checker won't catch every mistake, at the very least it will catch afew typos.

If you are asking someone else to do work for you take the time to make

your m essage look professional.


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Tip 8: Use the To: and Cc: fields appropriately

Usually it is implied that if you have included someone in the To: field,

then he/she is an intended recipient and should reply if required.

If someone is in the Cc: field, then the email is merely an FYI ('for yourinformation') for him/her, and he/she is not expected to reply.

If you want a particular person to reply to a specific part of your email,make that clear (e.g., "Sarah, could you forward me last week's budget?"), orif you want everyone to reply, you can say something like "I wouldappreciate everyone's feedback about my ideas."

When an email has more than one recipient, there is the danger of nobodyreplying because everyone thinks that someone else has already replied.That is why "Reply to All might be a good idea to show that you havealready replied so that somebody else does not later duplicate theinformation you have just provided.


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Lets summarize:-

DOs

:-

Write an informative subject line.

Be courteous.

Put the key point of your message up front.

Be brief.

Make it easy for the reader to reply yes or no or give a short answer.

End well with an appropriate next step.

Wait and check before pressing 'send' Proof-read.

Make yourself look good online because your email can be forwarded to

anyone or everyone else in the company or anywhere.

Respond promptly.


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Lets summarize:-

DONT s

:-

Don't leave the Subject Line blank.

Don't use all capital letters.

Don't use emoticons or abbreviations.

Don't send without checking for mistakes.

Dont assume that people have time to read your entire message

Dont think that an e

-mail is good for everything.

Dont write an e-mail when you are rushed.


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THANK YOU

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Writing Effective Emails CITE HR