Prior to email and the internet changing our lives, English teachers worried that writing was going to become a lost artform. Ma Bell had turned all of us into voice communicators, making lawyers the only letter writers left. Following this school of thought, typing classes were dropped from many high school curriculums.
But alas, the power of the pen is back, big time, along with keyboarding. It’s time to dust off the old grammar books and learn some new tricks on how to write a good email.
Email Etiquette
One of the first things I teach new employees and my adult children is how to write a good email. For instance, I learned the hard way that joking in an email doesn’t always sound the way you want it to. So, it’s best to stick to GIFs or Emojis when you want to be funny.
Of all the mistakes I see written in emails, my number one pet peeve is someone starting their email with “sorry.” Sorry, I am just now responding. Sorry, I didn’t see your email. Sorry, I don’t have that information for you, yet. This insincere beginning is akin to a telemarketer asking you, “How are you today?” For which I hang up.
Because nobody wants to date, marry, or do business with someone who is “sorry” it is best to jump right into the meat of the email and not waste your reader’s time. Example: “In response to your email, I checked and …” Or “I found your email in my junk and know you would like to …” Or “I’m still waiting on a call back from …”
Another good rule that will reduce confusion and the need for emails back and forth is to use specific words. Don’t say “it”. It means lots of different things. Be exact. Don’t say, “I signed it” or “sent it” or “did it”. Tell what you signed, sent, or did. And please don’t be lazy. Change the Subject Line when corresponding back and forth with someone. There is nothing more irritating than trying to find an email that has the wrong subject line.
To recap
- Leave the joking to GIF’s and Emojis
- Never start an email with sorry. If you must apologize put it at the end.
- Use nouns and proper words (replace all “its” with a noun)
- Please, please, please write in complete sentences. You may know what you’re saying but that doesn’t mean the reader does.
- Change the subject line to reflect what is in the email.
- Use hyperlinks to help the reader.
- Make sure your contact information is in your signature.
- Keep it short and concise. Our eyes, that stare at screens all day, thank you.
- And above all, be polite.
If the email you’re writing is important, get some help from Microsoft WORD. Type your email in WORD, use their spell and grammar check, then copy and paste your new word.doc into the body of your email.
Sincerely yours,
Kerry McCoy
(Don’t want to miss Kerry’s weekly blog? Click the “Subscribe” button on right side bar.)
