Today, emails are one of the main forms of business communication and although the might allow people to communicate on a more casual level, they should always be handled professionally and never result in any misunderstandings. A poorly written or misguiding email can easily tarnish a brand’s reputation, so etiquette, style, and format are extremely important. Paying careful attention to your writing can bring you great results, significantly improving your success and productivity.
Check out this effective hands-on business communication training course by TrainingConnection.
Emails can be a great communication tool, but to make full use of them you should be familiar with which practices are good and which are bad when it comes to business email etiquette.
Contents
Good Practice
Source: Audicus
1. Consider your readers
You should always consider the audience when sending a business email since that will determine your tone and level of formality. Effective messages should not be too long since they can make readers quickly lose interest. Always think about what their reaction might be while reading your email.
2. Use email verification
If you are looking to develop your brand and business more, emails can be a good marketing platform. Email verification can be a great tool because it helps to ensure that the recipients of your mail are real individuals and not internet bots. This way, you will be able to reach an audience, generate traffic, and at the same time create useful contact lists and increase your Return on Investment (ROI). To learn more about it, you can check this site.
3. Consider the purpose
Always follow the ‘one thing rule’ when sending an email, meaning that your message should cover only one topic or request. Limiting an email to one subject makes it easier for the reader to understand it and avoids causing confusion or inefficiency.
4. Pay attention to the subject line
Keep your subject line professional and concise. It should reflect the body of the email and should never be left blank.
5. Use proper salutation
Lack of professionalism and maturity can be very bad for one’s reputation, so avoid using greetings such as ‘Hi’ or Hey’ and instead start your email with ‘Hello’, ‘Good Morning’, ‘Good Afternoon’, or ‘Greetings’.
6. Proofread before sending
If you want to be taken seriously and professionally, always check and even recheck for any spelling or grammar mistakes. You can always use online spellchecking tools that can help you in the process.
Bad Practice
Source: experto
1. Using humor or sarcasm
Without proper context, emails can easily be misinterpreted and lead to misunderstandings. Humor is usually culture-specific, so avoid using it in a professional setting since you can confuse the recipient or even worse, offend them.
2. Using all CAPS
Using all CAPS might make it seem like you are shouting and could also potentially lead your email to be sent into the spam folder. Instead, you can use bold, italics, or underlining for words or information that you would like to emphasize.
3. Using Emojis
Emojis are very unprofessional and inappropriate in business emails and can even mark your message as spam. It is best to never use them to avoid improper and immature business conduct.
4. Sharing private information
Always consider what might happen if someone who was not supposed to read your email, reads it. It is extremely unprofessional to disclose any private information that has been exchanged and it should always be protected, no matter if it belongs to a colleague, employer, or a client.
Conclusion
The number of messages we receive can sometimes demotivate us to write effective business emails. However, knowing the do’s and don’ts of sending them can greatly improve our writing productivity and readers will greatly appreciate a message that conveys information clearly, yet concisely. Sending business emails doesn’t have to be a scary or daunting task, as long as you use the correct methods when writing them.
