Opening your account inbox can sometimes be like opening a Pandora's box full of ungrammatical phrases, misspelled spelling, or bad taste. Consider what impression your emails make on others when they read them; it's always the right time to make your emails stand out from the rest. To improve your style, you can follow these tips in this article.
Steps
Step 1. Use the various fields correctly
If you are sending a message to a single recipient, put the address in the "to" field. If you want to send the same message in copy to other recipients, write the addresses in the "cc" field. Pay attention that all recipients will see the addresses of others, unless this is not appropriate, in which case you should use the "bcc" field, for example to protect the privacy of interlocutors who do not know each other. This last option could be considered rude within corporate contexts (among colleagues), whoever receives the message as the main recipient is understood to have to act on the subject, while whoever receives a copy is only informed of it.
Step 2. Avoid giving the message a high priority
It is irritating and presumptuous to believe that your message is more important than others and requires attention before others, especially in the business world. You must be courteous enough to let it be at the discretion of your interlocutor. Break free from the habit of marking each message as "Urgent!" or "Priority!", otherwise you risk your emails being ignored.
Step 3. Be careful when to request a read receipt
In some cases the read receipt is used to keep track of when the message is read, or to prove that it has been received, but in most cases it is just annoying, and forces the recipient to take some additional action. If a message is really urgent, or if you need to be sure it's been read, use the phone.
Step 4. Use the "subject" field correctly
A good subject line gives a summary of what the message contains, preparing the recipient for reading. The inbox is often very full of messages, and a good subject remains in evidence to decide which priority to give when replying. Also, a good subject line prevents your message from being deleted before it is read. Since the subject is the first thing that is read, keep the style short and correct, and avoid generic sentences.
Step 5. Stick to one style
Some email formats use leading or indenting for each new paragraph. In other cases there is a double space at the end of each sentence. Choose whether to write numbers in letters or numbers, don't use both in the same text. If a name or word is capitalized, it must be capitalized even if used later.
Step 6. Greet your interlocutor
The letters begin with the usual words "Dear…". On the other hand, e-mails are usually less formal, and it is usually sufficient to write "Hello…". Whether it's a formal message or a reply to a job posting, you should keep the more classic form of greeting. Courtesy is never too much.
Step 7. Keep your style concise, fluid, and purposeful
It is more difficult to read on a screen than reading a sheet of paper, so try to write short and detailed messages. There is no defined length for a message, but it is better to send short sentences, and separate the paragraphs from each other.
Step 8. Write grammatically correct and without spelling errors
A message full of errors or broken sentences, or with random or even non-existent punctuation, is much more difficult to read, and shows the recipient that their time is less valuable to you than yours. Use correct language, proofread the text, and use an automatic spelling checker, as you would for writing other texts.
Step 9. Avoid weird formatting
Changing fonts or colors, inserting symbols or numbered lists, or using other HTML elements can make the message bizarre or even unreadable, even if it all looks nice on your screen. Choose simplicity.
Step 10. Schedule when to respond
Unlike traditional mail, emails arrive instantly, as we all know. Each of us expects a quick response, and it is okay to try to meet this expectation, but sometimes it is necessary to decide when to spend time reading and replying to messages, in order to better manage time. Let colleagues know that urgent matters need to be communicated over the phone, or in a meeting, and that messages you receive will be answered at a certain time. Colleagues will quickly adapt to your method.
Step 11. Choose who to reply to
Messages that you receive from only one interlocutor usually require a reply from the person who wrote you, but for messages with multiple recipients you will have to reply by choosing the "Reply to all" option. Use this option with caution, as there is an easy risk of sending long chains of messages destined to be forgotten in many people's inboxes. Imagine if you receive a message and reply to everyone, maybe twenty people will receive this answer and will feel compelled to reply to everyone in turn: in short, thousands of useless messages are generated just because no one knows who should act on it and everyone feels under obligation to keep others informed.
Step 12. Reconsider whether to send a thank you message only
For some people a simple thank you email is useless, it just takes time to read and delete it. Recently, the English abbreviation "NTN" - "No Thanks Needed", or "no need to thank" has spread.
Step 13. Be careful to include the original text of the message in your reply
Generally, unless it is a business message, replying by making corrections or comments to the original message should be done with caution, not everyone expects you to comment on their text, indeed this can be offensive if not done with care.
- Any citations must be kept short and limited to making the interlocutor understand what you are communicating, especially since the original text is usually reported at the end of what you write.
- Highlight the points you are dealing with, and make it easy to identify the passages of the original message you are referring to. Take the part of the original text that interests you and copy it, highlighting it with a ">", then following your comments or answers on the matter.
- Organize your response so that each quote is evident and followed by your response on the matter. Delete what is not useful for understanding (especially headings and signatures).
- Numbering or ordering citations according to a list can be a good idea.
Step 14. Be careful to write down all the information that is asked of you
Many people and offices respond to a large amount of messages every day, so avoid equivocal messages such as a simple "yes". Write the original question along with your answer.
Step 15. End your message politely
Ending the message with a phrase like "Good luck", or "Kindest regards", or "Thanks in advance for your help" can help smooth out even the tone of a harsh message, and stimulate a more favorable response.
Step 16. Sign the message
Signing is a sign of respect and courtesy. Write your name at the end of the message, or create a standard signature in your email settings, including name, title and contacts.
Step 17. Limit attachments
Do not attach files unnecessarily. Make attachments as light as possible. Most accounts can send and receive attachments up to 1MB, but heavier attachments may be rejected, while even lighter files can be difficult to open if the recipient's connection is slow. If you need to send large attachments, compress them or upload them to a dedicated site. Finally, use paper and postal mail (or fax) for very long texts or with a lot of corrections.
Step 18. Don't send zipped attachments unnecessarily
If an attachment is not too large, avoid creating a zip folder, or you risk wasting the recipient's time, as well as risking that they will not be able to access the attachment, for example if they are using a mobile device that is unable to unzip the zip file. It is often useless also because the most common formats such as.xlsx,.docx,.pptx (MS Excel, Word and Powerpoint) are already compressed.
Step 19. Don't ignore valid emails
If someone asks you a correct question, answer them, even if the answer is not complete or perfectly on topic. If the matter needs to be addressed by someone else, copy who sent the message originally when forwarding it to whoever is responsible so that everyone knows how it is going. Being ignored is frustrating. If the person was standing in front of you, or even on the phone, it would be hard for you to ignore them, so don't even do it via email.
Step 20. Pay attention to who you copy in your answers
If you reply to a message and copy a person who did not receive the original communication, you must be sure that this is good for the person who wrote you, and consider that perhaps he / she wanted the information to be intended only for you. This especially applies to messages you receive from superiors in the workplace. Also pay attention to how you use the "bcc" send field, a recipient may not realize they have received a blind copy and openly reply to everyone.
Step 21. Think clear before you write
Don't text if you're upset. Write a draft and save it, but add the address and send only after you have thought about what you wrote: you may review some steps and prevent problems. Better still if you pick up the phone and talk directly to the recipient of the message, or visit him. The tone of an email can easily be misunderstood, while the voice or face is easier to decipher.
Step 22. Don't write all caps
The uppercase indicates that you are shouting, and can annoy the recipient, making him respond in kind.
Step 23. Be careful when using abbreviations or smilies
They are acceptable in informal messages, such as between friends, but not in formal emails, where they can be seen as inappropriate, and make you appear frivolous.
Step 24. Don't forward chain letters unless you want to attract the ire of all recipients
Chains clog the inbox and are hated by almost everyone.
Advice
- If you need time to reply to a message, to think or to do some research, or perhaps because you are too busy, you can write a short message in the meantime letting the other person know that you have received their message, and telling them when you expect to be able to. answer.
- Leave a blank line between paragraphs to make your message easier to read. It is not useful to indent the text, which is usually avoided in an email.
- Some abbreviations are common and acceptable in email messages, except in the most formal cases.
- Emoticons or smilies created by combining characters such as ";-)" can be used in informal messages to better express your emotions, but should be avoided in professional contexts.
- In a written message at work, show your respect for the recipient by immediately getting to the point: "I expect you to do …" "I think we will have to act …" then detailing the suggested actions. Many people only read the first few sentences of the message to decide whether to reply now or later. The first few sentences therefore serve to give sufficient information for an informed decision. In personal messages, it's often a good idea to start with a friendly greeting before moving on to the actual message.
- When you reply to a message, you can save everyone time by anticipating the answer to doubts or questions that your message can generate. Resolve these points immediately, before the interlocutor has to answer you by asking the questions you already expect.
- If the message you are writing is about delicate or sensitive topics, so that you choose your words carefully, do not enter the recipient's address until you have completed the message. This will prevent the message from being sent by mistake.
Warnings
- Abbreviations and spelling other than normal may be acceptable in informal messages, but use them carefully as they are not always easy to understand for the recipient.
- Attachments can be vehicles of computer viruses, avoid opening an attachment if it does not come from a sender you consider safe. Keep in mind that many people and offices do not open attachments they receive via email from unknown senders, and some email accounts directly filter messages with attachments in the spam folder, so if you send a resume or reply to a job posting, do be careful to follow the instructions on how to send attachments. If there are no specific instructions, send a message to announce that you will send an attachment with a second message.
- Don't expect the content of the message you send to be considered private. Be careful what you write as it could harm you in the future.
- Don't reply to spam messages, and don't open messages that look like spam to you. Some spam mails tell you to click to get removed from the mailing list, but in reality they just try to verify that your account is active.
- Email has become a means of asking or saying things you wouldn't normally say in an in-person conversation (you may have wondered why each of us becomes another person as soon as we enter the network?). If you send any kind of message to anyone, first reread it asking yourself if you would say the same things if the person were present and you could speak to them directly. If the topic is tricky, reread the message twice before sending it.
- Don't use your professional signature for personal messages - it will make you feel unfriendly.
