Receiving and writing emails have become an important part of everyday life in private or business correspondence. The English language is used for international communication and it plays an important role in writing an email effectively. Your choice of English words decides the reader’s reply.
When we write an email to a friend or a family member, we can be casual or write informal words as per our choice, but this is not the case with professional emails used in business communication. A professional English course can be useful to you if you want to learn about email writing in detail. These types of courses are available on digital platforms these days that teach about email writing, especially for official purposes.
Some etiquette rules are needed to be followed by everyone while writing an email in English to make it effective and clear. Emails may not serve the purpose clearly or look messy if these rules are not followed.
You do not have to worry if you aren’t sure about these rules of etiquette. A few tips are mentioned below that will help you understand how to write better and more effective emails:
Write a catchy subject line
The subject line tells enough. There is no doubt in saying that the subject line is the first thing that a recipient reads. The subject line appears on all the emails as we get them. When we get an email, we decide to open the email based on the subject line and the source. The subject line needs to be catchy, simple, and specific to the matter that explains its purpose. Take inspiration from other catchy subject lines that you liked, keep it short, don’t reveal what is inside, don’t tell a lie to make it catchy, and use familiar words.
Start the Email with Greetings
There are many ways to greet a person in an email; you may use a greeting that is relevant to the recipient. Some examples are mentioned below to start with:
Dear [Name]
Hello [Name]
Dear Mr./Ms. [Full Name]
Dear Mr./Ms. [Last Name]
Hello [Sir/Ma’am]
When the recipient is unknown, you may write “To whom it may concern”.
It is always a good choice to use a contact name to address the email unless the recipient is unknown. If required, you may also call the person and ask for the person’s name. Some people also use Hi/Hello/Good Morning. It depends on your choice and how emails are formatted in the organization.
Appreciate the efforts
If a person replies to your email within the given time, make him/her feel appreciated by thanking him/her. It is important to bring up a sense of positivity through an email. Moreover, this gesture will create a good lasting impact on the recipient.
Be precise and clear, and save time
Try to make your email brief and to the point. Simple and precise emails are considered good as they define the purpose at the initial stage of your thread. Most people do not have time to read the complicated emails they receive. Writing simple email content in English won’t only save the recipient’s time but also yours.
Try to keep your emails split into several paragraphs as per the requirement. You may also use bullet points to make it easier to read.
Be formal when the email’s purpose is official
Avoid using informal words, phrases, or attachments in a business email. There are various ways of saying one thing so make sure you are using the set of words and phrases that are useful. For example, instead of saying ‘Can you do this?’ you should say, ‘Could you do this? or ‘Would you take this responsibility?’
Deliver negative news with care
Delivering a piece of bad or negative news is not an easy task, but it is something that we have to do while working in the business environment. The better way to deliver the negative news is to provide the reader with neutral or positive information first. After this, you may deliver the negative part, explaining what caused it and why it is that much important. The final part of the email must provide a potential solution to the problem or a positive/optimistic note. We should not hide the problem, but give an impression that we care about it and we are taking action to minimize the impact.
Thank the reader
Before sending the email, thank the reader by saying ‘Thank you for your consideration.’ or you may add a commonly used line ‘I look forward to hearing from you.’
Closing of the email
After writing the content of the email, we need to write a closing line to the email also. As the email is already constructed beautifully, we should add a beautiful closing too. There are so many ways to do it and you can decide it as per the relationship between you and the reader. You may choose a suitable/relevant phrase before typing your name:
Yours sincerely [Formal closing when sending email to your seniors]
{Your Name}
Best regards, or Kind regards [Most common formal ending]
{Your Name}
Take care, Thank you, or Have a nice day [Personal Emails with good relation]
{Your Name}
Proofread your content
You should never send an email without proofreading it. It is very important to re-read the email to get rid of typos or grammatical errors. You may also ask someone to proofread your email for you so that inappropriate words, phrases can be omitted. Once you send an email, it cannot be unsend, so always check it thoroughly.
Conclusion
All of these general tips on writing an effective email in English will help you improve your writing skills as well as communication skills. You will get used to these tips with practice and become better at communication. For further practice, you can join a professional English course to refine your email writing skills. Make sure that you send a detailed email as a reader takes a reference to those black and white lines to make important decisions.
