Although the death of email has been predicted many times in the last two decades, it remains a major platform for business communication, especially with external audiences. Use these strategies to ensure your messages meet your readers’ needs and help you build relationships.
Many of these strategies can also be applied to other platforms, such as Teams and Slack messages.
Email Etiquette
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Managing Email
- Pick up the Phone or Walk Down the Hall. Everyone’s inbox is cluttered with unnecessary messages that could have been replaced by a two-minute conversation.
- Batch Email Responses. It can be difficult to get work done when you are interrupted by incoming messages. Schedule time to respond to emails, such as first thing in the morning, midafternoon, and before the end of the day. Protect the rest of your time to focus on more important work.
- Plan and Revise Carefully. Follow a process for important emails that includes planning, rereading, revising, and editing. Early in your career, when you are establishing your credibility, every document with your name on it matters.
- Ask for Peer Feedback. Ask a trusted colleague to review important messages.
- Set an Automatic Send Delay. Many email programs, including Outlook and Gmail, allow you to set an automatic delay period (usually 10 seconds) before emails are sent out. This is a good measure to take so that you can double check for forgotten attachments and typos or stop yourself from making a hasty reply. Look for “Undo Send” in the settings of your email client.
- Turn on Automatic “Out of the Office” Messages when Appropriate. Make use of this email feature to let people know when you won’t be responding to messages.
Following Email Conventions
- Use Conversational Language. Avoid pretentious language or old-fashioned business clichés (“per your request,” e.g.).
- Attach Documents Before Writing the Cover Message. It’s easy to complete a message and hit send automatically, without the attachment. Attaching the document(s) first prevents this common error. Alternately, you can create a habit of attaching documents when you mention the attachment in the message.
- Include a Specific Subject Line. Help readers prioritize the messages that are important to them by adding key details and dates; see the topic Subject Lines in the Guide for examples.
- Use Both Signatures and Signature Blocks. Always sign your name at the bottom of the email, and have your name, title, organization, address, and phone number set up in your signature block.
- Begin with an Appropriate Greeting or Salutation: Use “Hello” or “Hi” and the readers’ first name for informal messages. Use “Dear,” an honorific, and last name or full name with someone you don’t know. See the topic Salutations in the Guide for examples.
Demonstrating Professionalism
- Read the Room. Pay attention to how more experienced colleagues communicate and model your practices on them.
- Be Paranoid. Most workplace email is public—your employer owns your email and can often access it at any time. It is also easily forwarded to an unintended audience. Thus, never put anything in an email that you wouldn’t say in front of your boss, clients, peers, or subordinates.
- Be Professional. Avoid humor and sarcasm. Exercise caution with jargon and casual abbreviations or emoticons. Never forward spam, chain emails, or jokes from your work email to colleagues.
- BCC Appropriately. Use the bcc function to protect privacy when emailing groups. Avoid using the bcc line to secretly involve a third person in an exchange.
- Take Time to Cool Down. Never send emails in an emotional state. If you have to write an email on a touchy subject, sleep on it, and get a trusted friend or colleague to review it for tone.
- Explain Delayed Replies. If an important email requires a detailed response that you don’t yet have time for, send a courteous and brief message letting your correspondent know when you will send the message. Be aware that in some workplaces email responses are expected within minutes, while in others 24-48 hours is acceptable.
Subject Lines
Always use a detailed and specific subject that expresses the main point(s) of the email—this means you often have to write it last. Try to craft subject lines that will prepare readers for messages and help them find messages and access key information later. Include key information, such as dates and locations, and key words to aid with searches.
Subject Line Examples
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Announcing a Meeting
Vague Subject Line: Meeting
More Detailed and Useful: All Staff Meeting Friday, May 5— Blue Conference Room
Asking a Question
Vague Subject Line: Question
More Detailed and Useful: Question about Planning the 2019 Convention: Vendor Details
Delivering Negative News or Saying No
No one will be eager to open a message with the subject “Rejecting Your Proposal.” Be detailed and accurate about the subject of your message without delivering the negative news in the subject line.
Vague Subject Line: Sorry
More Detailed and Useful: Response to Catering Request for Saturday, June 10
Expressing Thanks
Vague Subject Line: Thanks
More Detailed and Useful: Thank You for Covering the Client Demo Last Week!
Introducing a Message with Two Important Topics
Vague Subject Line: Flight Info & Update
More Detailed and Useful: Denver Travel Itinerary & Update on Ashley Gaffney Design Meeting
Making a Request
Vague Subject Line: Request
More Detailed and Useful: Request for Fourth Quarter Sales Figures
Proposing a Project
Vague Subject Line: Proposal
More Detailed and Useful: ABC Corp.’s 2020 Green Initiative Project Proposal
Replying to Messages
If you are replying to an email chain, but starting a new topic, change the subject line and delete irrelevant messages.
Salutations
Salutations
Take the time to address readers with respect as human beings and be sensitive about appropriate honorifics. Always address women you don’t know as “Ms.” unless Dr., Professor, or another honorific is appropriate. Never use “Mrs.” or “Miss” because these honorifics indicate a woman’s marital status. Assumptions about whether someone is single or not is best avoided at work until you have developed a closer professional relationship.
Note that some professionals may use newer gender-neutral honorifics, such as Mx. Conventions around gender-neutral honorifics are changing rapidly; be respectful of individual identities while being sensitive to your workplace’s accepted practices.
* Email is asynchronous. Only use a time-specific salutation if you are sure that your reader will read your message at the time you’ve indicated.
Formal Relationship & Situation
Dear Ms. Smith:
Dear Dr. Rodriguez:
Dear Professor Wong:
Dear Hiring Committee:
Dear Customer Service Representative:
Dear colleagues:
Dear first name last name: (use this only when you are uncertain about gender/pronouns as it can appear too much like junk mail)
Formal or Serious Situation but First Name Basis
Dear Joan:
Dear Ethan,
Dear Sarah and Juan,
Hello team,
Hello to all,
Informal but Professional
Hello Joan,
Hi Joan,
Good morning* Joan,
* See above
Hi all,
Hello marketing team!
Greetings, everybody!
Hi everyone!
Opening Paragraphs
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Short Routine Positive or Neutral Messages
Frontload the most important idea so there’s no possibility your reader will miss your main reason for writing. Avoid meaningless clichés like “I hope this message finds you well.”
Examples
I look forward to meeting with you on Thursday at 10 a.m.
The software upgrade will be live on Monday, May 3.
Could we discuss a composting program for the staff kitchen?
Short Negative Messages
Use an appropriate buffer; genuine appreciation for something is often the right choice. See the page on the Negative News pattern for more information.
Examples
Thank you for your interest in our firm.
I appreciate your thoughtful analysis of the benefits of composting.
Thank you for your patience as we shift to a new web host.
Longer Routine Positive or Neutral Messages
Use a short introduction that includes the following items. Organize them according to your audience and purpose.
Purpose: What is this document for? What problem does it solve or what question does it answer?
Context: What does the reader need to know to understand the information that follows?
Bottom line: What’s the key finding, result, conclusion, or takeaway you want your reader to understand?
Preview sentence: How is the information organized? Let your reader know if you’ve arranged the information chronologically, from most expensive to least expensive, or from most to least important, or according to some other organizational strategy. Make your organizational choices clear to your reader.
Example
Here are the electric service van models that would meet the requirements you outlined in our last meeting. The table below lists the pros and cons of each model, organized by driving range, from the longest range to the shortest range. The Rivian Commercial Van is the most affordable option with the longest range.
Longer Messages with the Potential for a Negative Reception
Use a buffer to begin, even if you choose not to use the complete negative news pattern, and then provide purpose, context, and preview, as outlined above.
Examples
Thank you for your thoughtful research on the benefits of switching to electric service vans. I agree that in the long term it will be beneficial for us to make the transition. However, in the short term there are some driving range issues that make it problematic.
The following list shows our current high-value clients. I have organized them according to distance from our office, beginning with our closest clients.
Introducing Yourself to Someone You Don't Know
If you’re writing to someone you don’t know, provide context they might need, such as your role: “I am the Hospitality Director at XYZ Company.”
You do not need to say “My name is,” since the recipient will see your name in the “From” line and in your email signature.
Closing Paragraphs
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Shorter Routine Messages
Include a short goodwill closing at the end of your emails to build relationships. The more specific and personalized your wishes are, the more authentic they will be.
Examples
- Good luck with your presentation on Friday!
- Enjoy your trip to Vancouver!
- Have a relaxing break.
If appropriate, express appreciation for something the reader has done for you.
- Thank you for all of your hard work in organizing our Jazzfest events!
- I appreciate your getting this done so quickly for our team.
Longer Routine Messages
The concluding paragraph of a longer message should
- Review very briefly why the topic of the message is important
- Include next steps – either state what you propose to do next or ask the reader what they would like you to do next
- Add a goodwill closing expressing genuine appreciation
Complimentary Sign-Offs
Complimentary Sign-Offs
Follow conventions. This is not the place for creativity in most workplaces.
Formal
Sincerely,
Best regards,
Professional but Friendly
Best wishes,
All the best,
Warm regards,
Cordially,
With appreciation,
Yours respectfully,
Informal
Best,
Regards,
Thanks, (reserve for contexts where gratitude makes sense and avoid using this close in place of a dedicated message of appreciation)
Cheers, (be aware that this can read as a pretentious attempt to sound British)
Important Note
You may drop salutations and complimentary closes once an email conversation turns into a back and forth exchange:
First Email
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Subject: Request for Information on Successful Tech Conferences
Dear Joan,
Could you please send me the article you mentioned that analyzed successful tech conferences from around the world? It sounded like it would be helpful for planning our upcoming convention!
Best,
Sarita
Second Email In The Series
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Subject: Re: Request for Information on Successful Tech Conferences
Hi Sarita, yes, of course, I’ve attached it.
Joan
Final Email In The Series
Subject: Re: re: Request for Information on Successful Tech Conferences
You are the best!