Effective E-Mail Writing

- Clarita Fernandes
 Objective

• Identify the pros/cons of using email

• How to use E-mail Wisely and efficiently

• Discuss email etiquette

• Examples and Exercise

 E-mail Components
– Sender

– Receiver(s)

– Subject

– Body

– Signature
 1. Sender

• Your Email address Says a lot about you

• Needless to introduce yourself

• Give yourself a name that is easy to

remember and respond to
 2. Receiver(s)
To:

• Write the name to whom actually you are sending the

message or addressing in your message

• If addressing to more that one recipients, mention them in

order of addressing
 CC and Bcc
• Recipients to whom you just want to make aware about the
message must be mentioned in CC (Carbon Copy)

• People In CC do not need to action

• BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) is used when you want to send the
message to a person but don’t want others marked in that
email to know about it

• BCC should be used cautiously

 2. Receiver(s)
Contd….
Example:

To: xyz@xyz.com,abc@xyz.com
CC: lmn@xyz.com,ghi@abc.com

Hi Xyz,
…………………
………………..
Hi Abc,
………………..
……………….

Thanks/Regards,
Ram Bakshi
 3. Subject
• Make sure you have a subject line
• Write a meaningful and precise subject
Example: Use Subject line to get reader’s attention
(Incorrectly Written Subjects)
• Subject: “Important! Read Immediately!!”
• Subject: “Meeting”
• Subject: “Questions About Meeting”
• Subject: “Do we need to discuss it during regular
conference on Wednesday?”
 3. Subject
Contd….

Subject: “Important! Read Immediately!!”

• What is important to you may not be

important to your reader

• Unprofessional Way

• Shows aggressiveness
 3. Subject
Contd….

• Subject: “Meeting”

Purpose of this E-mail might be a routine

request for a meeting, the announcement
of a last-minute rescheduling, or a
summary of yesterday’s meeting. There's
is no way to know without opening the
message, so this subject line should not be
used.
 3. Subject
Contd….

• Subject: “Questions About Meeting”

Fractionally better – provided that the

recipient recognizes your name and
remembers what the two of you last
discussed
 3. Subject
Contd….

• Subject: “Do we need to discuss during regular

conference on Wednesday?”

• Question in Subject Body

• Unprofessional way

• Lengthy
 3. Subject
• Correct Subjects:
• Subject: “Urgent: PQR# 123456”
• Subject: “Weekly Team Meeting”
• Subject: “Questions (Meeting Dated 26/04/04)”
• Subject: “Regarding Wednesday’s Conference”
• Subject: “November 11, 10 a.m. Meeting Reminder
• Subject: Call me tomorrow at 10 a.m. EOM
 4. Body of Message
• General Tips:

• Think before you write and Analyze the reader’s

need before sending

• Remember that you can always deny that you SAID

it but once you write it, you may be held
accountable for many moons

• Use Plaintext/MS-Word, though you can use HTML

page for a better and fancy look but you never
know how it will look like at the other end
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

1. Keep Your Message Concise:

– Remember that screen only show Approximately one

half of a hardcopy of page

– Keep message short and understandable. Do not keep

your message so short that the reader has no idea
what you are talking about
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

2. Don’t Type in all Capital or all small

letters:
– All CAPs looks like yelling

Example: “PLEASE DON’T DO IT UNTILL IT IS SAID.”

 4. Body of Message
Contd….
3. Use Standardized Greetings:
– Using first name is recommendable

– Use Hi or Hello with the first name

– Address the name and a comma

e.g. Preeti,

– First letter always be a Capital letter

– Beware of using Diminutive (Short Names)

 4. Body of Message
Contd….

3. Use Standardized Greetings: Contd..

– Avoid using Good Morning or Good Evening. Following

the Sun concept sometimes violates it

– You are addressing some recipients once in a month

than you can use “Greetings”

– If you are addressing a group of people use Hi All or

Dist (Distribution list) or Dear All
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

• Examples:

• Jack,

• Dear All or Dist,

Greetings……!!!!
…………..
…………..
Best Regards,
-Clarita Fernandes.
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

• 4. Proper Indentation:

– Skip Lines Between Paragraphs for better readability

– Always better to skip a line between two lines when

message is short

– Avoid using Tab in between the lines it might spoil the

format of your message at other end
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

5. Avoid Fancy look and Special Characters

– Never use smilies and other fancy characters. It is

unprofessional

– Avoid using don’t, didn’t and doesn’t, instead write the

complete word which provides respect to the receiver
– E.g. do not, did not, does not

– Avoid using abbreviations like LOL,BTW, etc.

– Highlight the important points, filenames, program name,

job names or dataset to get attention
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

6. Avoid Asking Questions Directly:

– Don’t Ask questions directly instead ask for confirmation.

Write your thought and then ask where you are correct or not.

– Avoid using Who, Why, How

Example:

“I analyzed and found the job in table <table name>.

Please confirm if I am correct.”
Or
“I am unable to interpret this……could you please elaborate”.
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

7. Use Screen Print and Examples

– Use Screen prints to explain the things

properly

– Use Examples whenever required

– Always use simple and understandable English

 4. Body of Message
Cntd….
8. Attachments:

– Avoid attachments unless they are really required as they:

• Take time to download

• Could transmit viruses

• Take up space on recipient’s computer

• Make sure you attach the attachment

• If the attachment can actually be a part of the email, avoid

attachments
 4. Body of Message
Contd….

9. While Replying/Forwarding a Message:

– Always use Reply All

– While replying don’t delete the previous part of the

message. It helps recipient to understand the context
of message

– While forwarding always give some amount of

information to the recipient about the contents of
message

– Beware of broadcast messages: in these case you need

to be extra careful and DO NOT Reply All
 4. Body of Message
Cntd….
9. While Replying/Forwarding a Message:

– If answering series of question, it is good practice to embed

your answers within the mail for better readability and
comprehensibility.
Example:
Hi Xyz,
Please find my response in line.

When the job is scheduled to run?

-<Answer>……………………..
When it does in STEP030?
-<Answer>……………………
 4. Body of Message
Contd….
10. At last always ask the recipient if they need some
more information or if they have any questions

• Avoid asking “if you have any concerns or feel free to

ask". Concerns means something serious happened

• It is also not recommended to ask “if you have any

doubts”. As it shows overconfidence to recipient

• Please feel free to let us know in case you need anything

more from my end

• Always spell check your message before sending

 4. Body of Message
Contd….
10. One point per email

• E.g. Changes in a report

Important interview taking place tomorrow

• Unless the meeting reminder is entered in the calendar,

the second point may go forgotten

• Better to send two separate emails

• The user may delete the one not required

 4. Body of Message
Contd….
10. Specify the response you want

• Clearly state what you want your reader to do

• Can you please approve?

• Can you please arrange the details?

• Can you please advise?

• Can you please provide us your valuable inputs?

 4. Body of Message
Contd….
11. Specify the time and date you want your response
especially if you are asking for some data:

• Appreciate your valuable inputs at the earliest

• Appreciate your response at the earliest but not

later than 5p.m. (IST-incase you have people
responding across the globe) on 5 Jan 2015

• Avoid using EOD (End of day) as that does not

clearly specify the time
 5. Signature
• Use a name which is simple and easily to remember by
clients

• Avoid using HTML fancy tags in your Signature

• Keep your signature short

• Use optimistic quote to build client’s confidence in you

 5. Signature
• It is always good to have signature as it conveys additional
contact information.

• Always include your Contact details in your Signature

• David Collins, Sales Manager

Quality Widgets Inc.
+91 9854444444 (cell)
555.135.1252 (Office)
Email : David@qualitywidgetsinc.com
 Email Expressions
Please find attached ………
I am forwarding …… to you (Resend)
I have cc’d/cc’ed/copied …… on this email
I look forward to
hearing from you
meeting you
your reply
Kind Regards,
Best Regards,
Regards,
Warm wishes,
 Arranging folders
Don’t delete emails but archive them
Create folders – year wise and topic wise
 EMAIL Wars
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem
I didn’t say you have an attitude problem

FACTS
DATA
------------
Emotional
 SUMMARY
• Some of the Basic Rules of E-mail Etiquette:
* Be concise and to the point
* Use proper spelling, grammar and punctuation
* Acknowledge the email and do not be silent on it.
* The least you could say is ‘Noted. Will do the needful’
* Answer all questions and pre-empt further queries
* Do not attach files unless absolutely required
* Use proper abbreviations and formatting
* Do not overuse the high priority option/ Reply to all
* Do not write in CAPITALS
* Avoid usage of unfriendly tone
* Don’t forget to say ‘Please’ and ‘Thank you’
* Do not expect immediate answers
* Do not send emails when you are angry
 7 Cs of communication

Clear

Hi John,
I wanted to write you a quick note
about Daniel, who's working in your
department. He's a great asset, and
I'd like to talk to you more about him
when you have time.
Best,
Skip
Hi John,
I wanted to write you a quick note about Daniel Kedar,
who's working in your department. In recent weeks, he's
helped the IT department through several pressing
deadlines on his own time.
We've got a tough upgrade project due to run over the
next three months, and his knowledge and skills would
prove invaluable. Could we please have his help with
this work?
I'd appreciate speaking with you about this. When is it
best to call you to discuss this further?
Best wishes,
Skip
 7 Cs of communication

Concise

Hi Matt,
I wanted to touch base with you about the email
marketing campaign we kind of sketched out last
Thursday. I really think that our target market is definitely
going to want to see the company's philanthropic efforts.
I think that could make a big impact, and it would stay in
their minds longer than a sales pitch.
For instance, if we talk about the company's efforts to
become sustainable, as well as the charity work we're
doing in local schools, then the people that we want to
attract are going to remember our message longer. The
impact will just be greater.
What do you think?
Jessica
Hi Matt,
I wanted to quickly discuss the email marketing
campaign that we analyzed last Thursday. Our target
market will want to know about the company's
philanthropic efforts, especially our goals to become
sustainable and help local schools.
This would make a far greater impact, and it would stay
in their minds longer than a traditional sales pitch.
What do you think?
Jessica
 7 Cs of communication

Concrete

Consider this advertising copy:
The Lunchbox Wizard will save you
time every day.
How much time do you spend every day packing your
kids' lunches? No more! Just take a complete Lunchbox
Wizard from your refrigerator each day to give your kids
a healthy lunch and have more time to play or read with
them!
 7 Cs of communication

Correct

Hi Daniel,
Thanks so much for meeting me at lunch today! I
enjoyed our conservation, and I'm looking forward to
moving ahead on our project. I'm sure that the two-weak
deadline won't be an issue.
Thanks again, and I'll speak to you soon!
Best,
Jack Miller
 7 Cs of communication

Coherent

Traci,
I wanted to write you a quick note
about the report you finished last
week. I gave it to Michelle to proof,
and she wanted to make sure you
knew about the department meeting
we're having this Friday. We'll be
creating an outline for the new
employee handbook.
Thanks,
Michelle
Hi Traci,
I wanted to write you a quick note about the report you
finished last week. I gave it to Michelle to proof, and she
let me know that there are a few changes that you'll
need to make. She'll email you her detailed comments
later this afternoon.
Thanks,
Michelle
 7 Cs of communication

Complete

Hi everyone, Hi everyone,
I just wanted to send you all a I just wanted to remind you about tomorrow's meeting
reminder about the meeting we're on the new telecommuting policies. The meeting will be
having tomorrow! at 10:00 a.m. in the second-level conference room.
Please let me know if you can't attend.
See you then,
See you then,
Chris
Chris
 7 Cs of communication
Courteous
Jeff,
I wanted to let you know that I don't
appreciate how your team always
monopolizes the discussion at our
weekly meetings. I have a lot of
projects, and I really need time to get
my team's progress discussed as
well. So far, thanks to your
department, I haven't been able to do
that. Can you make sure they make
time for me and my team next week?
Thanks,
Phil
Hi Jeff,
I wanted to write you a quick note to ask a favor. During
our weekly meetings, your team does an excellent job of
highlighting their progress. But this uses some of the
time available for my team to highlight theirs. I'd really
appreciate it if you could give my team a little extra time
each week to fully cover their progress reports.
Thanks so much, and please let me know if there's
anything I can do for you!
Best,
Phil
Thank You