Rules governing how to write effective business emails

Email etiquette

The rules governing correct protocols for business email writing continually change in line with expectations and exasperation in the contemporary workplace.

Much of the advice focuses on what to say (and what NOT to say) when composing the email itself but little graft is given to the etiquette about when to send the email and who to send it to and all the iffy scenarios in between.

Again, little mishaps or errors of judgement on your part can play a major role in whether the recipient reacts negatively or responds positively to your email communication.

Do’s
Use clear and concise language
Keep it short and sweet
Confirm receiving email and reply within 24 hours
Retain message thread for background (REPLY)
Add signature and liability disclaimers
Develop an in-house email policy

Don’t
Use CAPITAL letters, acronyms and emoticons
Write angry or use sarcasm
Request delivery and read receipts
Use offensive, racist, sexist or obscene remarks
Forward virus hoaxes and chain letters
Reply to spam
Overuse IMPORTANT or HIGH PRIORITY
Discuss confidential information

CC, BCC and Reply All rules
Avoid typing all addresses in “To” field
Use CC if appropriate to share addresses
Make clear who needs to respond/ take action
Use BCC to maintain client confidentiality
Consider using MailMerge instead
Limit Reply All unless all need to see response

Attachments
Request permission to send attachment
Avoid sending large attachments
Only send relevant attachments
Send compressed files
Advise reader about attachment content
Ensure anti-virus in place

Back to GAPS from Email etiquette: do’s and dont’s of sending business emails.

Avoid being too precious about your original thoughts. Be prepared to write multiple drafts until you get it right. Make no mistake that it can be difficult to write simply and therefore takes a lot of practise.

Mastering the written word boils down to a few simple rules, which can be spelt out as follows:

Grammar, punctuation and spelling.

Understanding the fundamental rules of writing is the key to producing a professional product.

Learning to write is no different than any other skill. You must break it down into its purest form, examine all the parts that make up the sentence, determine how and why they work together as they do…before putting them all back together again.

Only if, and when, that occurs can your writing work as it should.

Refresh the fundamentals of writing by downloading our introductory literacy courses.

Back to GAPS from Mastering basic writing skills.

Benefits of Good Writing Skills

Literacy is the art of communicating your ideas in clear written expression by removing any road blocks that may distract from your message or create confusion in the reader’s mind.

Writing is the bridge that connects the writer to their audience and literacy is the solid foundation cementing that relationship.

A reported decline in literacy standards in the past few decades has given birth to a renewed interest in learning the fundamentals of writing.

The pendulum appears to have swung too far in favour of ideas at the expense of nuts and bolts learning.

GAPS aims to restore some equilibrium by offering literacy courses showcasing both the mechanics and the creativity of the business writing process .

Back to GAPS from Why literacy is important.

How to improve your professional business writing skills.

There are four fail safe tricks to improving the emails and letters you send to clients.

Before you even pick up a pen or start tapping away consider:

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Writing GAPS?

My dream is to rid the world of the misplaced apostrophe, put punctuation in its place and give spelling the royal treatment (the UK rather than US variety).

My passion is to take the mystery out of writing and make it accessible to people eager to discover the joys of mastering the art of writing.

My mission is teach those who feel left out, left behind or simply left bewildered by the complexities of the English language.

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