- Have a clear and direct subject line. This gives the recipient essential information – what is the email about? Is it important? Is it relevant?
- Make sure the purpose or intention of the email is clear – if this is not explicit, then maybe the email is not necessary…
- Get to the point quickly – -apart from a short attention span, people have little time to waste trying to understand why they are receiving an email, so make sure the reader gets why you’re writing.
- Include a summary of the basic information. This lets everybody get up to speed and nobody can claim they didn’t get all the information.
- Organization and structure – chronological, by event, by participant? Whatever you decide, make sure you follow the same structure through the whole email and make sure information doesn’t spill over from one part to another.
- User-friendly, easy to read and locate information – using things like bullet points, numbering each item, and keeping paragraphs short helps readers find information quickly.
- Tone and register – be careful with the words and expressions you use. In writing, non-verbal cues like facial expressions don’t exist, so things will be taken literally. Avoid strange humor or sarcasm, for example.
- Action plan – what do you want the reader to do with the information in the email? Is it understandable? Make sure you include things like tasks and deadlines, and who’s in charge of what.
Do you have any other tips for professional email writing?
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