On average almost 2.7 million emails are sent out per second, surprised? If you take a moment to think about it business is conducted consistently through email or by phone call. Actually many business or job opportunities never make it to phone calls due to the poor etiquette used by those sending out the emails.
Logically when receiving about 120 business emails per day it can be easy to reply to some in a casual and relaxed manner. However, it is important to make sure that the professional and business oriented emails do not begin to sound too comfortable or indolent. Here are some Do’s and Don’ts to keep in mind when writing up an email.
Don’ts
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Emojis have made their way into our everyday lives but they should never be present during any professional or business oriented email. Although recognizable terms such as “LOL”, “OMG”, etc. should not be used in a professional setting.
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When initiating contact with an employer it is important to first get a feel of their personality before inserting humor through email. It is important to proceed with caution especially when using sarcasm which can be difficult to identify.
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Do not make apologies a habit in your emails! Now is the time to stop over-apologizing at work in order to build on your image and experience rather than to put yourself down. Some alternatives to apologetic emails are:
-Thanks for flagging
-Good catch! I will make these changes/updates
-Thank you for bringing this to our attention
Do’s
- Proofread! Whether we like it or not grammar used leaves quite the impression on whoever is reading your email. Although spelling check eliminates an immense amount of pressure from the writer there are still some mistakes that seep through the cracks which could make some of your statements incoherent. This can easily be corrected with rereading your email just twice before being sent out.
- Only 1% of emails that are opened past a period of 24 hours receive a reply so it is important to handle your responds in a timely manner. It can help to keep a personal and professional email in order to check one with more urgency than the other. You might not be able to respond with a deep insight when replying in a business day yet you can address and touch upon their inquiries and let them know you will be following up with them at a later time.
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Tie your message together with a greeting and a signoff no matter how brief it might be. Also do not forget to include a subject line that is descriptive and conveys the urgency of the email.