While technology keeps on innovating and there are new online communication tools being launched in the market, the usage of email for sending and receiving messages never gets old. One logical reason behind it is that this tool is faster more convenient to use than traditional mail without compromising the maintenance professionalism. But using email for business purposes is not all about sending and receiving messages.
There are etiquettes that must be followed when emailing someone so that complaints and miscommunications would be avoided. And with that being said, we will share with you some of the most important email etiquettes that a professional should follow.
Use A Professional Email Address
Oftentimes, people think that email addresses should only be presentable when you’re using them for business purposes. On the contrary, this should be practiced regardless of the usage (personal or professional) when sending and/or receiving emails. It should convey your name or full name rather than random words and letters in order to build trust with whoever you’re connecting with.
Reply—No Matter What—But Think Before Sending/Replying
Acknowledging the email when you received it as soon as possible is important. You should understand that the other end (or the sender) won’t know one hundred percent that you received the email unless you send a response or the email bounces back because the email address recipient does not exist.
In business, if the email doesn’t really require a particular response, the recipient could just reply with a ‘thank you’ message to inform acknowledgment. If you can’t immediately respond like during weekends or you’re on a vacation, you can set an automatic response instead of email acknowledgment and informing them that you will send another response once you’re back in business.
On the other hand, there is an exception when it comes to replying, depending on the content of the email, it would state there if the email is system-generated or for information only where a reply is not required.
Use ‘Reply All’ If…
If the email is sent for multiple recipients and your response is needed, make sure that you hit the ‘Reply All’ button instead of just ‘Reply’ so that in this way your message would also be seen by the others who are part of the email. Otherwise, you are only responding to the last email sender (or most probably the original sender).
However, there are emails that are sent to multiple recipients but do not require you to send a ‘Reply All’. It will always come down to the content of the message, the sender, and your best judgment if you need to just hit the ‘Reply’ or ‘Reply All’ button to respond to the email sender.
Don’t Forget Attachments
Don’t be that person who sends an email informing that there are attachments included, but once sent nothing was really attached. So, before hitting the send button, read and double-check the email content along with the attachments.
Use Proper Salutation
Whether you are sending an email or replying to one, don’t forget to always use proper salutation to address the person you are referring to. You should not always depend on colloquial salutations like ‘Hey guys,’ ‘Hello folks,’ or ‘Hello there’ because chances are you might get used to it for other emails that are quite sensitive. It could give a sour or bad impression to other email recipients that might compromise whatever business transactions you are doing with them.
If you want to use laidback and relaxed salutations to someone you are sending email to, considering that you are comfortable addressing them this way, you can use a simple ‘Hi’ or ‘Hello’ to them followed by the person’s name. For example, ‘Hello John,’ or ‘Hi Mr. Doe,’ would sound better.
Answer All Questions
It is important to avoid making the email exchange too long. This is because replying to an email often attaches previous email responses that make the message long. Either the whole email exchange would be too long or the other person receiving the person would get too tired reading back and forth.
So when sending an email, it is important to answer all the important questions that you need to ask the recipient. But it is important that the questions should be clear to avoid confusion when the recipient replies.
And for the email recipient, it is important to answer the questions asked. This is to avoid giving the impression that you’re cherry-picking on the questions that you want to answer. Thus, it will also avoid the questions left unresolved.
Use The Proper Subject Line
The majority of the people who use email for communication unconsciously miss the importance of the subject of the email and how it can affect a transaction. Although they don’t skip using a subject on the email, there are instances that the subject can be vague.
In reality, using the subject line properly could determine the urgency of the message. It will also save a lot of time and effort to determine the main topic of the email. So, when sending emails, always remember that the subject has to be concise, relevant, and currently connected to the main content of the message in the body of the email.
Lose The Emoticons
Emails are different from a chat where the latter often uses emoticons to express emotions. In emails, although from time to time emoticons can be used, it doesn’t mean that it has to be the standard to show emotions. Emoticons on emails may look goofy and unprofessional, especially if the topic is serious or sensitive.
To express the tone of voice in an email is to use the proper words and use the right sentence constructions.
Use Email Signature
Just like in a traditional letter, the signature is important in an email because it conveys professionalism. Use an email signature block where your name, job title, and contact information are to ensure that for any unforeseen circumstances, the email recipient has other methods to get in touch with you when responding to the email is not enough.
Use readable text and font that is consistent on every email you send.
The Bottom Line
Whether you use email for personal or business purposes, professionalism must be instilled in the email. You should understand that although emails are flexible, it is mainly used for stating facts, giving instructions, sharing figures, and/or for negotiation. Thus, to ensure a speedy reply from someone you send an email to, make sure that you follow the email etiquette to convey professionalism and that you are respecting that person’s time.
