Have you written a letter lately? You know, the old school method with pen, paper and ink? Chances are you probably haven’t, which means that like most people you use email today to stay in contact with people. While you may know the basics of email etiquette, many people forget that it’s more than just pressing send. Check out this infographic on email etiquette – we’ve summarized our favourite tips below.
This infographic was contributed by guest author Sarai Sinai and Outbox Documents.
- Make sure to add a subject line, no matter the subject and no matter the urgency of the email. Having that subject line there for the recipient will help them prioritize the emails they receive and respond appropriately. They can shuffle through all the spam, work and fun emails they receive and get back to you as soon possible.
- Never use casual salutations when sending an email, even if it’s to a friend or someone you know very well. It’s best to use “hi” and “hello” as they are the traditional salutations and will work for both casual and professional emails.
- Add the recipient’s email address last when preparing your email; you don’t want to end up accidentally sending an unfinished email. This could reflect poorly on you.
- Refrain from using walls of text as the formatting of your email. It’s ugly, unpleasant to read and will surely not be appreciated by the recipient. Format your email so that it’s easy to read and will highlight the main points. Make sure to proofread; spelling errors will never help you. Don’t jeopardize your professional career over an extra minute of review.
- Avoid double messaging if a face to face meeting would be better suited. Following up twice or calling too much may show your dedication, but it will annoy your employer if you do it too much.
- The “reply all” button is not to be used often. This is ok if the email involves two or three recipients discussing work tasks. But if you “reply all” for party invites or massive work emails, then everyone will see your email and wonder why it’s taking up room in their inbox when it doesn’t pertain to them.
- Don’t scare people into action by using intense email subject lines. Use the “urgent” and the high priority flag individually and avoid sending an email with both in the subject line. Scaring people into reading your email is never nice, certainly if it’s just to ask where the stapler is!