W e've been sending emails for al
most two decades now. You might think that we are pretty late on this feature,
but there are a lot us who don't know much about composing an email that will
actually be read and acted upon. A step-by-step reckoner.
TO, CC AND BCC, IT ALL BEGINS HERE:
To
is for the individual (or set of individuals) who is required to act on the
email, CC (carbon copy) is for those who have to be kept in the loop, but are
not required to act on it, or even acknowledge the receipt of the email; and
bcc (blind carbon copy) is for sending the same email to people whose
identities you don't intend to disclose to the people in the To and CC field.
For example: If A wants B to delegate a job to C, B will write an email to C
and cc A. However, if A doesn't want C to know that A is part of this
development, B will bcc A.
SUBJECT LINE:
The
subject is the dodgiest part of composing an email as it decides whether the
receiver will junk your email, read it later or open it instantly. So, keep the
subject direct and noticeable. However, in an attempt to do this, don't write
spam-worthy subjects like “Open Me“, “Read it“, “Hi“.Examples of good subjects
are “Urgent meeting at 3 pm“, “Attn: Quarterly result“, “Notice: New Rules for
attendance“. See Box above for more.
BODY OF THE COPY:
Make
a courteous opening and closing: Since you are not God, and it doesn't hurt to
be warm, don't just jump to the purpose of the email directly.
SPELL THE NAMES CORRECTLY:
And
never use MrMrsMs with first name. For example, if the receiver's name is Jon
Snow, address him as Mr Snow and not Mr Jon. If you are not sure about the
gender of the receiver, politely ask if you would like them to be ad dressed as
MrMrsMs. If you think, it's easy to guess the gender by the name, it's
not.There are a lot of gender neutral and confusing names in this world. For
example, the writer of this article knows a man called Dimple Kalra, Kim is
quite a popular name for men in Korea (and it has nothing to do with the
Supreme Leader) and Shawn is also a popular name for the ladies. So, just be
careful.
DON'T BEAT AROUND THE BUSH:
Remember,
emails are not meant to read like a three-part Fifty Shades of Grey, so keep it
short and simple. The body should, one, clearly explain what you want from the
receiver; two, it should be free from spelling and grammatical mistakes; three,
have proper spacing between the lines and lastly, should have the right tone,
so choose your words very carefully. In case, you are confused about the tone
of the email, just read it aloud before sending, it really works.
CLOSING THE EMAIL:
It's
important to properly close an email. `Warm regards', `Thank you for your
time', `Sincerely yours', `Looking forward to hearing from you' whatever you
use, make sure it's consistent with the tone of the message. For example, there
is no point sending a stinker to a subordinate with a `sincerely yours'
closure, until and unless you don't want the entire email to read like a
bloated oxymoron.
INCLUDE PROPER SIGNATURE:
Technically,
your signature should mention everything that's written on your visiting card,
so when in doubt, go by this thumb rule.
SENDING AN EMAIL:
Don't
send the email as soon as you are done typing it, take your time, check the
email for errors or incomplete information, and then send it. And never write
an email if you are angry or not experiencing the right set of emotions. You
might want to say “Get Lost“ as a reply to your boss's stinker, but that
doesn't mean you will actually say it, chances of which are high if you reply
instantly. Yes, if even an hour later, you feel your boss is a jerk, feel free
to write whatever you want to.
Subject slips-ups to avoid
A Few more pointers
Source | Times of India | 27 June 2015
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