Donts of Email Etiquette
- Leaving the subject blank – always include a relevant subject. This even applies to mails that you reply to or forward to
- Typing in capital letters – this is considered to be shouting
- Sending emails to the entire organization that is relevant only to a few staff
- Storing out of date mail and never deleting them or the attachments
- Use of quirky and difficult to read fonts in an email
- Replying to all, instead of just to the sender
- Marking everything you send as high importance
- Sending mail with typing or spelling errors
Dos of Email Etiquette
- Be concise and to the point
- Answer all questions
- Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation
- Use templates for frequently used responses
- Answer swiftly- usually within 24 hours
- Do not attach unnecessary files
- Use proper structure & layout
- Read the email before you send it
- Take care with abbreviations and emoticons
- Use active instead of passive
- Avoid long sentences
- Use cc: field sparingly
- Keep the paragraphs short
- Use bullet points if manuy points need to be explained
- Make sure your e-mail includes a courteous greeting and closing. Helps to make your e-mail not seem demanding or terse.
- Are you using proper sentence structure? First word capitalized with appropriate punctuation? Multiple instances of !!! or ??? are perceived as rude or condescending.
- When sending large attachments, always “zip” or compress them before sending.
- Only use Cc: when it is important for those you Cc: to know about the contents of the email. Overuse can cause your emails to be ignored.
- Include addresses in the To: field for those who you would like a response from.
- Include addresses in the Cc: field for those who you are just FYI’ing.
- Never expose your friend’s or contact’s email address to strangers by listing them all in the To: field. Use BCC:!
- Eliminate big words and overly formal language
Substitute words
- Talk about>> discuss
- Ask for>> enquire
- Help>> assist
- Think about>> consider
- Get>> receive
- Buy>> purchase
- Get together>> meet
- Let someone know>> inform someone
- Get in touch with someone>> contact someone
Useful Language
- Thanks for your email
- Just a brief note to say/let you know
- There are a couple of things, I’m not sure about
- Do call me if you’d like to discuss this further
- This has been due to/this is because
- It was a pleasure dealing with you
- Nice to hear from you
- I am attaching a copy of…
- Your request was forwarded to me
- I am afraid I could not open the document
- I look forward to your reply
- I am also sending a hard copy
Requests
- Could you
- Please could you
- I would be grateful if you could
- Can you
- Do you think you could.
Language To Be Avoided
- Please revert back/ reply back>> Use: revert/ reply
- Awaiting for your reply>> Use: Awaiting your reply/ waiting for your reply
- Please confirm me/ confirm us>> just use please confirm
- I suggest you>> I suggest that you…. Eg: I suggest that you upgrade to the next package