Most of us write quite a few emails every day on our job and get just as many delivered to our inbox. You can quickly make a faux pas. To prevent that from happening, we present 16 tips for email communication.
Communication via e-mail enables quick and uncomplicated exchange – according to the theory. In practice, it tends to go bad. “Send” pressed and then found that the mentioned attachment is not there? Kind of embarrassing. Or made a joke in an email and others took it all at face value? Goed stupid.
Many are probably familiar with such situations from their everyday job. If you follow a few rules, you can avoid the biggest faux pas in business emails. And we reveal another tip with which you will get more response to your emails …
E-mail etiquette – all about the news
1. Subject line
What is the email about? It’s best to ask yourself the question before you write the subject. Because secretive or vague statements do not induce any recipient to want to open and read the e-mail. And: in the mass of emails that everyone receives every day, you can find the really rich e-mails faster.
2. Salutation
A personal salutation shows the recipient appreciation and courtesy. With the first contact you are on the safe side with the classic “Dear Mr. xx” or “Dear Ms. xx”, with multiple contact it may be more relaxed. Be careful with “Dear Ms. xx” or “Dear Mr. xx” – not everyone likes this trustworthy form of address!
3. Content
Write what information is relevant – no more and no less. No long nested sentences and complications. As the saying goes: As much as necessary, as little as possible.
And very important: Make your concern clear! Do you expect an answer (from whom?), Should something be done (by whom and by when?), Etc.
If the e-mail becomes too long, the question arises whether the content should not be discussed in person or over the phone. This way, complex content can be explained more quickly. Results can then be summarized in a mail for information – short and sweet.
4. Paragraphs
Do you feel like reading an email in which 500 words are written in a row? Exactly, nobody reads such blocks of text.
Divide what has been written into meaningful sections. So if a new thought, a new aspect, etc. emerges, you start a new paragraph. Targeted greasing are also helpful for reading.
5. Conclusion
The same applies here: You can’t go wrong with the classic “Kind regards” or a little less formal with “Kind regards”. For longer e-mails or more familiar contacts, a “best / best / best regards” is a friendly ending. At your discretion, you can also use variations such as “Sunny greetings from Munich” or “Greetings to Berlin”.
6. Signature
The same applies to business emails formal requirements like a business letter. So belong depending on the legal form certain information in the signature. At an OHG and KG z. B. Name of the company as entered in the commercial register, the commercial register number, the legal form, seat of the company and the register court.
A full signature also includes first and last name, telephone number and email address.
E-mail etiquette – you should still pay attention to that
7. Select the recipient group
Does every registered recipient really belong in the mail? Check who the message is important to. And who belongs in CC (abbreviation for carbon copy, in German Copy) and if anything, who is in BCC (Blind carbon copy = Blind copy)?
In CC addressees are entered for whom Information from the text is relevantbut don’t have to react. Important: Everyone can see the email addresses in the CC line! This is not the case with BCC, only senders and BCC recipients see it, so this is often used for email distribution lists.
Tip: Do not enter the e-mail recipient until the end, when you are finished and have proofread, because careless movements can result in sending the e-mail by mistake …
8. Proofreading
Yes, the spell checker is something nice and a good basis for quickly recognizing errors. But this program cannot do everything either! Read your email again before you send it and check spelling and punctuation.
9. Avoid irony
Humor is something very individual and difficult to translate in writing, just like irony! Even if you make it very clear in your own way, it is difficult to read for the recipient. So, even if it is sometimes difficult: Leave the irony (and jokes in general) out of the emails.
10. Omit read receipt
Some senders want to be on the safe side and request a read receipt. While this may be convenient for the person, the recipient may feel controlled and also put under pressureto answer quickly. This does not necessarily lead to the desired reaction, but can backfire.
11. Avoid attachments
If necessary, attach files to the mail. These should not be too large (e.g. more than 10 MB) so that they do not hold up the addressee for an unnecessarily long time. With large and many attachments, it makes more sense to use cloud services.
12. No emoticons and capital letters
Loved by some and hated by others, they are now normal in messenger chats – unprofessional in business emails. Do not use smileys & Co., they don’t belong there. Words written in capital letters are also regarded as shouting, so they seem more aggressive and that is anything but polite and appropriate.
E-mail etiquette for recipients
As a recipient of an email, you can commit some faux pas. A few Tipps:
- 13. Response time: We all get a lot of emails a day. It is important to sort and prioritize well. Urgent inquiries by email should be processed quickly – how quickly depends on various circumstances. In general, e-mails should be answered within 24 hours, sometimes an acknowledgment of receipt or a “I’ll take care of” as an answer is sufficient.
- 14. Group emails: Most of the time, answering via “All Answers” leads to a lot of annoyed people and a flood of mail in the mailbox. So ask yourself beforehand whether your answer will be of interest to everyone and whether a reaction from your side is necessary at all.
- 15. Courtesy: In any case, the recipient must remain polite with the answer and also refrain from using block letters, emoticons and irony.
Email Etiquette – How to Get More Answers
Often the recipients do not have time to reply to emails, sometimes the responsibility for several addressees is unclear or the recipient has not yet read your email.
There are many reasons for not receiving an answer. An evaluation of the email software boomerang has shown, however, that a little something at the end of the email increases the chance of getting an answer. And this little thing is called gratitude. The highest response rate was had by those who had a “thank you in advance” (65.7 percent) at the end, followed by “thank you” with 63 percent and “thank you” with 57.9 percent.
Tip: Farewell emails are a special feature. Here you will find a little guide for sending a farewell email to colleagues! Do you feel uncomfortable at work? You can find even more tips for your career in self-marketing and here first aid for fear of work.
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