1. 11 Email Etiquette Rules Every Professional Should Know
1. Include a clear, direct subject
line
• Examples of a good subject line include
"Meeting date changed," "Quick
question about your presentation," or
"Suggestions for the proposal."
• "People often decide whether to
open an email based on the subject
line," says Pachter. "Choose one that
lets readers know you are addressing
their concerns or business issues."
2. 2. Use a professional email address
• If you work for a company, you should use your company
email address. But if you use a personal email account —
whether you are self-employed or just like using it
occasionally for work-related correspondences — you should
be careful when choosing that address, says Pachter.
• You should always have an email address that conveys your
name so that the recipient knows exactly who's sending the
email. Never use email addresses (perhaps remnants of your
grade-school days) that are not appropriate for use in the
workplace, such as "babygirl@..." or "beerlover@..." — no
matter how much you love a cold brew.
3. 3. Think twice before hitting "reply all."
• No
one
wants to read emails from 20
people when it has nothing to do
with
them. They could just ignore the emails, but
many people get notifications of
new on their smartphones or
messages
distracting
computer
pop-up messages
on their
screens. Refrainfrom
hitting
"reply all" unless you really think everyone
on the list needs to receive the email, says
Pachter.
4. 4. Use professional salutations
• Don't use laid-back, colloquial
expressions like, "Hey you guys," "Yo," or
"Hi folks."
• "The relaxed nature of our writings
should not affect the salutation in an
email," she says. "Hey is a very informal
salutation and generally it should not be
used in the workplace. And Yo is not
okay either. Use Hi or Hello instead."
• She also advises against shortening
anyone's name. Say "Hi Michael," unless
you're certain he prefers to be called
"Mike."
5. 5. Use exclamation points sparingly
• If you choose to use an exclamation point, use
only one to convey excitement, says Pachter.
• "People sometimes get carried away and put
a number of exclamation points at the end of
their sentences. The result can appear too
emotional or immature," she writes.
"Exclamation points should be used sparingly
in writing."
6. 6. Be cautious with humor
• Humor can easily get lost in translation
without the right tone or facial expressions.
In a professional exchange, it's better to leave
humor out of emails unless you know the
recipient well. Also, something that you think
is funny might not be funny to someone else.
• Pachter says: "Something perceived as funny
when spoken may come
across
very
differently when written. When
in doubt,
leave it out."
7. 7. Know that people from different cultures
speak and write differently
• Miscommunication can easily occur due to
cultural differences, especially in the writing
form when we can't see each other's body
language. Tailor your message depending on
the receiver's cultural background or how
well you know them.
• A good rule to keep in mind, says Pachter, is
that high-context cultures (Japanese, Arab,
or Chinese) want to get to know you before
doing business with you. Therefore, it may
be common for business associates from
these countries to be more personal in their
writings. On the other hand, people from
low-context cultures (German, American, or
Scandinavian) prefer to get to the point very
quickly.
8. 8. Reply to your emails — even if the email
wasn't intended for you
• It's difficult to reply to every email message
ever sent to you, but you should try to, says
Pachter. This includes when the email was
accidentally sent to you, especially if the
sender is expecting a reply. A reply isn't
necessary, but serves as good email
etiquette, especially if this person works in
the same company or industry as you.
• Here's an example reply: "I know you're very
busy, but I don't think you meant to send
this email to me. And I wanted to let you
know so you can send it to the correct
person."
9. 9. Proofread every message
• Your mistakes won't go unnoticed by the
recipients of your email. "And, depending
upon the recipient, you may be judged for
making them," she says.
• Don't rely on spell-checkers. Read and re-
read your email a few times, preferably
aloud, before sending it off.
• "One supervisor intended to write 'Sorry for
the inconvenience.' But he relied on his
spell-check and ended up writing 'Sorry for
the incontinence.'"
10. 10. Add the email address last
• "You don't want to send an email accidentally before you have
finished writing and proofing the message," Pachter says.
"Even when you are replying to a message, it's a good
precaution to delete the recipient's address and insert it only
when you are sure the message is ready to be sent."
11. 11. Double-check that you’ve selected the
correct recipient
• She says to pay careful attention when typing a name from
your address book on the email's "To" line. "It's easy to select
the wrong name, which can be embarrassing to you and to
the person who receives the email by mistake."
