6 things to keep in mind while writing a business email - Instream Group
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6 things to keep in mind while writing a business email

Actually, why are you writing to me? This is the least desirable reaction of the recipient to your email. All the efforts put into planning the campaign and searching for contacts have come to nothing at this point: your message has not been understood. The average user’s inbox consists of 50% newsletters and 20% social media notifications. Rarely anyone has the time and patience to analyse every message received. If the recipient does not understand why you are writing to them, they will tag your message as spam.

Luckily, you have an influence on, what the emails you send to potential customers and business partners, look like. You can learn to better convey messages. Do not fool yourself, everyone makes a lot of mistakes. It is important not to repeat them endlessly. You have an important email to write. The success of your campaign depends on it. Where should you start?

 

1. Structure:

A well prepared email structure

Plan the structure of the message. The recipient must know well who you are, what you want, and what he can do about it. When planning your message, consider these basic questions, and try to create a clear message that addresses them. How you organize the information affects the readability and comprehensibility of the message.

 

2. Form:

Email, like a traditional letter sent by post, has its technical requirements. If you want your message to look professional, follow a few rules:

Start with a greeting

If you have already had the pleasure of meeting or exchanging correspondence with someone, you can address this person personally: Mr. John / Mrs. Kathy; Good morning, Mr. John / Mrs. Kathy or just Good morning, and, if you feel you can use an informal address, write “Hi”. If you write to an unknown person or persons, the safest form is Sir or Madam. Never write “Welcome”. It is the form you should use while hosting an official welcome or when you greet someone who is below you in the pecking order of the organisation.

Present yourself

If the recipient does not know you, present yourself in 1 or 2 sentences. Select the information you are presenting in the context of the message—it is meant to be relevant to the issue you are writing about. If you have had the opportunity to meet the recipient, mention the event at which you got acquainted.

Present the issue

Start with the sentence in which you include the essence. You can reformulate what you have written in the title—briefly say what you mean. Do not count on a person who receives hundreds of emails a day to go through a long message to determine what is the purpose of your writing. In the following sentences you can expand on the subject a little bit, but—remember—do so concisely! You will achieve more with ‘less is more’ than by writing a whole lengthy paper. It is likely that your message is not purely informative in nature, but rather a desire to involve the recipient in some activity. Present a proposal for the activity you expect from the recipient in a clear way. It is best to be direct. You can, for example, use the following sentence: If you are interested in ……, please feel free to contact ……….

Closing of the message

Remember to use polite forms of address. Thank you for your time, I will be grateful for your answer, Have a nice day, (Best) regards, Cordially.

In very official situations: Yours sincerely,

Sign and remember to leave your contact details.

 

3. Style—personalised but not confidential content

Writing a professional message is a delicate art. If you “splash something” onto the paper and it goes out into the world you are running a risk of effectively discrediting yourself.

Avoid:

  • Exaggerated emotions, both positive and negative. If you show too much enthusiasm and, to boot, exclamations, you will appear as infantile. And the other way round—don’t write a message when you are nervous. There is a good chance that you will transfer some of your anger onto the keyboard and send a rude message. In both cases, first, calm down, and only then get down to writing.
  • Unformal phrases—these are reserved for colloquial speech, you use them in unofficial communication with people with whom you have a friendly relationship.
  • Abbreviations and diminutives—similarly—not everyone understands abbreviations, and diminutives are used in informal communication.
  • Spelling mistakes! Obvious, yet not for everyone.
  • Don’t write things like: GREAT!, I have a marvellous proposal for you!
  • Phrases that might seem too sharp or rude: Please send me, I expect an answer.
  • Abbreviations of the names of days of the week, or the forms of courtesy, such as BR (for ‘best regards’).
  • Colloquial diminutives such as: a tiny bit, a get-together.

 

4. Be a human and write to humans

It makes no sense to use sophisticated vocabulary, create literary descriptions, or abuse specialist terminology. Write in clear language, concisely, and to the point. Your audience is oversaturated with information, do not force them to concentrate more than they need as they will get bored and will not read your message to the end.

A friendly approach and understanding are welcome (I realise that you have a lot of responsibilities, I know that you are very busy).

Your recipient will feel appreciated if you let them know that you know what they are doing, mention the name of the company, their position, or name.

 

5. Proofreading—double-check everything before you click on “send”.

Types, stylistic and logical errors are commonplace in messages. And that is fine, as long as you correct all clumsy wordings and errors before you click ‘send’. Do not rush, the message is your business card. If it is correct and legible, it has a chance of improving your image.

 

As InStream Group, we create campaigns based on email marketing. If you want your communication to be highly effective, please contact us—we will help you. We’ll create personalised messages tailored to the profile of your potential customer.

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