When it comes to emailing and getting it right, the ‘Don’t sweat the small stuff’ saying doesn’t apply. Every word in the email should make you sweat, especially if you just hit the send button and realized you made a mistake. Emails make powerful marketing tools if used well. They can also damage a business’s image when not done professionally.
Why Email Etiquette is Important
Having errors in an email affects the way people perceive you. Research shows that sending an email with grammatical errors, for instance, makes people think you aren’t intelligent, trustworthy but above all unprofessional. The findings of a different study showed that people who send email messages with errors when applying for things such as grants, however compelling their proposals might be, rarely qualify. To avoid making mistakes that may make you lose business, here are email etiquette tips you must always follow:
Keep it professional: From the subject line, body and signing off, maintain a professional tone. Don’t be tempted to use an informal greeting, customers are different, being informal might be a put off to some while it may work with others.
No humor please! Humor is good, but it can be misinterpreted in emails. Instead of creating a misunderstanding, avoid humor to keep things formal and professional.
Vague subject lines don’t work: If a subject line fails to compel a recipient to open the email, it beats the purpose why you sent it in the first place. The main reason why emails have subject lines is to let the recipient have a hint on the message’s overall content. The clearer the subject line, the higher the chances your email will be opened.
Proofread your message: Before hitting the send button, the last thing you must do is scan through the message to pick out any spelling and grammatical errors. Having such mistakes makes you appear careless and sloppy.
Proper punctuation: If you have to, research on the appropriate use of punctuation. Having a comma or a full stop where it is not supposed to be might end up altering your message. It is also a put off to read a sentence that is not correctly punctuated.
Shooting from the lip is a no! Never send an email when you are angry. However, tempting it feels, take time to think about your message. You can be firm without sounding angry.