Writing E-mail

Writing E-mail

by April Alea

​At the end of this lesson, you are expected to learn the following learning outcomes:

• ​Identify e-mail and its structure.

• ​Enumerate the ways on how to write effective e-mail.

• ​State the few common e-mail habits that cause problems.

​E-mail: Introduction

Email is currently the most ​used communication channel in the business environment, as businesses rely on it heavily for sending messages across long distances in a short time.

​

​Business email etiquette encompasses a set of rules indicating effective, proper and polite ways to behave when sending and receiving emails. The rules of etiquette are focused on how messages should look and on what they should contain.

E-mail Structure

• ​The Header

  • ​Subject

  • Sender (from)​

  • Date and Time received (on)

  • Reply to

  • Recipient (to)​

  • ​Recipient email address

  • Attachments​

• ​The Body

​Subject- is the topic of the message.

​Sender (From:)

This field describes the ‘from’ address of the email. This will specify the sender’s email address.

​Date and time received (On)

This is the date and time the message received.

​Reply-to

This field describes the email address that will become the recipient of the reply to the particular email. When you reply, it will go to this email address despite the sender email address.

​Recipient (To:)

This is the first/last name of the email recipient as configured by the sender.

​Recipient email address

The email address of the recipient is specified here.

​Attachments

Some emails could be attached with files such as text, image, audio, video etc. These files are specified here.

Body

The actual content is stored in this part. This will be in the format of text. This field could also include signatures or text generated automatically by the sender’s email system.​

​Endings

End the message in a polite way​. Common endings are:

​ Yours sincerely, Best regards, Regards,

​(If you did not put a comma after the greeting at the beginning of the message, then do not put a comma after the ending either)

​ Yours sincerely

​

​Names

​ Include your name at the end of the message. It is most annoying to receive an e-mail which does not include the name of the sender.

​ Kind regards

​ Kim Rapor

​ Human Resource Manager

Important Components of an Effective E-mail:​

Subject Line

E-mail subject lines are like newspaper headlines. They should convey the main point of your e-mail or the idea that you want the reader to take away from your e-mail. Therefore, be specific as possible.

​

​Greetings

​ Use some kind of greetings. Don't just start with your text.

​ Dear Miss Lawson,

​ (It is also becoming quite common to write the greeting without a comma.)

Open Ended

Provide a 'subject' for an email informing the participants of a webinar's link, date and time.

​Briefly state your purpose.

​

​Use paragraphs to separate thoughts (or consider writing separate emails if you have many unrelated points or questions.)

​

​State the desired outcome at the end of your message.

​

​Format your message so that it is easy to read. Bullet important details so that they are easy to pick out. Use bold face type or capital letters to highlight critical information such as due dates (but do not type your entire message in capital letters or boldface.)

​Use simple English.

​ Be authentic and realistic.

​

Font Matters

Use standard size and style.​

​

​Closing Remarks

​ Before you end your e-mail, it's polite to thank your reader one more time as well as add some courteous closing remarks.

​ e.g. "Thank you for your patience and cooperation..."

​Tips for writing more effective emails:

Think about your message before you write it.

​

​Reflect on the tone of your message.

​ When you are communicating vie email, your words are not supported by gestures, voice inflections, or other cues, so it may be easier for someone to misread your tone.

​

​Strive for clarity and conciseness in your writing.

​ Miscommunication can occur if an email is unclear, disorganized or just too long and complex for readers to easily follow.

​Proofread. Re read messages before you send them. Use proper grammar, spelling, capitalization and punctuation.

​

NO Abbreviations.​ Write all verbs in full. Do not use contracted forms like "don't" or "can't". Do not use abbreviations such as info (for information) and asap (for as soon as possible.)

​

​Watch your vocabulary. Certain words are considered informal. Examples are: OK, Thanks.

​

​Do not leave out words. Ellipsis is not acceptable in formal writing. Write "I hope to see you soon" instead of "Hope to see you soon"

​Confusing Words Exercise

​

​Direction: Complete the following sentences using an appropriate word.

Multiple Choice

We must follow the_______of our elders.

• advice

• advise

Multiple Choice

My parents were________happy with my performance.

• quite

• quiet

Multiple Choice

Prolonged use of powerful drugs will_____our health.

• affect

• effect

Multiple Choice

The police_____him because he was found guilty.

• released

• arrested

Multiple Choice

The master sent the boy to the_____shop to buy some paper.

• stationary

• stationery

​Cc and Bcc: Carbon copy and Blind carbon copy.​

Blind copying emails to a group of people can be useful when you don't want everyone on the list to have each other's email addresses. The only recipient address that will be visible to all recipients is the one in the To: field.

​

​Using Colons in Letters

​ Americans usually put a colon after the opening salutation in a business letter.

​ Dear Mr. James:

​ British usage prefers a comma or no punctuation mark at all in this case.

​Let's try the following activities...

​

Multiple Choice

Which is correct?

• Subject: Meeting

• Subject: PASS Process Meeting- 10am, October 10, 2021

Multiple Choice

Which of the two is a well-constructed body of the letter?

• Emma,

  I need your report by 5pm today or I'll miss my deadline.

  Harry

• Hi Emma,

  Thanks for all your hard work on that report. Could you please get your version over to me by 5pm, so I don't miss my deadline?

  Thank you so much!

  Harry

Open Ended

What make this letter incorrect?

Dear Mr. Blankenship:

This invoice we received yesterday, From our office was dated february 25. This date is incorrect, the date should read February 28, attached is the original invoice with the incorrect date. Please correct the date and resend the invoice. We will be able to send the funds promptly. By the end of the day.

Sincerely,

Isabelle

​Correct Mail

​

Dear Mr. Blankenship​,

​

​The invoice we received yesterday from your office was dated 25 February. The date mentioned is incorrect. The original invoice is attached herewith which bears the date 28 February. Please correct the date and resend the invoice. This will help us send the funds promptly by the end of the day.

​

​Let me know if you need anything else.

​

​Regards,

​

​Isabelle

​KEEP WRITING

That is true. ​Your writing skills improve with practice. Therefore, make it a habit to write at least 200 words a day. Keep a diary. In this digital age, blogging is perhaps better than writing a diary. Participate in online forums where people express their ideas in English.