Emailing is a broad part of doing business, especially as an emerging entrepreneur or business owner.
Constantly, email communication is one of the foremost opinions a new partner or consumer will have with your enterprise. Then, as an emerging entrepreneur, business owner, blogger or columnist, it is critical to have good email etiquette.
The following few aspects of “good” email etiquette can enrich your trademark strategy, deliver outstanding customer service, and generate a good impression for your business.
Firstly, you should start by jotting down a specific subject line, which is brief and straight-to-the-point. For instance,”Meeting Deferred.” Usually people decide to open an email based on the subject line. Therefore, choose one that lets your recipients know you are addressing their business interests and cases.
You should use a professional email address.If you work for a company then use you company email address. However if you are self employed you should be careful when choosing the address. You should constantly have an email address that indicates your name so that the receiver recognizes who is mailing the email. Never use email addresses that are not proper for professional use, such as icecreamvee@ no matter how much you love ice cream.
Make use of professional salutations. Do not use casual, informal idioms such as , "Hey you" or ”what's up”. Both are quite non formal greetings and naturally should not be used in a business-related email. Rather use ”Hello”.Additionally, abbreviations and emoticons, like LMAO, LOL or WYD, and all CAPITALS do not interpret well in business conversations. Furthermore, do not shorten your recipient's name unless you are sure the person prefers being called by that shortened name. Say "Hello Olivia” or ”Dear Liv” instead of ”Hey Liv” or what's up Liv”
Moderately use exclamation points. If you decide to use an exclamation point, use only one to symbolize enthusiasm. Use them moderately.Often people get carried away and insert a multitude of exclamation points at the end of their sentences. The result can come off as too expressive or childish. Barbara Patchter in her book "The Essentials Of Business Etiquette", outlines the basics of modern email etiquette remarks that, "Exclamation points should be used sparingly in writing."
You should be careful with banter or humor .Humor can readily get misunderstood without the proper mood or facial tones. In a professional conversation, it is better to leave jokes or wits out of emails unless you know the receiver well. Additionally, what you might think is amusing might not be humorous to the recipient.
Make sure you proofread your message(s).Don't be stunned if you're judged by the way you composed an email. For instance, if your email is cluttered with grammatical blunders and
Misspelled phrases, you might be understood as clumsy, irresponsible, or just illiterate. Always check your sentence structures, spellings and messages before sending them.
Moreover you should enclose a signature block. This provides your recipient with some knowledge about you, Barbara Pachter denotes. "Generally, this would state your full name, title, the company name, and your contact information, including a phone number. You also can add a little publicity for yourself, but don’t go overboard with any sayings or artwork. "Additionally, you should likewise use the same font, type size, and text color as the rest of the email”, she explains.
Never respond to emails when you are angry. Give your message some serious deliberation before mailing it. If you realize you are furious, save your message into the “drafts” folder, and re-examine it again later when you are much relaxed and ready to prepare a decent reply.
Moderately use auto-replies. If you are going to be away from connectivity for longer than what most consumers and colleagues would regard a proper period of time for expecting a response such as three business days, it can be useful and sincere to put up an auto-reply notifying senders of this. Yet, you have to use it cautiously. Avoid over-using auto-replies, as they are likely to add trash to the sender’s inbox.
Lastly, make sure you keep personal emails private. It is too easy to share emails carelessly. If you have to share extremely private or classified information, do so over the phone or in person. Get consent first before broadcasting delicate information either in the email or in the attached documents.
It might take some practice to keep your emails professional and to the point, but you will look more sleek and organized.
As I mentioned before Email is one of the most essential tools an emerging business owner or entrepreneur has in their armory.
