Effective Email WritingNor Lailatul Azilah bt Hamdzah*

LayoutWhat is E-mail ?How to Make an Effective E-Mail.Few common e-mail habits that cause Problems.Structure of E-Mail.. Addressing. Subjects. Message Text. Attachments. Signature.

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What is E-Mail ?Text-based mail sent via the computer from one person to anotherA Push TechnologyIt is One-to-Many and almost Free*

How to Make an Effective E-mail Selecting Your Audience Correctly Using Distribution Lists Composing Your Messages Make the heading meaningfulKeep each message short and clear. Start each message by stating its purpose/context

Few common e-mail habits that cause Problems

Changing the topic without changing the subject.Including multiple subjects Misaddressed recipientsDisplaying addresses of recipients who are strangers to each otherReplying vs. forwarding

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Before you composeThe first step in writing e-mail message is to identify the purpose of the message and determining what the recipient reading the message has to do. Focus your objective. Achieve the five I's: inform, inquire, influence, instruct and incite. Focus your content. Don't let unnecessary ideas intrude on your principal message.

Structure of E-MailAddressingSubjectMessage TextAttachmentsSignature*

1. Addressing

Its the address of the recipient.Use BCC to protect Email addresses unless everyone knows each other.Maintain address book.

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SalutationsDo not use "Sir" or "Mr." unless absolutely certain that your correspondent is male.It is safer to use "Ms." instead of "Miss" or "Mrs." Beware of using a diminutive ( Chris, or Bob) if you aren't certain your correspondent uses it. It might rankle Judith to be called Judy; Robert might hate being called Bob. If you are addressing a group of people, you can say "Dear" plus the unifying attribute. For example: Dear Project Managers: Or: Dear Team Members:

SalutationsBe careful about cultural differences. In United States, you can usually get away with a first name, but Germans are quite formal; they can work side-by-side for years and never get around to a first-name basis. Starting a message to Germany with Dear Hans might be a bad idea. "Good Morning" and "Good Afternoon" don't make sense with email, as the sun may have moved significantly by the time your correspondent gets around to it.

The To: lineThe To line and the Subject line are integrated.

Each individual on the To line is responsible for taking the action (or part of an action) outlined on the Subject line and the message relates directly to them.

The Cc: lineNo action or response is expected of individuals on the Cc line. The recipient needs only to read or file the message.

The individuals whose work is indirectly affected by the communication should be included on the Cc line.

Bcc: lineUse Bcc field sparingly.

In general, it's best not to use the Bcc line to slyly escalate matters. There is always a chance that the individual on the Bcc line could hit "Reply All" and unintentionally reveal that the matter was escalated.

*2. Subject Precise headline for the message Makes easier to handle of e-MAIL Avoid sending e-mail with No subject

Q. Why is the subject line so important?

Good subjects line helps reader answer these questions:When should I read this e-mail?What is this e-mail about? Will I need to do anything?Can I delete this e-mail without reading it?

Ineffective subject lines

SubjectDate&TimeHi9:17 amquestions10:11 amMeeting12:44 pmOne more thing...........3:02 pmSome thoughts4:21pm

Effective subject lines

SubjectDate&TimeParty planning meeting rescheduled for 3pm9:17 amHelp: I cant find the draft for the Smith Paper10:11 amReminder: peer-review articles due tomorrow (3/30)12:44 pmQuestions about Sociology 210 project3:02 pmCongratulations to Jennifer for winning Nobel Prize4:21pm

SubjectDateRe: Question about Smith paper (was: please help with this!)10:11 am

SubjectDateRe: Re: Re: [Fwd: [Fwd: Reminder: Deadline for Spring Semester Is Jan. 15]]9:17 am

Which of these subject lines helps readers answer the 4 questions? Last Day to Order Computer at Discount June 6, 2013Silver Seal Sample BottlesRe: CHANT meetingPayment for Eddy BreezeJoin me in the Director's Box this Sunday, June 22?Potential Commuting Problems Tomorrow Friday, April 16Re: Arts AcademySales Plan - FeedbackVacation LeaveNew York Music Ensemble - This Sunday!RE: Project updateListing of 2011 materials/handouts Please review and respond by January 23.

Last Day to Order Computer at Discount June 6, 2013Silver Seal Sample BottlesRe: CHANT meetingPayment for Eddy BreezeJoin me in the Director's Box this Sunday, June 22?Potential Commuting Problems Tomorrow Friday, April 16Re: Arts AcademySales Plan - FeedbackVacation LeaveNew York Music Ensemble - This Sunday!RE: Project updateListing of 2011 materials/handouts Please review and respond by January 23.

How to write a useful subject lineBegin with a noun that identifies the type of message youre writingQuestionInquiryRequest RecommendationSuggestionProposalInstructionsProcedure

PolicyScheduleInvitationAnnouncementFollow-upUpdateAlertAgenda

3. Message Text

Keep the message focused and readableKeep it shortBrevity and clarityUse paragraphsBreak into paragraphs; skip lines between Avoid fancy typefaces

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Message Text ( cont. )Use * * to highlight text if you mustWrite in standard professional English with Capitalization and correct spelling Quote back using contextsIdentify yourself clearly to cold contacts.Hello, I amThe reason I am writingHello, so-in-so suggested I contact you

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Composing the contentRemove Pronouns: Imagine getting a response on Monday to some email that you can't quite remember sending on Friday. I talked to them about it the other day, and they want to see the other one before they make up their minds.Your response would probably be the highly articulate, "Huh???"

Composing the ContentThe most important step in e-mail message is to identify the type of action that the recipient has to take after reading your message.

If multiple individuals are responsible for different actions, clearly indicate who is responsible for what.

Always include due dates for each action.

Composing the ContentThe four most common types of actions are:Actionrecipient has to perform a physical action. Ex: "Provide a proposal for a 5% reduction in Travel & Entertainment." Respondrecipient needs only to respond to your message. Ex: Can you attend the staff meeting on Friday?" Read Onlyrecipient needs only to read your message. Ex: Please read the attached sales plan before next staff meeting on Dec 12th." FYI Onlyrecipient needs only to file your message for future reference. Even reading the message is optional. Ex: "Enclosed for your records are your completed.

Poor Email ContentJon, Hey, I was just thinking about the meeting we had about the new workshop you were planning for next week about resume-writing. I think that we may have forgotten to include all of the students who might benefit from this workshop. There are several groups of students at the School of Public Health that were not on your list. Of course you may have added them to you list since our last meeting. Sara from the School of Public Health contacted me to ask if the students from the Epidemiology program were on our list of included students. She also wanted a list of all of the included departments from the School of Public Health. Can you send me a list of all of the included student groups? I can then send the relevant information on to Sara because she needs this information by tomorrow. Thanks, Rachell

Better Email ContentJon,Can you send me a list of the students included in the resume-writing workshop by tomorrow?We may have forgotten to include all of the students who might benefit from this workshop. There are several groups of students at the School of Public Health that were not on your list. Sara from the School of Public Health contacted me to ask if the students from the Epidemiology program were on our list. I will send her that information tomorrow after I get the list from you.Thanks, Rachell

4. Attachments

Cut and paste relevant parts of attachment into text of Email.

Use URL links instead.Upload attachments to website and cite URL.

Compress large attachments and send attachments only when they are absolutely necessary.

Have a good virus scanner in place. People will not be very happy with mails full of viruses.

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5. E-mail SignatureUse an appropriate signatureBrief (4-5 lines)Informative provide all contact informationProfessional do not include pictures, quotes, animations.Whenever a piece of contact information changes, make sure your signature updated accordingly.

IdentificationWhen you send email to someone who doesn't know you, immediately answer these questions: Who are you? How did you learn of your correspondent? What do you want from your correspondent? Why should your correspondent pay attention to you? If you can't answer the last question, consider whether you should even send the email.

Identification

Here is a ideal message which answers all the questions mentioned earlier:

Dear Ms. Kulkarni: I am an editor at Penguin Publishing Company, Inc. I sat next to your brother at Inox last week, and he mentioned that you are interested in publishing a book based Indian recipes. I would be very interested in receiving a proposal from you.

Before SendingImproper spelling, grammar and punctuation give a bad impression, and can sometimes even change the meaning of the text.

Read the email through the eyes of the recipient before you send it.

RepliesAnswer swiftly.Each e-mail should be replied to within at least 24 hours, and preferably within the same working day.

If the email is complicated, send an email saying that you have received it and that you will get back to them. This will put the peoples mind at rest and usually they will then be very patient!

RepliesRespond only to messages that require one. When replying make sure that you are adding value to the conversation, truly moving it forward. While replying to an e-mail message with an attachment, which is to accompany your reply, you must forward the message instead of using the "Reply" or "Reply All" button. Otherwise, the attachment is not included with the message.

Acronymns

ASAP: as soon as possible BTW: By the way CU: See you (good-bye) FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions HTH: Hope this helps TIA: Thanks in Advance

Netiquette:The Rules to Email and Communicating Online

What is Netiquette? Netiquette is the code of the internet because the internet is a network and etiquette is a code.It comes from network and etiquette.

The Basic RuleThe basic rule of netiquette is to use good manners.

Core Netiquette RulesAlways spell check & proof read before sending or posting. Also, if you are emailing an employer or possible employer, you should avoid slang.

Core Netiquette RulesDo not use ALL CAPS, because online it looks like you are shouting.

Dont send too much email (the more you send the greater chance you have of sending a bad message.) Be open-minded in what you receive (the more you receive the better informed you are because you are receiving more information.)

Do not send e-mail late at night because it may call your lifestyle into question.Think about it: What would it say to me as your teacher if you emailed me a question about your homework at 2 a.m.?

Any Question?

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