Proper Email Etiquette At Work

The Importance of Proper Email Etiquette at Work

Proper email etiquette at work can save you from many problems that could happen in professional email writing. Email etiquette in writing email has become a highly valued skill that every professional should include in their professional qualifications.

It is not enough in the modern professional world that you are only skilled in your job role. You have to be smart and confident in professional communication. It’s because excellent professional communication has vital for most professionals who achieved success in professional life.

When we talk about professional communication, email writing has a significant role in that. Because still now, it is the major communication method in the professional world. People like me, and you always have to write emails at our work.

Whether you like it or not, you had to face some difficulties in email writing at your workplace. You may have no idea about what to do on some occasions.

Let’s talk about proper email etiquette at work that could help you minimize professional email communication errors.

Brief History About Email Writing

Writing emails are almost an essential thing to do in most of the companies at present. It becomes a professional skill that everyone needs to improve. Even self-employed people have to write emails on various occasions.

Writing emails has a long history behind it. The first type of email had sent from one computer to another computer in 1965 at MIT. After that, APARNET has sent a message between two computers in 1969.

In 1971, Mr. Ray Tomlinson invented the first electronic mail, which refers now as email, by creating APARNET’S electronic mail system. The term email came in 1993 by replacing the word electronic mail.

Since then, the total number of email users are growing day by day till now. And, it won’t stop either in the future.

According to research done by Statista, the total number of email users in 2019 is 3.9 billion, and it will rise to 4.3 billion active email users in 2023.

The Importance of Proper Email Etiquette at Work

Email etiquette is the set of ethical behaviors that could apply when people use email communication.

You may have some experiences with embracing mistakes in email communication at work. Email etiquettes can help you out make less or no errors in email writing. It can assure you that your email communication with no mistakes.

Also, these habits can reflect a positive image of you to others in your organization. Excellent communication always is a vital factor in being a successful professional.

Let me give some examples,

You may have some difficulties with grammatical mistakes in your emails, and you notice it once you emailed them. The email with grammatical errors can reflect that you are an irresponsible person.

If you can practice proper email etiquette at work, then the probability of sending these kinds of emails becomes lower.

How to Apply Email Etiquette at Work?

Before applying email etiquette, you need to learn about those. Learning email etiquette is an easy thing. You need not read thousands of books or go to some classes to learn email etiquette. More sources on the internet can provide you with proper knowledge of email etiquette.

Applying email etiquette is a little harder than learning it because you have removed some of your habits that severely affect your email writing performance.

But it will give more benefits day by day when you apply email etiquette at works. Initially, it could be hard for some of you. But with time, it becomes much more comfortable, and you will realize the concession of it.

Most Common Proper Email Etiquette That You Can Apply at Work

01. Use Proper Subject Line for Your Every Email

The subject line is a line of text that can be seen by the recipient once the email is received in his/her mailbox. Most of the email providers allow this option in their mail service.

This line text plays a significant role in email processing. It is the first sign of what is the content of the email messages. So, this can help the recipient find out the main objective without opening the email.

Imagine a person who gets hundreds of emails every day. If there is no subject line in most of them, they will have to open each email to go through it.

It can be a troublesome action to open each email to obtain the objective of the email.

If the email appears with no subject line, the recipient may transfer the email to the spam folder without opening it.

Applying an appropriate email subject is a proper email etiquette at work that you can carry out.

You cannot use subjects such as “Hi,” “Hello,” “You Should Open This Email.” It doesn’t matter how much you like your email’s subject.

It would help if you used a subject that precise and well-focused.

Some examples of Proper Subject Line

  • “Investors’ Meeting”
  • “Investors’ Meeting on 24th February.”
  • “Quotation for the Inquiry In Alibaba”
  • “Some Questions Regarding Presentation”
  • “April 2nd Week Market Report.”

Don’t make the subject too long. Because some people read emails using mobile devices. If the subject is too long, some part of the subject does not appear on the mobile screen.

02. Use Precise and Well Directive Body

The content of the email is the heart of it. You need to be very careful from top to bottom when you are writing an email.

It isn’t easy if you don’t understand the email content’s structure. The explicit knowledge of the email body structure can help you develop your skill in business email writing.

The proper email etiquette at work can result in you many benefits.

The simple structure of the Business email body below;

  • Salutation
  • Introduction or Purpose
  • Details
  • Ask or Action
  • Closing the email

Salutation – Use proper salutation in your business email because proper salutation reflects your manners. Don’t use these salutations in business email writing as follows.

“Hi,”

“Hello,”

“Hey,”

The proper salutation for a business email starts with “Dear” and the name of the person. And you can use a title with the name. The salutation can close with a comma or colon.

“Dear James:”

“Dear Mr. James;”

“Dear Dr. James,”

Introduction or Purpose

If you are making the first contact with the recipient, use an appropriate introduction to yourself and your company.

It essential for the recipient to know who you are and where you belong. Try to write a short introduction.

I am “ABC,” and I am the marketing manager of “DEF.”

If the reader knows your details, don’t make any sense of humor by introducing yourself again in the email. Use your purpose or question in the email.

But use only one or two sentences most of the time for the introduction.

The reader gets a first hint of the content by reading the introduction.

Details – UUse very few, precise paragraphs or several points to describe the details. Try to answer these questions providing minimum information;

“What”

“When”

Where”

“Why”

, and

“How”

If you use file attachments, mention it in the email message.

As a proper email etiquette at work, always use professional and polite writing in the emails and be respectful,

Keep in mind while you are writing, your message’s tone should not misunderstand by the reader. You should ensure not to use any jokes or Sarcasm within the email.

Ask or Action – Sometimes, you may need action or an answer from the recipient. In these, don’t shy to tell your requirement to the recipient. Never assume the recipient will automatically understand your need and the timeline. Make your call to action clear for the reader.

As a proper email etiquette at work, your call to action should have the below components to be a consummated call to action.

What your requirement?

Who should complete your requirements?

What should they do after completion?

When is the deadline?

After all, give your gratitude to the recipient. Tell them you will thankful to them.

Closing the mail – If you are waiting for an answer, then tell them you are waiting,

For example – I am looking forward to hearing from you.

Give your thanks and regards to the reader. Close your email as you started with your greetings.

03. Use Professional Signature Block

Use the same signature most of the time. Include your name, designation, and company details. Further, you can add your mobile number as well. But keep your signature maximum of five or six lines.

If you want, you can add an image as well. But make sure you are not overusing it. Otherwise, your signature may damage your email body as well.

04. Proofreading

Make sure to proofread your email from top to bottom. Check Grammar mistakes, tone, details, and everything you have put in the email. Proofreading can reduce the risk of sending an email with errors.

Once the email leaves your email provider, it cannot be revised. So, make sure to proofread your email every time.

If you are not a native English-speaking persona or lack English grammar knowledge, you can use Grammarly or ProWritingAid software to perfect your email.

05. Wait Until Proofreading to Put Receiver’s Email

Remember not to put your receiver’s (TO) email address until you make sure there is no message error.

You can only be sure about the email if you proofread the email and find no mistakes in it. Then you can put your recipient email without hesitation.

Otherwise, most of the time, people accidentally hit the send button, and an uncompleted email goes to the recipient. You can stop it if you put the recipient’s email addresses at last.

If you are replying to an email, remove the recipient’s email before preparing the message. You can put back the email address after you proofread it.

Let’s Summarize

Proper email etiquette at work can make you more professional in your job. It can boost your professional communication skills, and that can help your success at work.

Being confident in professional communication is vital at work. But, do not panic yourself by doing everything at once.

Try to start standard proper email etiquette at work. Then get used to it by yourself. Most of the professionals know email etiquette, but they are not applying it most of the time.

Let’s not forget to share it with your friends. 

Read More: How Career Planning Is Important For The Life

Scroll to Top