Writing a professional e-mail

It is estimated that 28% of an employee's working day is spent checking and replying to emails!

One of the biggest challenges when writing an email is making sure that we get the right tone, especially when we’re trying to get a specific message across to the reader.

Always put your reader first - how well do you know them? Will they understand and accept your tone?

Remember – we all have different perspectives of the same situation, explaining your perspective in a clear, professional email can be a challenge, with the removal of facial expression, body language and 2-way communication.

Emails can be described as communication without emotion, which, when sharing a negative message, could be interpreted by the recipient as negative emotion. Without communication ‘signals’ the reader can often misinterpret the underlying message of the email as being angry, dismissive, sarcastic or demanding.

When writing an email make sure that you aim for a clear, confident tone. Read the email through before you send it and think: ‘how would I feel if I received this?’

Click on the highlighted areas below for more information:

Tips for positive email communication

Always read your emails carefully before sending them. Ask a colleague for help if you’re still not happy about the content or the message that you're trying to share.
Think about tone, how would you feel if you received this email?
Review spelling and grammar.
Take the emotion out, arrange a conversation instead so that the meaning can’t be misinterpreted.
Be genuine and professional.
Include the subject, be concise.
If you’re not sure, don’t send it.
Appreciate who you’re sending the email to and that they may not have the same skills set, experience or knowledge as you.

Take a recent email that you have sent, ask someone to review the content (or do this yourself), Ask the following questions:

What's in the subject line and does it link to the content of the email?

Does it make sense?

Does it get the right message across?

How does the tone feel?

How do you sign it off? Is the signature up to date?

Think about how formal or informal you should be.

Would a conversation be better?