Top 5 Tips On Business Email Etiquette
Business emails now are used as evidence in the court of law. Does this fact give you a wakeup call to pull your act together and be more careful while writing your business email? If words like ‘LOL’, ‘OMG’, ‘What’s up’, ‘Dude’ etc. are a regular feature in your business emails, we suggest you read on and find out the top 5 business email etiquettes that you must follow before you type the next email.
1. Subject matters
One of the first business email etiquette that you must follow is to give your email an appropriate subject. It is out of simple courtesy that you should have a subject so that the reader gets a heads up before reading it. A subject also makes it easier to find an email in the inbox if a recipient wants to read it later. “It is best to give all your business emails a professional subject so that readers not only take it seriously, but can also find it easily on a later date”, said Jeanette, a secretary to a top level executive at an investment bank.
2. Say no to slang and emoticons
Slang words or popular lingo like ‘LOL’, ‘OMG’ and more have absolutely no place in a business email. Besides the fact that it will look immature on your part to write these slangs in a business email, their presence may actually demean the seriousness and professional approach of the email. We know it is the 21st century and times are changing, but this business email etiquette is crucial if you want to sound serious in your email communication.
3. Avoid sarcasm and be direct
“We should all remember that we may effectively use sarcasm in verbal communication but in an email, you can’t see the other person’s facial expressions nor can you hear the tone of their voice. Your sarcasm in a business email may be picked up wrongly by the recipient which may cause confusion or give the wrong message”, warned Jeanette. She believes that being direct is one of the most important business email etiquettes you must follow.
