Clear communication: Write relevant and effective emails

In a world where speed is everything, writers need to be conscious of who will be reading their emails. Readers need to grasp the message quickly, so the email must be easy to read, easy to understand and, above all, easy to use.

When you write emails, keep the following points in mind.

Relevance

Before drafting and sending an email, ask yourself the following questions:

• Is email the best way to convey the message that I am about to write?
• Is the message relevant to everyone I plan on sending it to?
• Have I included all of the people who need to receive this message?
• Do I need to reply to this email?

Before you reply to an email that made you react negatively, take a deep breath: give yourself 24 hours. Email isn’t always the best way to resolve interpersonal issues. Deal with difficult situations over the phone or in person, especially if either of the following situations applies:

• You think that the recipient will react negatively.
• You need to give someone bad news.

Netiquette

Be professional; follow these netiquette guidelines:

• Communicate clearly and effectively. Be courteous and respectful.
• Provide your contact information in a signature block.
• Don’t use ALL CAPS, which may be interpreted as shouting.
• Ask the writer’s permission before forwarding a message that contains any personal information.
• Flag your message as important only if the message is truly urgent.

Receivers

Give some thought to the people who will be receiving and reading your email:

• Adapt your message to the needs of the reader and to the purpose of your message. The reader may not necessarily know as much as you do about the subject.
• Choose a greeting and closing line that fit the type of communication and your reader.
• If your message is going to be sent to a distribution list, specify the target audience at the beginning of the email (for example, “This announcement concerns engineers and biologists.”).
• If you know the receiver will read your message on a phone, get right to the point.
• Don’t assume that the intended receiver is the only one who will read your message.

Subject line

Keep your subject line brief, explicit and eye-catching. Make sure that there’s a clear link between the subject line and the message. For example, write “Agenda – Meeting about communications strategy” instead of “Meeting today.”

The receiver will then be able to decide where the message fits on their priority list and file it accordingly.

Content

Make sure the content is clear and concise:

• Deal with only one subject in each email: the reader will be able to reply more quickly, and it will be easier to file the message appropriately.
• Get to the point: give enough information for the content to be accurate, complete and relevant. You’ll increase the chance that your message will be read and that the reader will send you a reply.
• Structure your message: after quickly putting your email into context, state the purpose of the message and any actions that must be taken. Be precise in your requests.
• Be persuasive: present your arguments in a logical order.

Presentation

Follow the presentation guidelines below:

• Keep your message within one screen page (about 25 lines or 250 words).
• Use your words economically:
  • Write short sentences and paragraphs.
  • Use lists and subheadings.
  • Avoid long messages made up of only one paragraph.
• Choose user-friendly fonts and formatting:
  • Use a font that is easy to read on screen. Avoid novelty fonts.
  • Use black letters on a white background.
  • Avoid repeating special characters (for example, exclamation points: they may be misinterpreted).
  • Limit your use of bold, italics, underlining and colours (especially in combination).
  • Stay away from emoticons (☺, etc.) and other distracting decorative elements.

Revision

Reread your email with a critical eye, and check the quality of your message. Put yourself in your reader’s shoes as you reread your message.

Here are some helpful guidelines:

• Get rid of repetition or awkward phrasing; fix spelling and grammar mistakes.
• Avoid jargon and acronyms; use technical terms and abbreviations sparingly.
• Ask a colleague to read an especially important or sensitive email before you send it.
• Ask yourself if the tone, logic and vocabulary are appropriate.
• If you’re a public servant, be careful of what you write: anything can be accessed through the access to information and privacy laws.

Attachments and hyperlinks

Attach documents to the email only if they are essential.

When attaching a document, explain why it’s relevant to the reader, and specify which parts of the attachment are important. The reader can then find the information more quickly and can reply more quickly to your email as well. Better still, if the document is filed on a shared drive, don’t attach the document; just insert a hyperlink that leads to it. This keeps the network from being overloaded.

Additional information

• Email, emails
• Clear communication: Use clear words and expressions
• Boost Your eQ (Email Intelligence) (Peck’s English Pointers)
• Correspondence and addresses – Guidelines and resources