E-mail writing Guideline for General and Professional People..

When we were in elementary school, we learned how to compose a business letter by including the date, a return address, a greeting, and so on. Those rules still serve us well for letters. Unfortunately, there are no such guidelines for email.

About E-mails :1.4 billion e-mail users are in the world.2.8 milllion e-mails are sent and received a second and 90 trillion a year and 300 billion a day.
Reference : Radicati Group ‘e-mail statics report(2009~2013)’

A day do we send and receive?
How many e-mails Sending and Reception
Mailboxes are filled with worthless e-mails.
More than half of the hundreds of e-mails received are irrelevant.
Time is wasted in sorting out e-mails.
Unnecessary work e-mails lower work efficiency and concentration of employees.

I receive 150 e-mails a day, but only 50 e-mails concern me. It takes me more than 1 hour to sort out the e-mails.There are many e-mails of which I cannot figure out the contents right away by looking at the title with numerous RE’s and FWD’s. I have to open each and every e-mail to find the information I want.
One of my seniors sends me e-mails by only writing “FYI”. I often wonder whether I should handle the matters concerned myself or just read them as reference If the names of attached files are not clear enough, I have to open every file and change the names.How ever,Our Inappropriate use of e-mails may be use causing irritation and inconvenience to our colleague.

How is your e-mail culture?
As for your company, most work is done through e-mail especially when we communicate with different disciplines, clients and partner companies,so e-mail is the basic tool of work and communication for us.
Remove unnecessary recipients and CCs.
1,Clarify the recipients, CCs and sender at the top of the e-mail text.
2,Do not send e-mails inconsiderately to all of the members.
3,Remove irrelevant recipients or CCs when you reply to a group e-mail.
4,No more re-sending e-mails by writing only “FYI”

We want recipients of our email to treat our message seriously, yet we often give little thought to the message we send, because it's quick and easy, at least from a technical perspective. It's up to us to apply common sense and good taste to the messages we send. Here are a few guidelines you might find helpful, whether you're using Outlook, Outlook Express, or a web client:

• Keep it brief: I never make it through a long email. I find myself scanning, and I miss important details. You're not writing a book or a love letter, you're sharing information. Share the information and move on.,If your message runs longer than two or three short paragraphs, consider (a) reducing the message, or (b) providing an attachment. But in any case, don't snap, growl, or bark. A face-to-face meeting or conference call might be better.
• Include a succinct subject: Long subject lines are as bad as no subject at all. Pinpoint a few keywords that convey the email's purpose.
• Check your spelling and grammar: Put your main point in the opening sentence. Most readers won't stick around for a surprise ending. our email client has tools for checking your spelling and grammar so use them. Many people are sensitive to misspelled words and poor grammar. They see it as a lack of concern. If you don't care, why should they?
• Don't use emoticons and acronyms: Emoticons and acronyms are fine for personal email, but don't use them in your professional correspondence.
• Don't use ALL CAPS: ALL CAPS is the email equivalent of angry shouting. You wouldn't use ALL CAPS in a professional letter, so don't use them in email.
• Limit copies: Only copy those who absolutely need to be in the loop. Otherwise, colleagues will start ignoring your email.
• Greet your recipients: Use a short greeting to acknowledge your reader; include their name if you can.Remember to say "please" and "thank you." And mean it. "Thank you for understanding why afternoon breaks have been eliminated" is prissy and petty. It's not polite.
• Include a closing: Let the reader know you're done by including a complimentary closing and signature.Add a signature block with appropriate contact information (in most cases, your name, business address, and phone number, along with a legal disclaimer if required by your company). Do you need to clutter the signature block with a clever quotation and artwork? Probably not.
• Retain the thread: When responding to an email, include previous messages and add your response to the top. That way, the recipient is privy to all the Finally, reply promptly to serious messages. If you need more than 24 hours to collect information or make a decision, send a brief response explaining the delay.

Your work is done if you send an e-mail?

The ultimate purpose of e-mails is to conduct work smoothly and achieve good results through cooperation of everyone involved.In order to receive high-quality feedback to an urgent or important e-mail, you need contact them to check whether the persons

in charge read it on time and understood it correctly.Writing e-mails thoughtfully is directly connected to “consideration” for others.When your small inconvenience brings about great convenience to others, this is called “consideration.”Check once again whether you followed basic etiquette before sending an e-mail in order to establish an e-mail culture of respect and consideration.

Prepared & Collection by M.Ajmal Khan.