How to write effective emails

We spend a significant portion of our working hours writing and reading emails. But we’re rarely told how to do it well. Emails are how we convey pride in positive results and sincere disappointment when things don’t go to plan. In addition, they can often be our only communication with our clients’ broader business, who may not be present in recurring meetings.

Whether we like it or not, email is a central part of our success. If we write them well, we come across as capable professionals with high standards.

With that in mind, it makes little sense that we never receive any training in crafting well-written emails that effectively deliver our intended messages.

This guide is my attempt to start changing that.

Don’t overuse email.

People already receive too many emails, don’t add to that unnecessarily. Before writing an email, ask yourself whether it’s better suited as a Slack message or phone call. If you expect a lot of back and forth or need a quick resolution, a Slack message is probably better. If you want to deliver a long-form message that requires more time to digest, email is likely best.

Don’t rush.

​More often than not, people don’t write poor emails because they are incompetent; it’s because they are in a rush. Good writing takes time. Permit yourself to take the time to figure out what you want to say, review the tips in this guide, and give the care that’s needed to write a good email. Block the time out in your calendar if you want to. You need to get your message across and impress the receiver effectively. This process takes time.

Understand your audience.

One of the first things to do when crafting an email is to consider who will be receiving it. This understanding will help you define the tone you take, how much detail you add, and what level of technical language you use. For example, writing to a CMO requires keeping things brief, to the point, and not too technical. On the other hand, writing to your team often allows you to skip some pleasantries and get straight to the detail, where you won’t need to shy away from being too technical.

Write the way you talk.

When we start writing emails for the first time, mainly without any training or guidance, we often default to being more formal than is required. Of course, you need to keep some level of formality, but you don’t have to become a corporate robot just because you’re writing an email to a client. Relax, and write just how you would explain something speaking aloud. It’s much easier, and it will read much better.

Open with a greeting.

This one is pretty standard behaviour and is usually picked up by beginners quickly. However, the tip here is to go as personal as you can. For example, “I hope you had a good time at the football this weekend” is much better than “I hope you had a good weekend”. This trick comes down to having this level of detail available, and a generic greeting is equally acceptable if you don’t.

Consider closing with a “greeting.”

You can also consider closing with a typical greeting too. Something like “Regards, and Happy Friday!” is quite a nice change from a simple “Kind Regards”. Not a necessity, but something slightly different to consider.

Hyperlink whatever possible.

If you’re sharing a link to a website or a Google document, take the extra few seconds to press CTRL+K and hyperlink it. It’ll look more professional and remove a tiny bit of friction for the receiver. Every little helps.

Don’t overcomplicate things.

There is rarely a need for unnecessarily long words, and they often do the opposite of impressing people. Instead, use simple, direct language that people can understand and your email will be more effective.

Don’t take subjects for granted.

Subjects should grab attention and summarise the email. Choose them carefully. Be clear, direct, and describe the contents of the email so that the receiver knows what the email contains before they open it. You will most likely be fighting for attention in a cluttered inbox — make it easy for them to respond to your email first.

Make sure it is clear what you want the receiver to do.

Before you hit send, think about the one action you want the recipient to take upon receiving it. Then, re-read to ensure you have been clear about what that is. One of the easiest ways to do this is to clarify the action at the start of the email rather than the end. This structure will help the recipient know what you need from them. (Bonus points if you can fit the action into the subject line — “Maggie to approve new winter ad copy” is a more compelling subject than “new winter ad copy.”)

Less is always more.

People are more likely to read short, concise emails than long, rambling ones, so don’t waffle for the sake of it. Make sure that your emails are direct, informative and as short as possible without excluding necessary information. To make this easier, try sticking to one central point per email. If you need to cover multiple topics in the same email, consider adding bolded section titles to make it clear. It might also be better to suggest a call or meeting when you need to include lengthy information in an email.

Optimise for readability.

I’m going to make an assumption that you don’t read every email you receive word for word. Why should we expect our clients to behave differently? Rather than live in denial, it’s better to accept the fact that people probably don’t read your emails word for word. To embrace this, optimise for readability and scannability. Keep paragraphs short, use bullet points, and bold essential information.

Check your tone.

Before sending, try to imagine how someone may interpret your tone. To remove any doubt that your message may be received negatively, over-communicate positivity, add in soft touches and always be polite. Remember that your emails reflect your professionalism, values, and attention to detail.

Always proofread before sending.

Emails are as much a part of our professional image as how we present ourselves in meetings and the quality of work we deliver. So first, you need to identify and fix any typos and grammatical errors to convey high attention to detail. Spellcheckers are effective, but they won’t pick up misspelt names or incorrect dates, so pay special attention to these. Secondly, it’s valuable to take a step back and consider how someone reading the email for the first time will react to it. To do this, you can send it to yourself first — reading it in your inbox helps you see it from an external perspective.

If it’s more critical than usual, ask someone else to proofread.

A fresh pair of eyes will be invaluable if it’s a crucial email. Ask them to see it from the audience’s perspective to offer constructive feedback. They will also almost always spot a typo that you and your spellchecker has missed.

Sleep on it.

You won’t always have the time for this one, but if you do, sleep on it. Then, come back the next day, re-read it aloud, and improve it with a fresh pair of eyes. Don’t overlook the importance of reading aloud — you’re much more likely to catch mistakes by doing this.

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