The
following are ten rules that are important in sending effective emails. Most of the following rules were adapted
from reading an article by Kaitlin Duck Sherwood entitled "A Beginner's Guide to
Effective Email" –
http://www.webfoot.com/advice/email.top.html
1.
Use a useful subject line.
The subject line need not be a complete
sentence. Be brief, yet give clues to
the contents of the message.
2.
Reply with quote.
Replying to the exact words that the sender wrote, will clue the sender
into what statements or questions you are answering. The sender may have forgotten exactly what he wrote. Answers to
questions taken out of the original context can look confusing to the sender,
especially if he has forgotten original context of the message. You need not quote the whole message. It is only necessary to quote the part of
the message you are responding to.
3.
Avoid pronouns.
Specifying names will make the message clearer.
4. Use
proper format.
This includes short paragraphs that will make the email more
readable. Short lines ( 70 characters
or less ) to ensure the receiver will receive an email without truncated
lines. And keeping the overall message
short and to the point.
5.
Use proper grammar and spelling.
Using proper grammar and spelling makes any communication
effective. Emails riddled with spelling
and grammar errors are difficult to read.
Even though emails are a less formal form of communication take the time
to correct spelling and grammar.
6.
Avoid forwarding chain emails
From personal experience these emails are annoying. Some of these emails are forwarded
frequently enough that I have received the same chain email sent within days of
one another from different senders.
7.
Avoid fancy formatting.
At times the format in which the email is sent is not received. Different email software has different
capabilities. The receiver may receive
your email in the format in which you sent it, but the content is what is
important not the format.
8.
Add an appropriate signature.
This will help in identifying you as the sender. It may also help to suggest your
status. Kaitlin Sherwood suggests
keeping a signature less than five lines long.
If you are not using a signature, it is always good to identify
yourself. Your return address may not
be enough information for someone to identify you especially in a first time
correspondence.
9.
Try to pick a screen name / email name that is appropriate
Your screen name / email name may not matter when chatting with
friends, but it will matter if you are trying to make a first impression with
someone with status.
10. Always consider your audience.
Sending an email to a friend to ask them to
go to lunch will be different than sending a email to a college asking for
admissions information. The tone of the
email should match the audience.