How can you improve your email performance?

1 Know your purpose

Before you write an email, ask yourself what you want to achieve with it. Do you want to inform, persuade, request, or thank someone? Depending on your purpose, you will need to adjust your tone, language, and structure. For example, if you want to inform someone about a project update, you will need to provide relevant facts and details, use a neutral tone, and organize your email logically. If you want to persuade someone to accept your proposal, you will need to highlight the benefits and value, use a positive tone, and end with a clear call to action.

2 Write a clear subject line

The subject line is the first thing your recipient sees when they receive your email. It should summarize the main point or topic of your email and capture their attention. A clear subject line helps your recipient decide whether to open, read, and respond to your email. It also helps you and your recipient keep track of your email thread and find it later. Avoid vague, generic, or misleading subject lines that may confuse or annoy your recipient. For example, instead of writing "Meeting", write "Reminder: Team meeting on Monday at 10 am".

3 Use the right salutation and closing

The salutation and closing of your email are important for setting the tone and showing respect and courtesy. The salutation is how you greet your recipient at the beginning of your email. The closing is how you sign off at the end of your email. The right salutation and closing depend on the level of formality, the relationship, and the culture of your recipient. For example, if you are writing to a senior executive or a client, you may use a formal salutation like "Dear Mr./Ms. Smith" and a formal closing like "Sincerely" or "Best regards". If you are writing to a colleague or a friend, you may use a casual salutation like "Hi John" or "Hello Jane" and a casual closing like "Cheers" or "Take care".

4 Keep it short and simple

Writing effective emails can be difficult, especially when considering that most people receive dozens of emails a day and have limited time and attention to read them. To keep your emails short and simple, use short sentences and paragraphs, bullet points or numbered lists to highlight key points, clear and simple language, and white space and formatting to make your email visually appealing. Additionally, always make sure to proofread and edit your email for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors.

5 Be polite and professional

Email is a form of written communication that can be easily misinterpreted or misunderstood. To avoid that, you should always be polite and professional in your email. This includes using appropriate and respectful tone and words, avoiding sarcasm, humor, or emotion that may offend or confuse your recipient. Additionally, you should address your recipient by their name and title, acknowledge and respond to their questions or requests, express gratitude and appreciation, apologize if necessary, and check your email for tone and clarity before sending.

6 Follow up and follow through

The last tip to improve your email performance is to follow up and follow through on your email by sending it promptly and within the expected time frame, responding to your recipient's reply or feedback in a timely manner, providing additional information or clarification if needed, confirming receipt or completion of tasks or actions, updating your recipient on the progress or status of a project or issue, and closing the loop and thanking your recipient for their cooperation or support. By adhering to these tips and best practices, you can make your email communication more effective, efficient, and professional.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?