WRITING EMAILS THAT DRIVE ACTION

Are you an employee or entrepreneur who writes emails in the course of getting your job done? Then this is for you!

Emails are one major way we communicate at work and with clients; but sometimes it’s funny that our mails don’t get read. Remember the last time you sent a mail; and the person was still asking you funny questions…and you are wondering how come? You know it could be because your communication was not as clear as you had imagined OR the story in your mail was too much and possible a bit confusing. So the reader shelved it for a ‘later’…which may never come. In summary, you do not get the desired results with your emails.

So today, I’ll share 2 nuggets on how as a career woman or entrepreneur, you can ensure your mails get read, understood and drive the desired action.

NUGGET 1. KNOW YOUR MESSAGE; AND DECIDE HOW IT’LL BE SHARED WITH YOUR READER IN THE MOST NATURAL FLOW TO GET THE DESIRED OBJECTIVE.

To achieve this, I’ll share 4 simple steps apart from ensuring the subject of your mail makes sense and gives an idea of what is needed.

Step 1: Ask yourself before you start any mail, what the objective of the mail is and the specific action you desire from the reader. When you have this articulated, as much as possible state this objective and desired action at the start of the mail. It guides your reader.

Step 2: Next, you need to create an outline for the rest of your mail. Creating an outline needs you to think like the reader. With your objective and specific action needed already stated, what questions do you anticipate she would ask you and how will you address them.

Step 3: Address each question/major concern area with a new paragraph. It makes your mails easier to read and digest.

Step 4: If your mail is to just inform the reader about the above; then you can end your mail here….of course with the right greeting. If you expect a certain action from the reader, you should state it here again and ask if anything is needed from you to facilitate the action.

So let’s see an example. You work in the Sales Dept and you are having challenges with a particular customer who isn’t paying up as expected. You have tried several means to get the funds but all have not yielded results. You now need your manager to step in.

Objective of your mail thus is to inform your manager of the challenge; and ask for his help. So your mail should start with what you desire. E.g. Hello sir. This is to inform you of the challenge with getting payments from Mrs. Alabi of XYZ Ltd; and seek your assistance with resolving it.

Next, you address the questions he would have like as briefly as possible such as – What kind of customer is Mrs. Alabi? How much does she buy on the average? How long has she been your customer? Has she ever defaulted in payments before and why? How much does she currently owe you? For how long has she owed this amount? What specific actions have you taken to get the outstanding money and what were the results?

Lastly, you end the mail, stating exactly what help you need from him- his advice, for him to send her an official warning, request a concession for her?

Remember; think like your manager who is a busy man. The crisper your mail, the more likely he will read to the end and respond to you. Thus keep short…simple but clear on what exactly you need.

NUGGET 2: BE PROFESSIONAL IN YOUR EMAILS. Being professional covers a lot; so I’ll just touch on 5 simple ways to be professional in your emails.

Tip 1: Every email should start with a greeting, have a body and end with a professional close. Greeting can be ‘Hello sir’, Hi Iphie or even just the first name ‘Iphie’; depends on your organization and the culture.

Body of the mail – we’ve talked that above. A professional close can be something like ‘Thanks a lot for XYZ and looking forward to your prompt response’. If you have an email signature – full name, title and contact details, great! Signatures of business email are not where to place your religious beliefs.

Tip 2: When writing business emails, watch your speak, the words used, grammar and tenses…the whole works!

Emails can travel far; so always ask yourself, if they showed this email on the Network News tonight, would I be proud of this email? Would this email show me as the professional that I am? Don’t write emails like you are on social media. Business emails are more serious stuff.

In an email, the word is ‘because’ and not ‘bcos’, Your and not ‘Ur, I’m fine and not ‘Am fine’. Also use the spell-check feature before sending a mail.

Tip 3: Be finicky about the fine details. In a sea of equally amazing colleagues and businesses, set yourself apart even with your emails. Don’t sacrifice legibility on the altar of beauty….’Oh, this font type is so beautiful, meanwhile only you and your laptop can read it’.  

Check your font type and font size – they should be legible. Check your mail – every part of it must be the same font type and font size. When you copy and paste from somewhere else, your mail may end up having different font types, sizes and even colours. Please watch this.

Where needed in order to emphasize a message, make the text bold and/or underline this key information so your reader does not miss it.

Tip 4: Don’t write an email when upset. In the course of work, people will piss you off, misquote you, rub you on the wrong side etc.…. key is to remember you are a professional.

Professionals are always objective; and don’t act based on emotions. In the course of work or business, never respond to an email when upset! Hard one for us right?   Don’t we love to dish it out while it’s hot! Not a bad idea…if you don’t mind losing that business deal or job  

So what does an upset angry woman do? Peel the onion….put your emotions aside and seek to understand the real issue and not how you feel. Based on an OBJECTIVE assessment of the issue at hand, draft your response which 100% addresses the issue at hand, save it and walk away!

Take a pee, walk round the office, laugh at those wearing colour-riot that day in the name of colour-blocking, retouch your make-up, pray…whatever, just do something that calms you down. When you return to your desk, read your mail again…edit if needed. Still in doubt, ask a reputable level-headed objective person you can trust to read the mail and give feedback.

Tip 5: Don’t fall into the trap of email attachments. Email attachments are bae! They make life so easy don’t they? You simple attach…and write a simple line saying ‘Please see attached the report you requested for’. Right?  

Don’t worry, I won’t burst your bubble; but hey you need to help your reader click that download button now vs. shelving it for later. To do this, place key information in the body of the email. Key information is equal to just enough information to give him/her an idea of what to expect. Key operating word here is ‘key’. Don’t copy and paste the entire content in the body of the mail….and say ‘I jump and pass this trap today :-)’.

So for example, you are sending the summary of a meeting; the body of the email should have the key topics discussed, key things agreed and next steps.

If sending a report or newsletter, the body of your email should have the key highlights. Two sentences max per highlight.

And the one that totally irks me…if sending a document you have made some changes on, please state in the body of the email the exact changes made. No busy person is about to go through the document again just to find out the changes you made. Trust me!

Looking forward to your testimonies on your amazing mails!!!