Email Best Practices at Work
Outside of picking up the phone and calling someone in order to prevent a lengthy, time-consuming email thread, the subject line and the format of the body are the fundamental keys to immediately improving email efficiency.
Subject Line
State the purpose, content and any deadline for action or response. It should be clear to the recipient without even opening an email if an action is required, if so by when, and which client/project/account it concerns. Examples:
FYI: Compliance update re: mandatory notices
Action Required: get answer to Client X by 3 PM Wed 7/21
Attendance Requested: Project Z marketing campaign meeting 2 PM Thurs 8/5
Email Body Format
State your question or request first. Give two or three bullet point details, if necessary. If a lengthier explanation needs to be included, insert this text after the bullet points and with each main point bolded for easy reference. Before signing off, re-state your question or request.
Example 1: Action Required: get answer to Client X by 3 PM Wed 7/21
Tony,
Action: See Client X’s question below. Answer by phone (vm OK) and email.
Insert client question here:
“ipsum blah blah ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–.”
Due date: answer Client X’s questions by 3 PM CT Wed 7/21
Thank you,
Example 2: Attendance Requested: Project Z marketing campaign meeting 2 PM Thurs 8/5
Juan,
Meeting: marketing campaign
Purpose: Share input on campaign and make final selection
*Prep: review attached 3 proposals
*Share: pros, cons, suggested edits
*Finalize: campaign choice, with approved edits
Required attendance: Team A and Team B
Requested attendance: Team C and individuals contacted
Attendance Requested: Project Z marketing campaign meeting 2 PM Thurs 8/5
Sincerely,
Example 3: FYI: Compliance update re: mandatory notices
Changes in policy to be aware of:
*Bullet point 1
*Bullet point 2
*Bullet point 3
Explanations:
Change 1
Sentences/short paragraph with any necessary explanation. “ipsum blah blah ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–.”
Change 2
Sentences/short paragraph with any necessary explanation. “ipsum blah blah ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–.”
Change 3
Sentences/short paragraph with any necessary explanation. “ipsum blah blah ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–.”
There are, of course, other email tactics you can implement, but these are the most important to implement first in order to get more immediate email relief.
If you’re interested in more tips, click here for additional email best practices at work.
