The Email Etiquette Checklist

We spend so much time sifting through emails, yet many of us are unaware of the etiquette behind this. It’s easy to lose track with emails, so here are some tips to always consider before you press send.

1. Always have a subject line

Don’t leave subject titles blank, as they can indicate how urgent an email is. If you’re emailing about a cat photo, put “Cute Cat Photo”. This will help people prioritise.

2. Avoid double messaging

Don’t call someone to follow up an email or email again to follow up another email. If it’s urgent, make face to face contact. If not, just sit patiently.

3. Don’t scare people into action

Using high priority flags or putting “urgent” in a subject line is fine, but combining the two and adding exclamation marks is spammy and rude. Maintain composure, no one is going to die.

4. Don’t use casual salutations

There are probably certain people you can communicate with on a casual basis but when emailing new contacts, it’s best to stick to “Hello David” instead of “Yo Dave!”.

5. Proofread

You may think skipping proofreading is a way to save time, but grammar mistakes could cost you your professional image or lead to embarrassing miscommunications.

6. Use “Reply All” sparingly

This is fine for relevant messages but if you’re just responding to an event invitation with “Awesome dude! Can’t wait!”, save it for later.

7. Don’t use a wall of text

There’s nothing more depressing than fighting through that dreaded block of lifeless text. Use bullet points, bold text and spaces to separate your points.

SOURCE: Design TAXI