In a professional environment, email is the most common form of communication.
Therefore, it is very important to get it right.
Emails are not as formal as formal letters, but you need to write professional emails in English to build a good image of yourself.
You may be a non-native speaker of English, but you must learn to write error-free, professional emails.
In a professional organization, you are expected to write professional emails in English to your colleagues, clients, and the management.
Here are 7 tips to write professional emails in English
1. Greet the receiver
The obvious first step is greeting the person you are sending the mail to.
It is a standard method to use ‘Dear’ as a greeting in professional emails.
“Dear Adam,” is a perfect greeting to start a professional email.
If you want to sound more formal, you can always use the full name of the receiver.
“Dear Adam Smith,” is a perfectly fine greeting in a professional email.
If you have a casual relationship with the receiver of the professional email, it is enough to use ‘Hi’ as in “Hi Adam,”.
Non-native speakers of the language often use “Dear Sir” or “Dear Madam” in their professional emails.
It is an impersonal method of greeting someone and it must be avoided in your professional emails.
2. State purpose of the mail
It is better to state the purpose of the mail in the beginning itself.
If you are replying to mail, then you can start by thanking the person for sending mail to you.
You can say, “Thank you for contacting us” or “Thank you for contacting ABC Limited.”
If you are emailing to enquire about something, say “I am writing to enquire about…”.
You can also say, “I am writing in reference to…”
You must explain the purpose of the mail using simple language and you must be direct.
But make sure you are not appearing rude or impolite in your language.
If you are writing to someone for the first time, you can start by introducing yourself.
“I am Adam Smith, and I am writing on behalf of ABC Limited.”
3. Keep it short
Professional emails must not be too long. You do not want to waste people’s time, do you?
Keep your emails short and to the point.
If the subject being talked about in the email needs a detailed discussion, use the email to set up your online or offline meeting.
If your professional emails in English are not short, readers might fail to read the whole mail and would start to skim through the email.
That might lead to missing essential information mentioned in the email.
4. Use a closing remark
Always add a closing line that makes it clear what you expect next from the receiver of the email.
It is a good practice to thank the receiver once again in the last sentence.
“Thank you for your consideration. Looking forward to hearing from you.” is a good closing line to use in your professional emails.
With the sentence, you have thanked the person as well as made it clear what is expected of him/her.
The closing line is a perfect place to set up the course of your future correspondence.
5. Include an appropriate closing
Professional emails in English must end with an appropriate closing with your name.
There are people who add ‘cheers’ in their email closing, but it is not professional to use that as a closing.
Do not try to be overly creative and use complex or ‘unique’ closing for your professional emails.
It is always safe to use common closing words like “Best regards,” “Sincerely,” “Respectfully” or a simple “Thanks again.”
6. Add your signature
Adding your signature at the end of your professional emails is a good practice to follow.
It will help the receiver to know who you are and how credible you are.
You can add your name, phone number, company name, company logo, and the website URL in the signature
However, make sure that it is not awfully long.
Signature in professional emails is often considered as a perfect place to do your company branding.
7. Always proofread
It is always a good practice to proofread your email before hitting the send button.
Make sure that you have not made any typo errors in the mail content.
Once again read and confirm that your mail is straightforward and easy to understand.
If you have promised to add any attachment in the mail content, make sure that you have added it.
Pro Tip
It is always better to add the “To address” only after you have completed the mail content and you have done the proofreading. It will help if you inadvertently click the send button (or press any shortcut key) before completing the mail content.
