eMail Skills

Gregory J. Cook, EA, CPA+ Accredited Tax Advisor Past President Alabama Society of Enrolled Agents Past President Alabama Association of Accountants

Step By Step Guide to Improving Your Email Skills
The way we do business has been ever-changing over the last decade or so, and email correspondence has taken the place of “snail mail”, as well as the need for a fax machine. So you’re finally getting used to this system of “You’ve Got Mail”, but are your email skills up to par?

Let me help you test yourself, and give you a few important bits of advice when it comes to sending email, forwarding emails, and replying to emails, in the most courteous and professional way.

The everyday use of computers has eliminated the pen-paper approach to writing a formal letter. Email allows you the opportunity to write a rough draft, proof read it, fix any errors, and send out a professional letter to as many recipients as you choose with only a simple click of the mouse.
You as the author, however, carry the burden of making sure the message you are trying to get across is clear, with correct tone you wish to convey, and that the recipients read the email as you intended them to when you wrote it.

In every email, to every different recipient, your message will carry a different tone and message, and it’s important that you know how to relay these messages without being misunderstood or giving off a negative impression.


When you send an email, you are eliminating all of the physical benefits of creating a great first impression. There are no handshakes, positive, welcoming body language, or eye contact. Instead you have a computer screen with a message on it that needs to adopt all of these typical first impression acts.

I’m going to walk you through five of the most beneficial aspects of creating an email to ensure that you are not misinterpreted and show you how you can incorporate what you know about people and making a good first impression into a professional meaningful email.

In every email there are basically five important fundamentals that you should be sure to cover:

The “From Field”
In the “from field”, it’s crucial that your name is displayed correctly; capitalization and punctuation included. For example if your name is John Doe Smith, your name should read John D. Smith, or John Doe Smith. Not john d smith, or john smith, or j. smith, and especially not a blank field with only an email address. The correct capitalization and punctuation is so important here as it is the first impression the recipient will receive from you. Putting your name in all lower caps can often be perceived as someone who is spamming, but worse yet, it could indicate to the recipient that you’re possibly not as well educated or computer illiterate.

The Subject Line
The subject of an email is the second thing that a person sees when they view their email and decide whether or not to open it. People don’t usually open spam, and if your subject leads them to believe that your email is spam, it may be deleted without ever being opened. A subject line that is well thought out, short, descriptive and to the point, is the best type of subject line in order to ensure that your intended recipient, or recipients, will open your email.

Your subject should be limited to between five and seven words. These five to seven words need to convey the topic of your email accurately and should be clear as to the context you wish to convey. In an ongoing email conversation, you may adjust your subject to alert the other party of the topic in each of your replies, especially if the topic of discussion has changed.

The Email’s Greeting
It’s very important to include a greeting at the start of every email. Have you ever opened an email from someone and it said something like,

“I need those reports on my desk by the end of the day.

- Mark”

Did you feel like the person sending the email was being rude or bossy? Most people would, and that can cause unnecessary tension. An email with the same message can sound much friendlier written like this:

“Hi Kevin,

I’m writing to give you a friendly reminder that I will need those reports by the end of the day.

Regards,

Mark”

See how much difference adding a few extra words and a hello can make? A simple hello followed by the person’s name gives a much friendlier tone to email, even if the first email was meant to carry the same tone. How you type a person’s name also depends on the formality or informality you need to portray through the email. A “Hi Tom”, is more casual than a “Good Afternoon Tom”, or “Hello Tom”. The salutation also sets the tone for how you would like to addressed; either formally or informally.

Using a “Dear Mr. Smith”, would assume that you would like to be addressed as Mr. as well. However, keep in mind that if you do not know the person you are sending an email to very well, it’s best not to choose too informal of a salutation right away. Pick a happy medium and let them take the lead. Being formal is a sign of courtesy, and you can rarely go wrong being courteous. Lastly, pay attention to how the other person signs his or her name at the end of the email. This will give you the best clue as to how they prefer to be addressed.

The Body of the Email
The body of your email is obviously the most important part of the email, and therefore should be written well, with time taken in order to assure that the message you are intending to get across is clear and well written. It’s pertinent that you use proper grammar, including capitalization, punctuation, complete sentences and so forth. Proper paragraph form is important, as it shows your intellect and makes for much easier reading.

When you type in all caps, it sends the message that you are yelling, and unless that is your intent, it’s best not to use all caps. All lower case letters may lead the reader to believe that you are lazy, and just didn’t take the time to capitalize the words that should begin with a capital letter. Be sure you reread your email before sending to correct any grammar mistakes or missing words, and spell check as well, so you don’t accidentally say something you didn't mean to say.

The Closing Sentence of Your Email
The closing of your email is important because it gives you one last chance to say “Thank you”, or “Look forward to hearing from you”, “Regards”, or even simply “Sincerely”. This is the lasting impression you will leave on your reader, and you want the closing to be uniform with the rest of the emails tone. If you are speaking friendly, then end with a friendly closing.

If the email is more formal, them you may want to use “Sincerely, Mr. Joe Smith”, or whatever you wish to be addressed as. The closing of the email is a lot about consideration for the person reading it, to avoid sounding rude, or demanding, as you don’t have the luxury of using your voice to portray your tone; only the words you choose to use.

If you stick to these basic guidelines when writing your emails, your email skills will appear immaculate, professional, and easy to understand. The intended recipient will understand the tone that you intended them to, and your communication will be met with the same courtesies you offered in your email. It only takes a little extra time, but it makes all the difference when it comes to writing professional emails.