Email Etiquette: How to Sound More Professional and Confident in Your Work Emails

Love it or hate it, email has become a go-to method of communication for most workplaces.1 More than 200 billion emails are sent every day, worldwide.2 Most of us have more work-related conversations over email than we do in person.

But, how often do we pause to consider the impact of our emails? The tone, structure, and wording of our emails can significantly influence how we are perceived by our colleagues, clients, and vendors.

“With email being so ubiquitous in the corporate world, how we use it definitely matters,” says Krystin Morgan, a career coach and hiring expert.

That’s where email etiquette, a subset of netiquette, comes in. “Email etiquette is just like everyday etiquette—it’s a way of being polite and respectful in our interactions with others over email,” says Morgan.

If you want to elevate your email game, we’ve got you. In this article we share some tips and strategies for better email etiquette and more effective workplace communication.

Importance of Email Etiquette

Good email etiquette is important for several reasons:

• Professionalism: Good email etiquette creates a positive first impression and projects a polished image. “In some companies, you may work with people you only communicate with via email, meaning the stakes are fairly high if you want to have a strong professional relationship,” says Morgan.
• Clarity: Following the rules of email etiquette can help ensure that your message is communicated clearly and effectively.3 This can help prevent any confusion and frustration due to your communication, Morgan explains.
• Collaboration: Proper email etiquette fosters a respectful and collaborative work environment, where everyone can work together harmoniously. It prevents misunderstandings, avoids offense, and helps you build strong relationships.
• Credibility: Practicing good email etiquette demonstrates professionalism and attention to detail. This builds trust and credibility with colleagues, clients, and anyone else you interact with via email.

Email Etiquette Tips

These are some email etiquette tips to help you sound more professional and confident in your correspondence:

• Craft a clear subject line: The subject of the email should be clear, concise, and informative. It should accurately reflect the content of your email.
• Address the recipient appropriately: Begin your email by politely addressing the recipient, using their last name and title, if applicable. For example: “Dear Dr. Johnson” or “Hello Mrs. Smith.” Failing to address someone properly can offend them.4 However, if you’re on first name terms with someone, don’t be afraid to get personal!
• Add a greeting: You can add a greeting to the email, to make it more personal. For someone you know, you can say “Good morning,” or “I hope your week is off to a good start.” For someone you’re emailing for the first time, you can say “I hope this email finds you well.”
• Maintain a professional tone: Write clearly and professionally, keeping your tone friendly, positive, and respectful, remaining mindful of the difficulty of reading tone via email, says Morgan.
• Avoid casual language: Avoid emojis and informal language in work-related emails. Stay clear of humor and sarcasm, as they can sometimes be misinterpreted over email.3 Resist the urge to use all caps or add multiple exclamation points, no matter how strongly you feel about something.
• Be concise and to the point: Keep your emails clear, concise, and focused. Provide all the necessary context and information, without rambling.
• Format it to optimize readability: Structure your email in a way that it’s easy to read and understand. Use short paragraphs, bullet points for lists, and bold text to highlight key points.
• Proofread it before sending: Double-check your email for any grammatical errors or typos before sending it out. A spelling and grammar checker can help with this. The last thing you want is to get noticed for the wrong reasons!
• Sign-off politely: End your email with a polite sign-off, such as “Sincerely,” “Best regards,” or “Thank you,” followed by your name, credentials, and contact information.
• Be mindful of attachments: Don’t forget to include any attachments you intended to send. Mention the attachments in the email and keep the file sizes reasonable.

Best Practices for Email Communication

We asked the expert to share some best practices for email communication:

• Respond promptly: Reply in a timely manner to emails you receive, even if just to tell the person that you’ll respond in more detail later, says Morgan. Aim to respond to most emails within 24 hours, especially if they require urgent attention.
• Use Cc and Bcc wisely: Use the Cc (carbon copy) and Bcc (blind carbon copy) fields appropriately. Cc is used to keep others informed, while Bcc is used when you want to send a copy of the email without revealing recipients’ email addresses to each other.
• Use reply all sparingly: Don’t engage in habits that clutter people’s inboxes, such as replying all unnecessarily or forwarding spammy messages, says Morgan. “A good rule is to ask yourself if you’d communicate the same in person.”
• Give people time to respond: Don’t hound someone for a response right after sending them a message, Morgan advises. “Give them ample time for a response before following up.”
• Follow up politely: If you’re waiting for someone to respond or need to follow up on a previous email, do so politely and without being pushy.
• Maintain good inbox hygiene: Keeping your inbox organized can help you feel like you’re on top of things. Designate a few slots per day to just check your emails and respond to them. Sort and label incoming emails so that you can find them easily. Unsubscribe and report any unwanted spam so it doesn’t clog your inbox.

Email Etiquette in the Workplace

These are some email etiquette rules to follow in the workplace:

• Use a professional email address: If you work for a company, be sure to use your company email address for all work-related correspondence. If you’re self-employed, make a simple, clear, and professional email address that uses either your name or your company’s name.
• Be mindful of timings: Avoid sending emails outside of work hours unless absolutely necessary. Respect others’ right to disconnect after work.
• Set an out-of-office message when you’re away: If you’re going to be away, set an out-of-office message letting people know that you won’t be checking your email. The message should be concise, informing them when you’ll be back and who they can contact for urgent queries.
• Link your email to collaborative tools: It may be helpful to link your work email address to collaborative tools, so that you get notified when someone is scheduling a meeting, collaborating with you on a project, or assigning you work on a different platform. Otherwise, you may miss out on important updates.
• Distinguish between internal and external emails: Be mindful of whether the email you’re sending is intended for people within your organization or external to it. Adjust your tone, message, and the information you’re sharing accordingly.
• Maintain data privacy: It’s important to maintain data privacy over email, so make sure you don’t send any information or attachments to people who are not supposed to have it. Keep in mind that your workplace might monitor your emails.
• Document important information: It can be helpful to document important conversations over email, to reduce any ambiguity regarding timelines and deliverables. Make sure you mention key points and deadlines clearly in your email and receive written confirmation. This not only serves as a helpful reference for everyone involved but also ensures accountability, preventing the blame game.