Hello, and welcome back to English for Management and Leadership. In this video we'll discuss how to write effective emails. Now you're probably thinking, I know how to write emails. Of course you do, they're not really that hard. But I'm sure if I asked you whether you receive emails that aren't so good, you'd probably be able to identify a few. And communicating to people in other languages and other cultures can be tricky. So when you think about how many emails show up in people's inboxes, do you wanna make sure that your e-mail gets read? Do you want to make sure that your email gets actionable responses? In other words, people take action as a result of your email. Do you want to make sure that the tone of your email is appropriate to the cultural audience you're writing to? To do that, you'll need to make sure that your email is quickly and easily understood. By spending a little time here talking about how to write effective emails, I think you can accomplish all of those things. Back in module two we talked about making meetings effective. Do you remember what was the first thing I suggested you do? I suggested you ask yourself this question, is this meeting necessary? Well here I suggest you ask yourself the same question about email. Is this email necessary? Because just as we all have too many meetings in our professional lives, we also have way too many emails in our inbox. Okay, once you've decided that yes, email is the best form of communication for this message, you'll need to start. Where do you usually start? At the top, with the To line? I do too, if it's a quick, easy email. But here's a tip, if it's an email that will take some time to write because it's a difficult topic, because the content is complex or because you have to get the tone of the message just right. I go straight to the body of the email and leave the To line empty. Why? Because accidentally hitting the Send button before an already-tricky email is ready is terribly embarrassing. If there's no name in the To line, it can't get accidentally sent. Only when it's absolutely ready to go, do I put the names of the people I want to send it to. So who do you send it to? Just like with meetings, send an email only to those people who really need to see it. Use the cc line carefully. It's for those people who are not directly affected by the email but who need to be aware of the contents. Similarly, use the Reply All option sparingly. Not everyone needs to see your individual response. Next up is the Subject line. I sometimes write this only after writing the body of the email, to make sure that it exactly conveys the core message. Whenever you write it, make sure it's clear, concise and detailed. For example, if it's a regular communication such as a weekly emailed status report add the date. BioDent Launch Status- September 4. Sometimes an email thread, that's what we call a long email conversation that goes back and forth. An email thread's topic starts to change. When that happens, be sure to change the subject line as well so it's clear in the inbox what the email is about. Now we're looking at the body of the email. Here I will focus specifically on the writing style of native English speakers, since this is a course about business English. However, we recognize that you'll be using English as the common language to communicate with people of a wide variety of language and cultural backgrounds. Keep an open mind about communication styles and try to adjust to the style of your audience. Start by offering a salutation such as, Hi Jake, Hello Catherine, Good morning, Elizabeth. If it's someone you don't know well, use dear, like Dear John. Your first paragraph, if your message is not negative, should indicate the purpose of the email. What is it you want or need me to do? Having a clear idea of your purpose for writing will make this easier. Are you writing to convey information and need no response? Are you writing for a reply such as advice or a question? Are you seeking an action? Or is this an open-ended, on-going dialogue? Once you've expressed the purpose of the email, use the rest to communicate any details that are necessary for the reader to learn or understand. When doing so, be clear and be brief. Here's why. Imagine you open up two different emails. One has four very short paragraphs. The other has three really long paragraphs. Which will you want to read first? Right, the short one. Why is that? It's because our brain can tell, at first glance, which one will be easier and faster to read, simply because of what designers call white space. White space is the area of the page where there is no text. In 2005, Jacob Nielsen conducted a usability study comparing two webpages. One with more dense text, the other with less text and more white space. They discovered that readers spent more time on the dense text. Ah-ha you say, I want my reader to spend more time focused on my email. Maybe, but readers understood 34% more of the text with lots of white space. So less text, more white space, means your reader will understand more in less time. I think we can all agree to the benefits of that. So how do you create less text? First of all, use concise language. Jenny will discuss that in much more depth in her video, coming up in the language lesson. Secondly, use short paragraphs or bullet points. If you have to write a long email, like a status report, use headings and subheadings to break up the text for your reader. Finally, if your email is getting long, think about breaking it up into more than one email. Of course, this does create more emails but several short emails about slightly different topics are easier to manage than one long email with many purposes. Now we're at the end of your message. Close your email with a call for action, if necessary. Be sure to be specific when you do. For example, in order to include your contribution to the newsletter in this month's edition, please send it to me by September 27th. Notice that I offered a reason. Remember that people love reasons. Work to personalize the closing. Avoid standard phrases like, I look forward to your response. Instead, incorporate details from your message. I look forward to discussing this proposal with you further. I will contact you next week to determine a good time for us to do so. End with a closing phrase like Sincerely, or Regards, if it's more formal, or Thanks, if it's less formal. Finally, proofread your email for spelling or grammar errors. Then take one more opportunity to edit your email for length, and take a look at whether you need more white space. We've covered a lot of information, and this was on a topic we all think we already know. Let's sum up the takeaways. Consider whether email is the best method of communication for your message. Be careful with who you need to include. Make your subject line clear, concise and detailed. Use up-front communication to make your message clear from the beginning. Most messages can use up-front communication unless it's negative news, then use the indirect approach. Use effective white space by keeping sentences and paragraphs short, using bullets to simplify your message, and headings to divide up longer chunks of text. Close with a clear call for action, if action is needed. Offer a time frame and a reason to express urgency. Proofread for spelling and edit for length one more time before hitting the send button. I hope you've enjoyed this review of a tool we use everyday. By using these techniques, your emails will be the ones everyone wants to read. Thanks for watching English for Management and Leadership.
