Nine ways to look professional with email

Have you ever had a business-critical message returned to you because an attachment was too large? Have you ever waited impatiently for your team to react to a message that contained what you thought was a clear call to action? We're all busy, and these mistakes are easy to make.

Here are some simple strategies that ensure you're creating polished, professional emails that can help you convert customers, close sales and build your brand.

Make it happen with email.

ith over 1 billion sent and received per day, email is how the business world communicates. The ability to consistently craft powerful and polished emails will advance your business, career and reputation. But one email error can cause irreparable damage. No matter how many you write, resist taking shortcuts.

1. Create a custom email address for your business

Using your personal email address can send the message that your business doesn't take things seriously. But a custom email address in the format yourname@yourcompany.com shows customers and colleagues that you mean business.

2. Double-check your Cc: and Bcc: lines

When emailing multiple recipients who don't know each other, don't use the To: or Cc: lines. It shares your contacts' addresses with strangers, and if anyone replies to all, it can annoy or even anger everyone you've emailed. Avoid embarrassment and use the Bcc: line – no one will be able to reply to all or see other people's addresses.

Regret that email? With Office 365, you can recall and email before it's read. Hear's how...

3. Complete the To: line last

We're used to writing from top to bottom, so our instinct is to complete an email form's To: and Cc: lines first. Be careful – it's easy to hit the wrong key and send an email before finishing it. Remove the possibility of misfired emails by waiting until you know that you've crafted a top-notch email before adding contacts.

4. Make smart use of the subject line.

In many ways, the subject line is the most important element. If it doesn't give us a reason to click, your email may never be read. This can vary depending on your reader, but in general, keep subject lines focused and personal and show the value or urgency of reading.

Effective subject lines:

Bond Issue: Sue spoke highly of you (topic first, praise)
Please reply by EOD (specific, urgent)
Want to know what Stew said? (intriguing, personal)
7 ways my boss said I could help you (numeric, value)

Ineffective subject lines:

hi (wasted space, save greetings for body)
gotta ask you a question (unspecific)
WORK THING FROM MEETING (unspecific, CAPS = yelling)
Thought I'd send you an email (obvious)

5. Organise with spacing and bullets

Don't clump information together into long paragraphs. Instead, write using succinct points and make them stand out through spacing and bullet points.

Do this:

Your emails are a faint beep in the constant cacophony of daily life. The average office worker sends or receives 121 emails a day*, so write yours to be scanned, not read.

Use short, declarative sentences.
Avoid jargon.
Keep your emails as short as possible.

And of course, use spacing and bullet points to make your points stand out. When you've grabbed your readers' interest and have made them want to learn more about your business, you need to
provide clear next steps.

Don't do this:

Your emails are a faint beep in the constant cacophony of daily life. The average office worker sends or receives 121 emails a day*, so write yours to be scanned, not read. Use short, declarative sentences, avoid jargon and keep your emails as short as possible. And of course, use spacing and bullet points to make your points stand out. When you've grabbed your readers' interest and have made them want to learn more about your business, you need to provide clear next steps. To see how this is done, go to the next page.

6. A smart fix for large attachments

Video and multimedia have become essential to many types of businesses. Often, these files are too large to email. Moreover, many people don't like opening files attached to emails because they can carry viruses. File sharing is the solution. It allows you to upload files to the cloud and share them via a link to the uploaded file.

Learn how to share files in Office 365 using cloud attachments. Watch video...

7. Include clear next steps

Congratulations! Your email has gotten people interested – but now what? Include clear calls to action stating the exact next steps, whether it's just to follow a link, call a number, reply to your email or whatever else. Just make sure that it's clear.

Good examples of "next steps":

Learn how we can help your business at relecloud.com
To get your starter kit, call Grace on 01421 6055 0145
Interested in visiting Bluetouch Pharmaceuticals? Simply reply to this email

8. Add a signature with a logo

A signature is a subtle-yet-potent opportunity to build your brand with every email that you and your employees send. It can include not just a lot of information, but also some visual interest in the form of a company logo.

In Outlook you can add a signature with a logo in a few easy steps. Learn how...

9. And finally, proofried!

No, seriously, proofread!

And grammar mistakes. Always doublecheck that your tone is appropriate to the subject matter. Be careful about jokes and sarcasm – when no one can see your face, your humour could be mistaken for something else. Finally, ensure that you haven't made the common error of referring to an attachment but not including one.

Now proofread again!

Send off

We hope that you find these tips helpful in boosting your business's email power. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about how Office 365 can help your business, give us a call on 01653 694500.

You can read more about our Office 365 plans and buy online at computerfx.co.uk/office365

Thanks for reading, and feel free to share this book with your colleagues.