Writing business email: tips and samples

A well-written business email can open the gates to the deal - or shut it down for good. If you want to attract the attention of the recipient, to put yourself in a good light, you should pay attention to a few things. Career Bible has gathered the most important pieces of advice. How to write the perfect business email.

Content: This is what awaits you

• Business mail: definition
• salutation
• reference
• contents
• shape
• Enough
• signature
• Attachments
• correction
• time
• Business Mail: These are the 7 deadly sins

Business mail: Please note

Over 205 billion emails are sent worldwide - every day. Most have a business background, including many spam, commercial, and bulk emails. A large part of electronic mail ends up in the trash - according to a study by the online marketing specialists at GetResponse, 78 percent.

Nevertheless: E-mails are still the electronic tool of choice to contact a (potential) business partner, to introduce oneself, to follow up, to initiate a business. What should you look out for in a business email? We have put together the most important tips for you.

Business mail: definition

Basically, a distinction must be made between

• Email marketing: This includes newsletters, mailings, and other emails that are intended to directly promote the sale of goods or services.
• E-mail service communication: These are mainly automated e-mails. You can get it, for example, if you have logged on to Twitter, ordered something from Amazon, or changed your password on Facebook.
• Business email: This includes, for example, invoices and reminders, but also non-binding contacts, exchanges between project partners, status updates, or acquisition efforts. This is the only category we are concerned with today.

In practice, almost everyone writes business emails these days. According to figures from the Bundesverband Digitale Wirtschaft (BVDW) from 2015, six out of ten companies in Germany operate e-mail marketing and service communication, eight out of ten companies maintain e-mail business communication. It seems reasonable to assume that the numbers have risen rather than fallen since then.

salutation

The opening rates of e-mails with direct salutation in the subject line are, according to GetResponse, 26 percent higher than impersonal e-mails, and the click-through rate is also higher. But this is particularly relevant for email marketing and mass emails. In business emails, from person to person, you should address the recipient personally at the beginning of the text just out of courtesy and appreciation.

Important: Check the spelling of the name, for example on the company website. Pay particular attention to umlauts (often attract the devil of mistakes). There are no alibis for misspelled first or last names, whether the recipient is Michael Meier (with i), Dimitri Potoparov, or Hidayet Demirbilek.

Spell the name correctly. As you have probably already noticed, this is unfortunately not a matter of course.

The following variants are particularly suitable for the salutation:

• Dear Sir / Madam (formal first contact)
• Dear Sir or Madam (if the addressee is unknown)
• Dear Sir / Madam (if you already know each other better; also ok with the first contact)
• Hello Madam / Sir (a bit casual, but within the tolerance range)
• Hello Ms / Mr (a little stiff, but a solid middle ground)

Salutations such as Values ​​Ms / Ms or Honored Ms / Ms are clearly out of fashion. You should only use them if you are (knowingly) dealing with an old-school business partner.

reference

Please do not forget to fill out the subject line sensibly. The best subject lines are ...

• short but not cryptic
• descriptive, but at the same time arouse curiosity
• urgent but not intrusive
• inviting, but not outrageous

In the case of marketing emails, the subject line decides whether an email is clicked at all - in the case of business emails, not least on WHEN and how often it is clicked. The market researchers of the Nielsen Norman Group recommend focusing on the first 40 characters. "Descriptive and well-written subject lines enable the recipient to make an informed decision about whether they want to learn more details or otherwise continue," said the market researcher.

It is important to outline the content as precisely as possible in 40 characters, including important keywords. Above all, the subject line shouldn't be a mystery. Elementary: Do not use any special characters or keywords that could automatically end up in the spam folder.

Examples of useful subject lines in business mail:

• Current status of project XY
• Inquiry about your call
• Appointments for the kick-off meeting

contents

The basic rules for the content of a business mail are:

• Meet expectations

The nicest subject line is of no use to you if it turns out to be cheap clickbait afterward. It should reproduce in abbreviated form what is discussed in the mail itself. Rule of thumb number one: Don't make promises in the subject line that you (cannot) keep in the text.

• Put it politely

It starts with the salutation ( Dear Sir / Dear Sir ) and ends with the greeting ( Greetings / Kind regards ). Recommended is the incorporation of pleasantries, so polite, but basically redundant words. These include, for example: Thank you for your email or I look forward to your answer. In this way, you express appreciation, draw the reader a little closer to your side, and immediately appear more likable.

• In short

And get down to business as quickly as possible. A business email should be more like a cover letter than a speech. So don't start with a gag or anecdote. In the first sentence, write who you are (if that's not already clear) and what you do. Immediately after what it's about and what you want. No long versions, bridges, or branches. If there are really complex issues to resolve, a phone call is probably a better option. When you contact us for the first time, however, you should not overload the e-mail with the information.

• request

The call to action - or, in new German: the call to action - comes before the greeting. As a rule, it is not a direct request in the command tone, but more subtle and subtle. Examples: what do you think of them? , Please give me a call or I look forward to your answer.

 

shape

The form is important, but it should not be confused with formality. The content can be lively and gripping (if it is also brief and informative at the same time).

And: A volatility typo is not the end of the world, it can even indicate that you did not send a standard email, but were personally very zealous (you should not deliberately incorporate a typo). Basically, however, it shows seriousness, accuracy, seriousness if you pay attention to the following criteria:

• Use a uniform font (preferably Arial, Verdana or Helvetica in dark).
• Do not use smileys or other emoticons (unless you already know the recipient very well).
• Observe correct spelling and grammar (including punctuation, upper and lower case).
• Write in whole sentences (no half-sentences or building blocks).
• Do not use abbreviations (except for very common ones like etc., etc., e.g.).
• Include paragraphs and free lines for better readability.

Enough

The greeting at the end is essential (except for ping-pong emails). The following building blocks are a good choice:

• Kind regards (standard, but very sober)
• Kind regards to Berlin (shorter version with local reference)
• Kind regards (personal)
• Greetings (modern)
• Many greetings (classic)
• Best regards (casually)
• Kind regards (from colleagues or good friends)

signature

The signature gives your mail an official character and gives you credibility . First and last name, company, position, contact details belong at least here, possibly also social media buttons. Incidentally, the following applies to signatures: No problem if they are very long (well structured that long).

You can set up a signature relatively easily in Outlook or alternatively attach a business card. But that is clearly the worse option. Attachments are associated with circumstances and often even a source of danger for the recipient.

Attachments

When you contact us for the first time , you should completely avoid attachments of any kind. If you send manuscripts, documents, applications, contracts, then make sure that the attachment does not exceed the famous 5 MB limit. Oversized attachments cause extra work and data congestion for the recipient - clear stop sign!

And: Do not send any exotic formats . It's best to go with the classics: JPG, PDF or DOC.

correction

At the end of every email there is a correction. Proofreading once thoroughly - you should get used to that in principle. Beware: the devil of errors creeps in not only in spelling and grammar.

An everyday example: You conscientiously write an important e-mail on Friday and close with the greeting formula Many greetings and have a nice weekend . But now you want to check something before you send the mail, so leave it in the drafts folder for the time being and only send it on the following Monday.

Now, your weekend greeting on Monday could bring some cheer. Perhaps it will be well received, but perhaps it also signals a lack of care , creates suspicion or the recipient sees it as an inappropriate joke. So: Pay attention to such details.

time

The - perhaps - best time to send your business e-mail: Tuesdays to Thursdays between 7.30 a.m. and 10 a.m. At this time, most of them sort their inboxes, going through the e-mails from the previous day. The time window between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. is also a good option.

Reason: The workforce comes out of the lunch break well-fed and sits back in front of the monitor with fresh energy.

Timing is also important when replying via email. Example: You receive an email with a complex issue. Anyone who replies two minutes later gives the impression that they have not dealt with the subject at all.

The other way around: In the case of a brief, concise request, you should not let the sender fidget for days, but rather reply as quickly as possible.

Business Mail: These are the 7 deadly sins

Labor psychologist Emma Russell from Kingston University in London believes she identified the seven deadly sins in email communications . Whereby the label mortal sin is probably a bit too exaggerated, because for each of the seven points there are at times very justified reasons and scenarios.

In most cases, however, please don't do this:

1. Ping-pong e-mails: If both actors repeatedly click on "Reply", an endless queue arises. Sometimes helpful, but often annoying and confusing.
2. Time: Out-of-hour emails are those that you write at impossible times, for example at night or on the weekend. They create pressure.
3. Society: Would you like someone to look over your shoulder while your email? E-mailing in a company is also a very bad idea because it can influence and falsify the content.
4. Ignorance: Not responding to an email is impossible - but it probably happens to everyone sooner or later.
5. Read receipt: Anyone who requests it would like to reinsure themselves. Unfortunately, it also seems very demanding, impolite, sometimes even outrageous. Better not do it.
6. Alerts: Email alerts often contain a clear message: Please do not reply to this email. However, not everyone takes the advice to heart.
7. Automation: Automatically generated email replies are impersonal and do not go down well. Nevertheless, they are sometimes indispensable - for example when you are absent due to vacation.

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