Emails are not as formal as traditional letters, but when you write a professional email it has to be crafted with the same courtesy and intent. This means it has to be perfect!
The attention and care you put in your professional email will be appreciated by the person who reads it. And this appreciation can lead to initiating contact and moving the conversation forward. But before you get there, you have to write that perfect email.
However, in today’s digital ecosystem, it’s not enough to just write the email. You have to use tools to optimize your email correspondence to its full potential. This includes tracking the email, creating templates to deliver brand consistency, and automating and personalizing your outreach with campaign tools.
With a strong email and the right tools, the email you write will have a better chance of achieving your desired goals.
Here are some key points to consider when writing a professional email.
Don’t Make Mistakes!
This is generally the last suggestion experts recommend, but in actuality, it should be the first. Understanding the importance of not making a mistake before you begin can make you more aware in drafting a professional email from the start.
Mistakes on a professional email will accentuate whatever bias the recipient has regarding errors. If they have a low tolerance for them, everything they read moving forward is going to be filtered through this prism.
Before you click the send button, go over it several times, on different dates if possible. Then, have your colleagues review the email to make sure it is mistake free. A new set of eyes can bring a unique perspective to what you are trying to say. Even if the email doesn’t have any mistakes, they might point out a better way to get your message across.
You can minimize the number of mistakes by creating shareable email templates for future use.
The Gmelius platform lets you turn your best and repetitive emails into templates you can use over and over - and share with your team. They can personalize and optimize them with custom variables and insert them directly from their Gmail compose window. This tool alone will save your team countless hours.
Make your Emails Clear!
Clarity is critically important when you write a professional email. If the person reading the email can’t make heads or tails of what they are reading, you’ve lost them.
In the words of C.S. Lewis, “Don't use words too big for the subject. Don't say infinitely when you mean very; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite.”
If the email requires complex jargon related to the industry or subject matter use them sensibly. After all, they already know the industry; you can impress them with your knowledge as your conversation, deal, or project moves forward.
The Professional Email Structure
Not making mistakes and being clear are great foundations for writing a good professional email. With that in place, you can focus on the structure of the email.
- Subject Line: Clarity plays a big role here because you have to concisely convey why you are writing the email. State your purpose and nothing more with a meaningful and engaging subject line.
- Font: Unless you and your recipient are in the creative field, use traditional fonts which will not take away from your message. Let your email be the center of attention and not the font. On the same vain, don’t use emoticons in your initial email.
- Greeting: As a professional email, include a greeting with the person’s full name and title. If you don’t have the name or title use “To whom it may concern” or “Dear Sir/Madam”. But by all means get this information, it is easy enough in today’s environment. You won’t be able to deliver a truly personalized email without it.
- Email Body: Only include essential information necessary for you to get a response. People don’t read long emails unless it’s information they have requested. If you’ve researched your audience well you know what they want, so tell them how you will make it happen.
- Closing Remarks: A good closing remark summarizes the email briefly, appreciates the time the reader has given you, and makes you available for any questions, comments, or future conversations.
- Closing: A simple “Thank You” is sufficient when it comes to a formal, professional email.
Optimize your Email
Sunsetting Email Tracking
Email tracking has been discontinued and is not available for new Gmelius users due to new data protection laws (e.g., GDPR). You can learn more about the reasons behind this decision here.
After you write your email, you can use tools to optimize their performance. Whether you write a single email or create a multi-stage drip campaign, you can track and automate your outreach.
Gmelius has tools which successively move your email communication from start to the projected goal. The shareable templates and smart tracking features make your team more productive by spending less time on writing emails and blindly following up. But campaigns and sequences offer additional toolsets to further increase the performance of your email.
With Gmelius campaigns you can send mass mailings without having to worry about Gmail or G Suite restrictions. Customize your smart email drips and let Gmelius handle the distribution.
It’s easy to see how Gmelius transforms your entire email process - making your marketing more efficient.
When combined with campaigns - sequences allow you to send customized emails to your recipients with automated smart follow-ups. You can use the professional email you just wrote, or your choice of new or saved templates.
Gmelius sequences follow an "If this - Then that" flow which you control. Send welcoming emails to new customers, and structure your responses according to their interaction. Re-engage lost clients with a nurturing sequence.
You can even turn emails into tasks throughout the stages of your campaign and automatically add them to your shareable kanban boards. Each note and task associated with an email can be accessed to show accountability and progress.
The possibilities are endless - and fully automated with Gmelius.
It all comes together under one platform - all within your Gmail inbox - and synced in real-time with all your team members - across all devices.
It's this Gmelius combination of art and science that will set your emails apart as truly professional.
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