Good Email Etiquette
I am blessed with many contacts, followers, and friends, and as a result I receive a lot of email correspondence each week.
I am continually surprised at how many of these emails are somewhat… unfriendly. Sometimes it seems like everybody is too busy to take an extra moment to be kind and courteous in their emails. But those that do stand far above the rest — and that is where the opportunity for good relationship marketing begins
Here’s what I mean…
Each week, over 50% of the email messages I receive lack one or more of the basic common courtesies associated with good letter writing. It is very common for me to get email that doesn’t contain a greeting, a personalized closing, or a signature that contains complete contact information. I’ll bet you’ve noticed this alarming trend, too. I say alarming because poor email courtesies like these could adversely affect the impression your customer service representatives are making on your customers.
On the positive side, I think it would be smart to spend a little time thinking about this issue because I believe it represents a good marketing opportunity for your company. After all, if your company consistently provides warm and friendly email correspondence, you’ll differentiate your firm from many of your competitors.
Here are three simple ways to write a friendly email.
Let’s start with the greeting. A surprising number of email messages don’t have a greeting. Can you imagine getting a phone call where the person started taking without even taking the time to say “hello”? Well, that’s exactly what happens with a lot of email. Often, there is no greeting at all, or the sender merely says “John” and then begins their email. I think it is always friendly and courteous to say something like:
Dear John,
Greetings John,
Good afternoon John,
Personally, I like something simple like ‘Hi John.’ If the email conversation goes back and forth a few times, I like to simply say ‘Hi again, John,’ as I begin each email.
Next is the close. Again, I frequently receive numerous emails where the sender chooses to omit a friendly closing statement. Often, all I see is their default signature line which often only contains partial information about who they are. It’s not a very friendly way to end a letter. I suggest using something like:
Sincerely,
Cordially yours,
Respectfully yours,
My two favorites are ‘Kindest regards’ and ‘Best regards.’ Whatever you choose, it’s important to include a warm closing statement.
And finally, about your signature. I would sincerely encourage you to take a moment to look at the signature information your company uses. (You do have a standard, company-wide signature that you have personally approved for all of your employees, don’t you?) Please double check to make sure it has all of the necessary contact information needed to transact business with your company. I think a good signature line contains the following information:
John Moroz
johnmoroz@pinepressprinting.com
www.pinepressprinting.com
120 Ellis Ave.
Lexington, SC 29072
Is your company using email correspondence to help you build a better relationship with your customers, or does your email come across a little cold and impersonal? Taking a few extra moments to insert a few well-selected cordial words in each email is all it takes to write a winning letter that is friendly and warm.
P.S. Check back with this Pine Press Blog and also with John’s Blog for more business tips.
Pine Press Printing & Mailing delivers. Guaranteed!
Pine Press Printing your friendly hometown printer in Lexington, SC 29072
803-359-9162
This is always an exciting time of year here at Pine Press Printing with the holidays, year-end wrap up and getting together with loved ones. This time of year always seems to be the best time for reflection to take some measure of what you’ve accomplished and where you are heading next. In that spirit, over the past few weeks with the help of my wife Lori, I’ve been doing some serious reflecting.
