Want to Get Better Results out of your Emails?
Email content is going nowhere—whether it be for workplace correspondences or used as a marketing tactic. However, if not done correctly, your message could be taken the wrong way or ignored altogether. That’s why it’s vital you’re always working to improve your email writing skills.
Why Your Email Writing Skills Matter
Whether it be workplace correspondences or checking their personal email, in the U.S., individuals spend approximately five hours a day checking their inbox.
With so many hours dedicated to this activity, it’s crucial that you are taking the time to improve your email writing skills, whether it be for marketing purposes or for workplace communications. If you’re looking to not only capture but maintain the attention of your reader, as well as deliver a message in the correct tone/manner, then it’s crucial you are honing your skills to meet the needs of your intended audience.
For instance, if you lack email writing skills in the workplace and are tasked with sending out a memo to everyone in the office if you don’t utilize the right terminology or tone, you could deliver a message that causes unrest or confusion instead of answer questions.
The same applies to crafting emails for consumers. Without the right attention to detail, you could leave them with more questions than answers, or worse, they could trash your message before even reading it through.
6 Tips to Help You Improve Your Email Writing Skills
To ensure that you’re sending the right message to your intended audience, it’s vital you take the time to improve your email writing skills. Instead of scouring the internet for tips and tricks, why not give these six tips a try?
1. Break Up Long Sentences/Paragraphs
One of the easiest ways to turn off your reader, no matter who the intended audience is, is writing an email full of long sentences or bulky paragraphs. Walls of text can often lead readers to skip over the chunks in an attempt to “get to the point.”
Instead, break up your message into easy, bit-sized messages that are easily scannable without losing the message’s intent.
2. Eliminate Unnecessary Filler Words
Filler words are a nuisance to readers. They are usually inserted into emails to bulk them up or unnecessarily explain something that doesn’t need explaining.
- Filler Example: “For what it’s worth, we could test the email with group A to see how it performs before we send it to the entire group.”
- Improved Example: “We could test the email with group A to see how it performs before sending it out to everyone.”
Instead of focusing on bulk or over-explanation, focus your attention on writing a concise, scannable message.
3. Get to the Point
Spending five hours a day checking email is a tedious task, and if your goal is to improve your email writing skills enough to capture your reader’s attention and compel them to do something, you need to make sure you aren’t dragging your message out.
The more concise your message, the easier it is for readers to scan it for important details, allowing them to quickly choose whether or not to continue interacting with your content. Not sure how to make your message more concise? Then follow this golden rule: if it can be said in fewer words, then write it that way.
4. Utilize Active Voice, Not Passive
While using passive voice isn’t necessarily incorrect, it doesn’t hold the same power over your readers as the active voice does.
Active voice conveys a clearer, stronger tone of voice than the use of passive voice. It also helps to encourage readers to act upon any included call to action. Even better, if you’re trying to make your emails more concise, active voice also helps you cut out unnecessary filler words.
5. Don’t Forget to Edit/Proofread Before Sending
Once you’re happy with a draft, you always want to take adequate time to proofread it and make any necessary changes before you hit send.
There is nothing more unprofessional than sending an email that is filled with typos or conflicting tones of voice. When editing your emails, make sure you are checking:
- That the contact’s name is spelled correctly
- Your tone for any confusing, demanding, or otherwise negative language
- The clarity of your message
- For concise language
- Typos
6. Always Test Before You Send
This is especially true of large memos or marketing emails that will be sent out to a large group of individuals. While marketing materials can be tested via small A/B testing options to see how your larger audience will receive the message, business emails should be tested in-house with your team to ensure that the message is clear, concise, and doesn’t give off any unintentional messages/emotions.
Improve Your Email Writing Skills with CadenceSEO
Whether you’re looking for tips on how to improve correspondence skills or need some extra help learning how to write better business emails, CadenceSEO can help!
Our team of professionals knows what it takes to craft effective email communication in the workplace and cold email messages to help your business grow.
Wondering how our team could help you improve your email writing skills? Then contact us today for more information.
