Whether you’re reaching out to a potential employer, seeking help from a professor for the first time or trying to get into an exclusive campus club, the importance of an effective e-mail cannot be understated. To make a great first impression while getting your point across in an e-mail, there are guidelines that should be followed. Here is an easy lesson in e-mail etiquette—divided into parts of the message—that will help you sound professional and to-the-point! 

  • Subject: Short and simple. You’ll have plenty of space in the body to say what you need to say!
  • Salutation: Begin e-mails to recipients over 25-years-old with “Dear,” followed by their title- Mr., Ms., Dr., etc. Once you receive a return e-mail, see how they address themselves and use that in follow-up correspondence. After the salutation, include two return lines before beginning your message.
  • Body: Make your message clear and simple so that the recipient never has to question why you sent the e-mail. Pay close attention to grammar, and use proper punctuation and capitalization. Avoid including images or fliers in the body of an e-mail, as they tend to make e-mails illegible on Smartphones! Always attach the file instead. After the body, add two more return lines.
  • Closing: You don’t have to come up with anything clever for a closing—a simple “Best,” or “Sincerely,” works just fine. If you include a signature after your name in the closing, make sure it’s no longer than four or five lines and includes information only relevant to the person you are e-mailing.

You should also be conscious of the e-mail address from which you are sending your message; if you are still using the creative account you came up with in middle school, now might be the time to change it to your name or a variation of your name. Check out this article for more help on creating a positive first impression through an e-mail and let us know if you have any other tips in our comments section!