The weakest links in your Email In the business world, we write business letters every day. However, have you realize there are some mistakes you might have made when sending emails to your clients? Now I want to summarize some weakest links which may need you to pay great attention to.

1. Wrong time and date. If the time in your computer are not setup rightly, you will make the received confused. Setting up accurate time can not only help you keep track of the status of your mails, but also help the receivers.

2. Vague subject line. The subject line should be in conformity with the principal of “SMART” (SMART means Specific, Meaningful, Appropriate, Relevant, and Thoughtful). Attach weight to the subject line because it decides when your Emails will be opened, immediately or later or never?

3. No greeting and no sign off. No one would like to read these impolite emails. Add the greeting is to show your courtesy as well as to inform the reader this letter is sent to them instead of CC to them. As for the sign off, it also indicates that the letter is complete.

4. Poor formatting. Reader will feel confused with a long mail which isn’t divided into paragraphs. Edit your email with beautiful formatting and leave a line space between paragraphs, which is good for both of you and the readers.

5. Vague messaged Receivers often complain the letters they received. They will feel uncertain for the reason why you send the mail or still don’t know what the sender ask them to do after they finish the reading. Therefore, spend some time on writing and checking to make sure it will satisfy the reader, and then you can send it!

6. Hunting for the response. If your mail has a vague meaning and disordered structure, the receiver will read it on again and again without knowing how to response. Remember the 3R principle (Reader, response and result) that you must guide your receiver to give you the response you want, otherwise, you will never be sure that you will get the result you want.

7. Unfriendly tone. It’s difficult for email to indicate affection. Many people just write what they want to say without considering what tone they should use. Actually, improper tone can lead to misunderstanding easily, or result in losing an important business partner or even friend. A good email writer will learn to choose the words with caution and proper tone.

8. CC to the whole world. It’s easy to CC to all the people. But the result is that the receivers’ mailboxes are full and it waste time. So when sending, just CC to those who need this letter; don’t CC to all people that you know.

9. Bad grammar, spelling and punctuation. A well organized letter looks annoying, which brings an unexpected bad effect. Be careful with the details, such as right grammar, spelling and punctuation.

10. Just plain SLOPPY. Many people think that when receiving an email, they should reply it immediately. Due to this urgency, some may not be so careful when writing the reply. The mails they send in a hurry are usually disorganized with lots of grammar mistakes, spelling or bad structures. The mails don’t read smoothly. The result is definite. The receivers can’t understand what you mean or your letters will cause offense to the receivers, neither of which are what we want to reach. It’s a totally resulting from your carelessness. Please spend one more minutes on checking before sending and make sure all is in good order.

The above is the top 10 weakest links I list. There must be other points we should take extra care of. Do you have any in mind? If so, please write to me at [email protected].