How to Write a Professional Email - Things to Learn and Mistakes to Avoid

Some people confuse casual and formal emails. A casual one is written to someone a sender knows well - a family member, close relative, buddy, etc. It's up to a writer to choose the structure and tone. As for the specific structure, it is the main feature that makes these two types of traditional mails or emails different. While it is not recommended to make grammar and spelling mistakes in a show of respect, in casual writing, it is not necessary to stick to a particular organization or format.

Both non-formal and professional writing has to be structured and grammatically correct to leave a positive impression on the recipient. The structure looks like an essay: an intro, body, and closing part. A message should be appealing and unique. While in casual writing, one can insert slang or jargon words and phrases, keep your message for business purposes limited to classical English. A writer should avoid emoticons, contractions, abbreviations, informal terms, etc.

This article discusses how to compose a professional email. From a structure to an example, one can get a full overview of this process or ask an advanced team of business and resume writers for help.

What Is the Recommended Structure of a Professional Letter?

Without a structure, your email will be casual. In the shape of bullet points, we'll list the essential organizational elements of the professional messages:

• Subject line: the place to convey your goal for writing - do your best to make a title sound like a bang to catch the eye of a reader;
• Greetings: add a greeting in any situation. To personalize a message, which is important from a marketing perspective, recall a position and last name of the person you wish to reach;
• Length: the text you send should be concise. Users prefer to skim long messages;
• Font style: ornate or colored, tiny, difficult to read fonts should be excluded. You can italicize some words or make them bold, but don't overuse it. Avoid capitalization everywhere - the eyes of your reader should not work hard;
• Emoticons: a professional email format does not contain emoticons;
• Spellings/Grammar/Punctuation: don't be sloppy about grammar - double-check or triple-check the finished text using various tools like Grammarly before sending the final draft;
• Closing with a call to action: sign off using "Best regards," though it can sound trivial. Embed a signature if the service provider allows doing so and attach contact details so that a recipient will be able to reach you in one of the convenient ways (leave several communication channels).

A professional letter should be taken seriously. It is not a message to yourself or a friend where you can have fun. That is why it is necessary to follow the format and structure like students do when preparing academic essays and research papers.

The Process of Preparing a Professional Message Made Simple

So, how do you write a professional email? One should start by collecting ideas for the catchy subject line and move to the greeting; in the formal writing style, experts recommend starting with "To whom it may concern." It may sound weird as a sender is not sure for whom the message is written or tries to reach many people at once. "Dear Sir/Madam" seems a bit more personalized. To draw attention to the issue, it is possible to add a fact or statistics obtained from reports or other credible sources.

In case you're drafting a reply, begin with a thank you line. Do not forget to recall the issue or question as a recipient can forget about the topic of the last letter they've sent to you.

Note that the letter should state the purpose of your message. Example: "I am writing to enquire about the latest upgrade of our CRM system." Do not fall off the topic. Writing a professional email means composing a short offer or solution and not a long essay.

At the end of the message, share some words of gratitude. Remember, even a couple of minutes spent on the professional email is still time, and it is the most valuable resource a human being has! Instead of ending with a closing like "Best regards," you can add something like, "I send a copy of the original document" or "Please take a look at the files attached" (if you wish to share a file). When writing a professional email, keep a copy for yourself. To find out how to draft a professional email, you might want more tips.

Need Another Professional Email Tip? Get More Than One!

Sending the email requires your full attention. For the proper structure and perfect grammar, we recommend having a look at some examples and other helpful tips.

• Ensure to check the completeness of a message. See if the subject line is not missing and corresponds to the body text, a signature was included, the address of a person you are writing to is up-to-date, and you have saved a copy for yourself.
• Edit and proofread. Sending an email without careful proofreading and editing makes no sense as you may look silly in the eyes of other people by making many mistakes and even typos.
• Send a test email. The best way to judge your masterpiece is by writing the email and sending it to your own inbox first. Read it out loud several times and decide whether the person you are sending it to will enjoy your message and react positively.
• File your copies. It allows you to find any email on the server easily in the future when you might need to refresh its content in your memory.

That is how to write a professional email. Without a good sample or helping hand, it might be difficult to master this art fast and from the first attempt.

Free Example of a Professional Email

We realize some people are busy and can not find out how to write a professional email on their own. That is why we are here to offer expert help from our resume writers. Our team knows how to create a professional email. First, take a look at a free professional email sample written by our pros - a referral request:

Subject: Patricia Newman - Referral Request

Dear Liza Strawberry,

Yesterday on LinkedIn, I spotted a vacancy of marketing content specialist at ABD Corp. As I know, you've been there for almost a decade, and I wonder whether you would be so kind as to give me a referral for the position.

For me, the best part was an opportunity to cooperate with other team members to carry out new winning marketing content strategies and launch email campaigns. I used to gain extensive experience with XYZ and No 1 companies. I'd love to put these skills and accomplishments to work.

I've attached a copy of my CV along with a cover letter, as well as a link to my portfolio, some of the social network accounts, and people who used to work with me before. I can send more examples of my projects. Please inform me whether I should provide other details about my professional experience, educational background, skills, or else.

Best,

Patricia Newman

Patty33@email.com

portfoliosite.com/pnewman33

Phone number

You can easily cope with any sort of business writing if you turn to our resume writers. Save for the referral requests, they can complete follow-up, and thank-you letters, reports, resignation letters, and brilliant resumes. This field is for pros with years of experience!

Before you go, we want to share some don'ts of writing a professional email. To avoid misunderstandings and obtain high reply rates, try not to include:

• Abbreviations
• CAPSLOCK
• Emojis
• All lowercase letters
• Informal salutations
• Jokes or anecdotes
• Idioms
• Useless information and wateriness

Take care of your image by making sure your professional emails meet the standards of formal and business writing! The local team of resume writers is always ready to lend a helping hand.