Email Writing exhaustive guide

1. TIPS FOR WRITING
EFFECTIVE
BUSINESS ENGLISH

2. Why Do We Write?
 What is the point of writing anything?
 Mostly it’s about communication:
 Thoughts;
 Feelings;
 Self-expression;
 Sharing some aspect of yourself with others.

3. Objectives
 Understand how to write clearly, concisely
and correctly
 Understand and appreciate how to write in
plain English
 Tips to write effective emails

4. Introduction

5. Let’s Analyze
Each application shall be supported by a
comprehensive letter of explanation in duplicate.
This letter shall set forth all the facts required to
present to this office a complete disclosure of the
transaction.
(the same can be written as….. )
You must send us the following:
• one copy of your application
• two copies of a letter explaining the complete details of your
transaction

6. Three C’s of effective business
writing
Remember always write
• Clear
• Concise
• Correct
“What is the shortest word in the English language that contains the letters: abcdef? Answer:
feedback. Don't forget that feedback is one of the essential elements of good
communication.”

7. Write Clearly
Write
Clearly
Use
Concrete
Noun
Abstract nouns do not covey the
message
e.g.
1. Some staff experienced
computer problem
2. Avoid unnecessary
expenditure
Avoid
• Short but sweet
• last but not least
• work like a dog
• easier said than
done
Avoid words
like buddy,
yups, nopes

8. Writing Concisely
Active voice : Subject does the
action
e.g. The carpenter makes the
table
Passive Voice : The object is
being acted upon
e.g. The table is being made by
the carpenter
Active : Our neighbours invited
us.
Passive: The invitation was
given to us by our neighbours.
Passive may be used:
1. Mistakes were made. (Who,
exactly, made the mistakes?)
2. Gas prices were raised. (By
whom?)
1. Use active
voice

9. Writing Concisely
1. Use active
voice
2. Eliminate
unnecessary words
Read the following :
1. Should you have any questions or concerns,
please do not hesitate to get in touch with
me.
2. If you have any questions or concerns,
please get in touch with me.
3. Please contact me with any questions or
concerns.
4. Questions or concerns? Please contact me.

10. Writing Concisely
1. Use active
voice
3. Avoid Wasted
words
2. Eliminate
unnecessary
words
Wordy… Concise
..
At the present time Now
for the reason that Because
big in size Big
White in colour White

11. Writing Concisely
1. Use active
voice
3. Avoid
Wasted
words
2. Eliminate
unnecessary
words
4. Avoid
redundancy
Redundant word
Repeat again
Repeat
Close proximity
proximity

12. Writing Concisely
1. Use active
voice
3. Avoid
Wasted
words
2. Eliminate
unnecessary
words
5. Get rid of
weakling words
4. Avoid
redundancy
Wordy… Concise
..
Give an answer to answer
Raise an objection Object
Have knowledge of know
Hold a meeting meet

13. Write correctly
Write
Correctly
Get the
Facts
Spellcheck
and check
the
spellings
Check
spellings of
Proper
Nouns
Check for
Grammar

14. Examples :
Au revoir - see you
later
in absentia - in
absence
Plain
English
1. Use
Parallelism
4. Be
Gender
Neutral
2. Use
Contractions
7. Avoid
Unfamiliar
foreign
words
6. Avoid
surplus
words
5. Be Careful
with acronyms
and
abbreviations
3. Be
personal

15. Know your audience
 Inform
 Influence
 Inspire

16. Paragraphs & Sentences
 Write short paragraphs.
 Use one idea or topic per paragraph.
 Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence.
 Average number of sentences in business writing is
usually three or four.
 Use headings and subheading whenever necessary.

17. Sentences (contd…)
 For Writing sentences
 Use short sentences in normal subject-verb-object sentence
order.
 Use simple words.
 Use short sentences
 In business writing, average number of words per sentence is
usually twelve
 Use of Bullets or numbered lists:
 Use Bullets and numbered lists to make your writing more
readable.
 It makes sure that both the writer and the reader have not
missed any idea.

18. Short sentence ..
Read this:
We are in the process of formulating an attempt to
articulate a policy that will be characterized by a
complete and a comprehensive inclusiveness of all
parties.”
(26 words)
And read this
“We’re forming a policy that will include everyone.”
(8 words)

19. Make short sentences-Task
for Home assignment
 “We are in the process of formulating an attempt to articulate a policy that will be
characterized by a complete and a comprehensive inclusiveness of all parties.” (26
words)
Answer : “We’re forming a policy that will include everyone.” (8 words)
 “Should you have the occasion to know or make the acquaintance of any person
whose professional background configuration approximates the position description,
we would welcome receiving a notification from you or directly from the individual who
is exploring the position opportunity.” (41 words)
 “As soon as you’re able to lay your hands on the information on the project, the latest
stuff you have, do you think you can send it over to me in the earliest possible time
frame? I really have a desire to go through it with a fine tooth comb and see what
there is to see. After I’m done reading it perhaps you and I could talk or E-mail or
meet and ask and answer any questions either of us have. Is that OK with you?” (87
words)

20. Planning to Write ?
 Start with a purpose in mind
 Know your audience
 Be focused on the topic
 Organize
 Write
 Edit
“Communication works for those who work at it.”

21. INDIANISM
A commonly used word, Phrase or expression used
colloquially, which influences spoken English of
Indians is called Indianism.
These may be misinterpreted by Non Indians

22.  “Good evening. This is Mary this side
from ABC Bank.
 Ditto Same
 Myself, Kareena
 He has gone on a holiday
Examples of Indianism

23. Indianism
 What is your good name?
 Morning morning I came here
 You want to install the software no?
 Can u tell me what is the exact issue you
are facing today?
 I am liking it very much

24. Common Indian Expressions
 Let us prepone the discussion to 5th march (preponed)
 I passed out from IIT Madras in 2003
 I went to abroad last year
 I finished my project on Wednesday itself
 Did they revert back to the Finance department?
 I am like that only
 Its located at the backside of the hall
 Basically,literally, really, actually
 Real brother or sister/cousin brother or sister
 Myself Sujatha, I’m married with two children
 Discuss about
 Taking lunch
 Wedding and Marriage
 Return it back
 Me and my friend
 More easier
 Give an exam
 Do the needful

25.  Madam couldn’t cope up with the work pressure
 I am having a brother and a sister
 I have been having a car since 2000
 I want you to hang up on the phone for a minute

26. Basics of ENGLISH
Parts of Speech
Verb
Noun
Adverb
Pronoun
Adjective
Preposition
Interjection
Conjunction

27. The chief function of punctuation is to make the
meaning of the written passage clear.
Punctuation marks are not just an optional frill :
they are essential to the accurate exchange of
written information.
Punctuation

28. Punctuation
These are my brothers
These are my brother’s
These are my brothers’

29. Punctuation Makes a Difference
Dear John,
I want a man who knows what love is all about.
You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who
are not like you admit to being useless and
inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I
yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when
we're apart. I can be forever happy, will you let
me be yours?
Maria.

30. Punctuation Makes a Difference
Dear John,
I want a man who knows what love is. All about
you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are
not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior.
You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For
you, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we're
apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?
Yours, Maria.

31. Principles of Good writing
 Avoid JARGON
 Prefer the Active Voice
 Be clear
 Be concrete
 Be concise
 Be correct
 Be creative
 Be organized and stick to the point
 Know your audience
 Follow an appropriate tone

32. Grammar
What is grammar?
Rules for a language.
Different for each language.
Describes the word order we expect to see.
Why should we care?
We all like to read things that are clear.
It helps to minimize mis-communications.

33. Broken Grammar & Word Use
 Mistakes are made because:
 The person is not familiar with the established
use of grammar and words (like the previous
examples).
 The person doesn’t care.
 Unfortunately, if you can’t write your own
language well, people will assume the
latter.

34. The Contents of a Sentence
 Interjections: expresses emotion, “Wow!”, “Pah!”,
“Uh-oh!”
 Pronouns: in place of nouns, “Me”, “I”, “you”,
“yourself”, “anybody”, “this”, “whom”.
 Prepositions: introducing words, “under”, “from”,
“about”, “to” (though not in an infinitive), “at”.
 Conjunctions: joining words, “and”, “but”,
“either”.

35. Have the end in mind – why are you sending
this email?
Be clear about what you want – and from
whom
Be concise and make it easy to understand
Don’t contribute to e-clutter
Clearly define your response needs
Limit massive attachments
Don’t get personal
It’s about quality, not quantity.
Tips for Email Writing

36. Even the longest journey begins with
a single step!
 Cover Letter : “It is my professional objective to obtain a
position which allows me to make use of my commuter skills.”
 I think we can oblige!
 Skills : “…Grate communication skills,…”
 Yes, you can talk and Chop at the same time…
 Cover Letter : “You are privileged to receive my resume…”
 Cover Letter : “Please overlook my resume…”
 If you insist !
 Cover Letter:“ I’m submitting my resume for your
consumption!
 YUMMY!

37. Analysis
The previous email (see below) has problems with the beginning. They are:
too much unnecessary information
the important information comes at the end.

38. It tells the reader the purpose of the email in the first sentence.
There is no unnecessary information.
It is short, concise and to the point

39. E-mail Templates

40. Essential elements:
• Subject line
• Who (target audience)
• What
• When / by when (deadlines)
• Why (purpose)
• Benefits (to target audience)
• Action requested
• Signature block
Email Template #1: Friendlier, Less Structured

41. Benefits of email template #1:
• Clear subject line enables relevant audience to find and open messages
that concern issues they consider important.
• Provides room to be friendlier, more engaging (feels less like an edict
coming down from IS&T).
• Flexibility for writer
Drawbacks of email template #1:
• Easier to forget, drop, or gloss over individual essential elements,
especially if writer does not have strong track record of clear, concise
communications.
• Harder for reader to scan for information she/he considers most relevant.
• "Providing room to be friendlier," can make it tempting to run on and pad
sentences with more wording than is needed.
Email Template #1: Friendlier, Less Structured

42. Essential elements:
• Subject line
• Who (target audience)
• Purpose *
• Background *
• What
• When / by when (deadlines)
• Why (purpose)
• Benefits (to target audience)
• Action requested
• Signature block
Email Template #2: More Formal Structure

43. Benefits of email template #2:
• Good practice in writing messages that include all key elements that a
reader may want.
• Can help writer enforce self-discipline in writing without verbiage /
standard script.
• Easy for reader to quickly scan for relevant information.
Drawbacks of email template #2:
• Can feel overly structured, awkward for writer.
• May seem unfriendly, impersonal to reader.
Email Template #2: More Formal Structure

44. Sample E-mails

45. Hi,
Thanks for the reply. We have already started working on the file.
We will try to copy all the animation from the slide and if not, we
will do the same.
Regards,
Correction:
We will try to copy all the animation from the slide and if not,
we will do the same???
Hi,
Thanks for the reply. We have already started working on the file
We will copy all the animation from the slide and will let you know
if we face any problems while doing so.
Regards,
Example 1:

46. Customer
Hello,
Unfortunately the booking sheet on the Intranet is not working at this time. I realize you are not
working today per the holiday, but I need the attached PowerPoint converted to IMB
standards. I understand that no work will be done until next week that is fine. Please let me
know if you have any questions, my contact info is listed below. Thank you.
Response mail:
Hi,
We have received your request (38 slides to convert to IMB Standards).
I tried to contact you but I was not through.
We have following queries on the same.
• Deadline for the request.
• While converting to IMB, Graphics (Animation) is needed as per the slide.
Most probably we will try to finish the request by Tuesday morning (PST) and
will send the same.
My colleague is working in night shift (IST) and he will contact you to discuss
further.
Thanks and Regards,
Example 2:

47. Correction:
Hi,
This is with reference to the request to convert 38 slides to IMB standards we have a few
queries:
• Deadline for the request
• While converting to IMB, Graphics needed to be maintained as per the original slide.
The above mentioned request will be completed by Tuesday (date/time to be mentioned)
(tentative).
My colleague (mention name) will contact you at (mention time) to discuss the above
mentioned queries.
Regards,
Example 2:

48. Hi Heather,
Please find the above attached file, Time-Sheet for Week 2 (July
2007) for your reference.
Your kind approval is needed for the same.
Correction:
Hi Heather,
Please grant approval for the time sheet for week 2(July 2007)
Please find the time sheet attached.
Regards,
Example 3:

49. Sourabh,
Thank you for your support.
Last quarter was really tuff for me as I had to generate new reports. These new reports are of
complex nature & not only they are distributed within Indy Mac management but also goes out
to the 3rd party so I had to be very cautious about the accuracy level. In future also I will try to
maintain same level of performance.
Thanks,
Correction:
Sourabh,
Thank you for your support.
Last quarter was really tough for me as I had to generate new reports.
These reports are very complex in nature and are distributed both within and outside Indy Mac
management, so I have to be very careful about the accuracy level.
Even in future my endeavor would be to maintain the same level of performance.
Regards,
Example 4:

50. I could not get transport. I’ve to arrange for my own. For 4.30am
call I could reached by 5.15am. this is inspite of having a
conversation with driver the earlier day & transport facility raheja
at 4.15am.
Correction:
Hi,
This is to inform you that I could not reach for the 4:30 am call as I had to arrange for my
transport at the last moment since my cab did not arrive.
In spite of prior information to the driver as well as the Raheja transport facility the required
arrangements were not made.
Kindly look into the matter.
Regards,
Example 5:

51. Good Morning Ami,
I am not been able to update the Spread template as F:RatesWinOAS Rates-price check-
v41_NEW.xls and F:RatesSpread Template as of 012808.xls files are not been updated as of
March 21st. Could you please suggest do we need to refer the spread templates as of 20th
March? Because on 21st March 24, 2008, financial markets were closed.
Thanks…
Correction:
Hi Ami,
I am not able to update the spread template as F:RatesWinOAS Rates-price check-
v41_NEW.xls and F:RatesSpread Template as of 012808.xls files are not been updated as of
21st March.
Please suggest which spread template we need to refer…
Thanks,
Example 6:

52. Hi Gilbert,
I am back from leave & need to discuss on few things.
Can we get on call today when you get free?
Please let me know when you get time for call.
Regards,
Correction:
Hi Gilbert,
I am back from leave and need to discuss a few things…
Can we get on call today around 1200 hrs (IST?)
Regards,
Example 7:

53. Hi All,
Please Update you group SLA Tracker till Feb'08 by 26th March'08 evening.
People who have already update till Feb please ignore this message.
Regards,
Correction:
Hi all
Please update your group SLA Tracker till Feb’08 by 26th March’08 end of day.
Team Members, who have already updated the tracker, please ignore this message.
Regards,
Example 8:

54. Make it polite & positive
Making requests
When making requests, it’s a good idea to use a modal or conditional construction such
as 'Could you …' or 'Would you be able to...'
Useful phrases and vocabulary for writing business letters.

55. Salutation
Dear Mr. Brown
Dear Ms White
Dear Sir
Dear Madam
Dear Sir or Madam
Gentlemen
Starting
We are writing
to inform you that ...
to confirm ...
to request...
to enquire about ...
I am contacting you for the following reason.
I recently read/heard about ..... and would like to know
....
Having seen your advertisement in ..., I would like to ...
I would be interested in (obtaining / receiving) ...
I received your address from ... and would like to ...
I am writing to tell you about ...
Referring to previous
contact Thank you for your letter of March 15.
Thank you for contacting us.
In reply to your request, ...
Thank you for your letter regarding ...
With reference to our telephone conversation
yesterday...
Further to our meeting last week ...
It was a pleasure meeting you in London last month.
I enjoyed having lunch withh you last week in Tokyo.
I would just like to confirm the main points we discussed
on Tuesday.

56. Making a request
We would appreciate it if you would ...
 I would be grateful if you could ...
Could you please send me ...
Could you possibly tell us / let us have ...
In addition, I would like to receive ...
It would be helpful if you could send us ...
I am interested in (obtaining / receiving) ...
I would appreciate your immediate attention to this
matter.
Please let me know what action you propose to take.
Offering help
Would you like us to ...?
We would be happy to ...
We are quite willing to ...
Our company would be pleased to
...
Giving good news
We are pleased to announce that
...
I am delighted in inform you that ..
You will be pleased to learn that ...
Giving bad news
We regret to inform you that ...
I'm afraid it would not be possible to ...
Unfortunately we cannot / we are unable to ...
After careful consideration we have decided (not) to
...

57. Complaining
I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with ...
I am writing to complain about ...
Please note that the goods we ordered on ( date )
have not yet arrived.
We regret to inform you that our order n° ----- is now
considerably overdue.
I would like to query the transport charges which seem unusually
high.
Apologizing
We are sorry for the delay in replying to ...
I regret any inconvenience caused (by) ...
I would like to apologize for the (delay, inconvenience)...
Once again, please accept my apologies for ...
Orders
Thank you for your quotation of ...
We are pleased to place an order with your company
for..
We would like to cancel our order n° .....
Please confirm receipt of our order.
I am pleased to acknowledge receipt of your order n°
.....
Your order will be processed as quickly as possible.
It will take about (two/three) weeks to process your
order.
We can guarantee you delivery before ...(date)
Unfortunately these articles are no longer available /
are out of stock.

58. Prices
Please send us your price list.
You will find enclosed our most recent catalogue and price
list.
Please note that our prices are subject to change
without notice.
We have pleasure in enclosing a detailed quotation.
We can make you a firm offer of ...
Referring to
payment Our terms of payment are as follows ...
Our records show that we have not yet received
payment of ...
According to our records ...
Please send payment as soon as possible.
You will receive a credit note for the sum of ...
Enclosing
documents I am enclosing ...
Please find enclosed ...
You will find enclosed ...
Closing remarks
If we can be of any further assistance, please let us
know.
If I can help in any way, please do not hesitate to
contact me.
If you require more information ...
For further details ...
Thank you for taking this into consideration.
Thank you for your help.
We hope you are happy with this arrangement.
We hope you can settle this matter to our satisfaction.

59. Sincerely, }
Yours sincerely,}
Sincerely yours,}
Referring to future
business We look forward to a successful working relationship in the
future.
We would be (very) pleased to do business with your company.
I would be happy to have an opportunity to work with
your firm.
Referring to future
contact I look forward to seeing you next week.
Looking forward to hearing from you, ...
Looking forward to receiving your comments,
I look forward to meeting you on the (date).
I would appreciate a reply at your earliest convenience.
An early reply would be appreciated.
Sincerely, }
in more formal letters

Ending business emails Sincerely, }
Yours sincerely,}
for all customers / clientsSincerely yours,}
Yours faithfully,} in more formal letters
Regards,for those you already know and/or with whom you
have a working relationship

60. Some more statements!
 At the Budapest zoo:
 “Please don’t feed the animals. If you have any suitable
food, give it to the guard on duty.”
 At a medical practitioners Office:
 “Specialist in women and other infectious diseases.”
 Hotel in France :
 “The Manager has personally passed all the water served
here.”

61. My Commitment to Change
 One thing I will start doing
 One thing I will stop doing
 One thing I will do differently