Do you get annoyed when reading emails in your inbox? Do you feel frustrated when the writer rambles on and doesn’t get to the point? Do you feel confused when the writer doesn’t use paragraphs? Do you have to read messages several times to decipher what the writer is trying to say? If so, you’re not alone!

Every day we all encounter many annoyances in our emails – and yet we rarely say anything about them to the sender. Instead, we let the errors and etiquette blunders build up until they become a real bone of contention. So, the question is – how can you avoid people thinking the same thoughts about your emails?

Here are a few commonly expressed annoyances that we must all take note of:

Capitals

The word alone may be sufficient to describe this common source of annoyance. I’m sure that you will have received an email at some point, with the key points highlighted in capitals; yet it’s a mistake that people make time and time again. Here’s an example:

“I look forward to receiving your proposal by THURSDAY. As mentioned before, this project is VERY URGENT.”

It is quite clear that the proposal is urgent and required by Thursday, so there really is no need to capitalise the keywords. Anyone with a little common sense will be able to decipher the request without any obvious prompts. Capitalising words can appear to be condescending, too.

Underlining

Have you ever seen some text underlined in an email and then put your cursor over it because you thought it was a link? Me too! Never underline anything on email. If you want to emphasise something, use bold or italics.

One-Paragraph Messages

Emails that are written in one large paragraph are difficult and frustrating to read. It’s hard to focus and pick out the main points. Readers have to go over the message, again and again, to take in the various points and figure out how they are expected to respond.

Information Overload

Email is great for messages, but it's not good for a 2,000-word project brief. Unless you want the reader to acquire RSI from repeated scrolling, lengthy documents should be sent on a separate attachment, displayed appropriately.

Wrong Words

In recent years, just about every kind of email software has a spell check option, so there really is no excuse for bad spelling and grammar. Common irritants include using there instead of their, your instead of you're, loose instead of lose and its instead of it's (or vice versa). I'm sure you've seen lots more.

Text Language

The place for SMS-acronyms is in text messages, not in emails. It's unprofessional and they can be misunderstood.

Is Email The Best Option?

Be honest. How many times do you send an email when you know it would be better to pick up the phone? I'm sure we are all guilty of this. It is often better, and will save time too, to pick up the telephone and talk, rather than trying to describe in-depth events or issues in an email. And you'll probably avoid a lot of email ding-dong and get your answer much quicker!

These are just a few examples of annoying and irritating email habits to avoid, but no doubt you will have encountered many more. The key is to check your emails carefully before you send them. Would you be happy to receive them? If not, pause, rethink and rewrite!

Visit the STTS page to find out more about Shirley's work.

© 2013 Shirley Taylor.
Shirley Taylor is a recognised leading authority on business writing and communication skills. For almost 30 years she has presented keynotes and training programmes that help people and organisations boost communication skills and develop great relationships both orally and in writing. Shirley is bestselling author of 12 books, including Model Business Letters, Emails and Other Business Documents, which has sold half a million copies worldwide and has been translated into many languages. If you would like Shirley to speak at your next event, visit www.shirleytaylor.com.
Edited by Nedda Chaplin 

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