Employers expect fresh grads to have a certain set of skills once they finish studying and enter the working world. One of these skills is writing professional emails. This is because email is the most common form of formal communication in a professional environment.

Here are some rules to keep in mind:

1. Be straightforward. Write only what needs to be written. Keep it simple.

2. Be respectful and polite. Address the receiver(s) appropriately and don’t forget to say “Thank you”.

3. Check your spelling and grammar when you’re done. If you don’t think you can do, ask for help.

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How To Write Professional Emails:

Fill In The Subject Properly

Make it easy for the recipient to know the content of your email before opening it. Just make into one short sentence.

Let’s say you want to apply for a job offer. You should write:

Application For [Position Offered] – [Your Name]

This is good enough because the recipient will know the two most important things when they sort through their emails. One, the purpose of the email. Two, in case they need to refer in the future, who sent it.

Greet The Recipient

A formal greeting is a must. It shows that you are polite and professional.

Since you can never be sure when the recipient will read the email, don’t write things such as “Good morning” or “Good afternoon“.

The safest greeting is simply “Greetings“. If you know the person’s gender and/or status, you can add “Sir“, “Madam” and whatever is relevant.

Here’s a very good tip: Find out their name.

It shows that you are professional enough to find out who you’re sending the email to. Some professionals won’t even bother reading your email if you don’t know their name. It shows laziness and a lack of professionalism.

Greetings, Mr. Jamal.

State Your Purpose

Get straight to the point. Use the least amount of words but make sure your message is clear. Usually two or three sentences are enough. If you wrote an email to apply for an internship programme, you would write…

I would like to apply for the internship programme offered by your company. I have attached my resume and cover letter together with this email.

Or if you want to apply for leave…

I would like to apply for leave on 5th December 2016 to attend my brother’s wedding in Perak. For the sake of reference, I have attached the wedding invitation card together with this email.

Say What Needs To Be Done

You must make it clear how you want to be responded. This is only required in relevant emails such as ones that you write for the sake of requesting or instructing something. Not all emails!

Please send me those documents before the end of the week.

Get back to me as soon as you find the information.

Give a Proper Closing Statement

End your email with a short and sweet closing line. It leaves a good final impression to the recipient and you can even use it to remind the recipient of the purpose of the email.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to working with your company.

Let me know if you have any questions regarding the documents I asked for.

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EXTRA

Make Your Email Signature

If you’re already a professional, you should have your own email signature. Basic information you should include:

• Name
• Position
• Contact Number