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Email. If you’re like me, that word conjures up its nemesis, spam. How I hate spam! Yet it becomes harder and harder to determine where the line is between spam and useful emails. So in this powerful little article, we’ll take a look at how to write brilliant emails that get results, as well as 7 writing techniques you can use immediately to improve the response you are getting from your audience.

The key to writing effective emails is knowing what you want to say, and saying it in the shortest possible way, clearly and effectively.

When you put it that way, it sounds easy, doesn’t it! Yet Mark Twain is credited with writing in a letter, “I apologise for the length of this letter. I did not have time to make it shorter.”

Therefore the first key to brilliant emails is writing concisely. Let’s look at several easy techniques you can use to accomplish that.

Often we begin our communications haphazardly, rambling from one subject to another until suddenly we have created a ginormous, wall of words that only the most daring would bother to even scan, let alone read. So the first key to writing concisely is to break up your emails into subjects.

What does that mean? It means, keep each email you send on one topic only. Don’t mix up several projects and discussions and ongoing events in the same email. Make the subject of the email the sole reason for your email.

This will also make it easier to categorize emails from each person/project into your email folders. What a mess to have one email deal with 7 different projects. Where to put it? Your recipients will be pleased if you start this practice.

“But I have so much to write!”

Then break up your communications into several short emails each covering its own subject.

Make your points clean and clear using bullets, so that anyone who scans your article can pick up the main ideas quickly. It will help you to organize your thoughts more easily, and will go a long way towards making your communications more effective.

Use no more than 2-3 points per email (with bullet points, as described above!). This will make it very easy for your recipient to handle your communications.

“But I need to write more than that!”

Then you need to have a meeting with the person, or you need to seriously reconsider why you are emailing them. Remember, tick tock tick tock. Nobody wants to read a long email!

Let me say that again: nobody wants to read a long email!

Tatoo that on your arm and refer to it often, if you have diarrhea of the alphabet.

Write shorter paragraphs, each with a topic sentence.

“Hunh?”

That means each paragraph should have one main idea that you state clearly, usually in the first sentence. If you find another idea creeping in, or you have a paragraph longer than 3-4 sentences, consider making a new one. It’s easy: just hit “Enter!” Your recipients will thank-you, as it makes it much easier to understand what you are trying to say. (Note: this paragraph is 4 sentences long (plus this one), and just notice your reaction to having to read this much text at a time…would you really want a paragraph longer than this? Remember, tick tock tick tock).

In this day and age, there’s simply no excuse for sending out emails with misspelled words and grammatical errors. Your email is your emissary, your ambassador if you will, that represents you and your wants/needs. You don’t want your recipients to judge you for such a simple little issue. Yet they will! So take the extra 30 seconds and use the spell/grammar checker of your email program.

If you’re using Outlook, you can even get the spell check to happen automatically for you before you send out the email! Just look in the help system for how to set up this convenient little feature.