If You’re Not Talking Email, I Don’t Want To Talk
I’m no copywriter, but I can write a damn good email.
Hi everyone! My name is Paula Cuerquis and I’m a Junior Advertising student with a concentration in Account Management. Currently, I am a PR and Digital Marketing Intern at Flackable, a public relations and digital marketing agency located right in Center City, Philadelphia. As for my role in the organization, I work closely with Kelly, one of our leading Account Executives.
Throughout my time working under Kelly, and any Account Executive for that matter, I learned something really valuable – if you can’t write emails, you’d better learn. The number of emails I receive daily, inside and outside of work, is borderline excessive. Email is one of the most commonly used form of communication in our industry. Not only is it the primary source of communication between members of any business but it’s also a highly effective tool for documenting conversations between clients.
Having to send and receive so many emails on a daily basis taught me a few things:
Make sure your subject lines are interesting + relevant to the conversation. Nothing is worse than having a subject line that has nothing to do with the content in the email.
- Break up your paragraphs. If you have pages worth of information and you send it in ONE paragraph I hope your computer breaks and you can’t send emails to anyone ever again. Not only is it unappealing to look at, but it’s harder to digest and retain information when it’s all just…there.
- Bullet points are your friend. When you list out information, the person receiving the email will thank you. Information is easier to digest and it’s looks so much more professional.
- Have a signature. If you don’t have a ‘professional email signature’ yet, you better start Googling how to add one.
- Know when to be informal/formal. This is fairly self-explanatory but a friendly reminder never hurt anyone. Always have a “Hi, so-and-so” and an “Best, *your name*.” You’re emailing your boss, not texting him.
Trust me when I say, they will judge you if you send “Yo Bill,” instead of “Hey, Bill!” Emails are an extension of you. If you can’t send well-written professional emails no one is going to take you seriously. Proper email etiquette is a good habit to pick up, now!
