Five Rules for Professional Emails

While our society doesn't emphasize the value of skilled letter-writing, your business emails should always be professionally composed. Here are some common mistakes that you've probably seen before, together with tips for success.

Overly formal composition. If you're sending an email to a company instead of an individual, don't use terms like "To Who It May Concern". Instead, call the company and ask for your recipient's name and address.

Confusing subject lines. If you're about to email details of a brand-new listing to your buyers, make sure the subject line tells them this. While it's tempting to be witty with subject lines like "Get ready to pack", a busy buyer may not realize it's from you and assume it's a vacation offer.

Addressing group announcements incorrectly. Have you ever received an email with dozens of visible email addresses in the header? This destroys confidentiality and may alienate some recipients. Instead, learn how to tell others about an upcoming event without sharing everyone's address with everyone else.

Forgetting details. Have you ever received an invitation to an appealing event, only to realize that the invitation doesn't include the start time or venue address? Before you send email invitations to an open house or event, find someone to proofread it for you.

Unprofessional signatures. By now, you should have created a business signature with your contact numbers, links to your social media and your headshot. If you haven't, take the time to create and store one or more. You can even add a link to your listings within one signature and use it when sending emails to prospective buyers.

Source: blog.hubspot.com