Page 27 - Today’s Business Communication; A How-to Guide for the Modern Professional

16 TODAY’S BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

standard closing for all your emails. “Sincerely,” “sincerely yours,” “best
regards,” “warm regards,” and “many thanks” are examples of email clos-
ings, or sign-offs, that we see in professionals’ emails. Also, set up a signa-
ture line for every email you send that gives your name, your job title, the
name of your company/organization, the mailing address, and your phone
number. Some will also include a website address in the signature line.
This little trick ensures that people receiving your emails can always get
back to you using the communications channel of his or her preference.

Use the Top-of-Screen Test

If you’re like most people, your workplace uses a program such as Micro-
soft Outlook as its email client. This tool does so much more than send
and receive email; it holds your calendar, makes appointments, provides a
to-do list, among other things. As a result, the emails you read may take
up only half of the screen. It is in these few lines that people determine
whether to take action on a message or bounce to the next one. Make sure
the most important information or request appears in the top-half of the
screen. If it is buried near the end of the message, your reader may not
even look at it. Simply put, place the “ask” at the beginning, not the end.

Use Bulleted and Numbered Lists
Another way to make important pieces of information stand out in
an email is to offset it in a bulleted or numbered list. Use lists only for
important pieces of information. Remember the following rule about
lists: if everything is important, then nothing is important� Do not make
bullets or numbered lists if you have fewer than three points.

Don’t Send Anything That You Wouldn’t Want to See Published

This advice continues to be good; just ask Arthur Samberg. If you don’t
know Mr. Samberg, Google him. Gail Lavielle is a friend and colleague of
ours who was an international public relations (PR) executive on two dif-
ferent continents and recently turned her considerable talents and skills to
a career in government service as a member of the General Assembly. Her
good advice for writing, behaving, and speaking: “Nothing in life will take