You’re lucky if you can get people to read your email, let alone respond to it. But something more than luck will improve the odds that they actually do.
The most important thing is the subject line. After all, except for must-read messages from the Big Boss, if the subject line doesn’t grab the recipient’s attention, it’ll quickly fall prey to the almighty Delete key. In a sense, the subject line is a teaser that convinces the recipient to open the message. The best subject lines are personal to the recipient, offer some sort of benefit, and suggest some urgency. Instead of simply “Request,” try “Request your feedback re: reorganization plans.”
At the end of the subject line, you can include a code in brackets that tells the recipient what’s expected. For example, [NRR] for No Reply Required, [Y/N] for Yes/No Question, [RB (date)] for Reply By the inserted date, or [AB (date)] for Action By the inserted date. If your message is only a single line, such as to confirm the date, time, or location of a meeting, make it the subject line and end the subject line with the code [EOM] for End of Message.
Busy people—and even those who are not so busy—lack the patience to wade through endless messages, so keep your messages short. With people drowning in information, brevity is critical if you want to be heard. Some people suggest following a five-sentence rule. Even ten sentences might be a step in the right direction if you’re inclined to writing multiples of that. It may not be possible to limit every message, but brevity is a worthwhile goal.
Be forewarned that writing short is not so easy. You’ve probably heard the quote “If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter” (a quote attributed to Mark Twain, George Bernard Shaw, and Benjamin Franklin, among others). If you find it easier to be verbose than concise, write the message in all its glorious wordiness and then go back and delete unnecessary or excessive details. Editing your message takes time and effort, but remember, the goal is to get the recipient to read it.
How you format your message makes a difference too, especially if you’re not yet at the five-sentence level. Even with a compelling subject line, an eye-straining screenful of text is off-putting. The longer the message, the more important it is to format it for readability, such as by including a blank line between paragraphs. Even a five-sentence message can sometimes benefit by being divided into one-sentence paragraphs with a blank line between them. Formatting also makes it easier to quickly see what’s important in the message.
Want a guarantee that your email will be read? Me too. Good luck!
