[2022-07-19] Writing emails your recipients will read

Throughout my career, I often spent considerable time refining my written communication—reports, newsletters, blog posts, emails—to save my audience time when reading them. For example, a weekly newsletter I initiated when working for the Canadian Forest Service (cheekily called InTREEguing) took readers less than a minute to read, but my team and me hours to write and edit. Similarly, a weekly progress report that I sent to one of my bosses took him five minutes to peruse but, again, hours for my team and me to prepare. I frequently referenced the oft-repeated and much-attributed quote: "If I had had more time, I would have written you a shorter letter." It was a way of explaining to my staff that it took effort to make our communication documents short and easy to understand.

But my motivation for clear and concise writing wasn't simply to save my recipients time. It was also to ensure that my communication was read and responded to. This was especially true with emails. Most employees receive dozens of emails every day. Executives might receive hundreds of emails daily. It was essential for me to find a way to cut through that noise to ensure that my recipients (1) opened my message, (2) read it, and (3) responded to it.

Back in 2014, I wrote a blog post for Café Jen based on Boost Your eQ (E-mail Intelligence), an excellent article by Frances Peck that is still available on the Language Portal of Canada. The Language Portal offers resources to help readers improve their language skills.

Peck coined the term eQ, meaning email intelligence, by taking inspiration from the terms IQ (intelligence quotient) and EQ (emotional intelligence). She explains: "When we get an e-mail from a high-eQ individual, we read it quickly and easily, we grasp the main points, we know exactly how or if we should respond."

By contrast, "When we get an e-mail from someone less gifted, the reading can get tough." Low eQ writers tend to include too much information, are unclear on the purpose of their message, present no logical structure to their emails, write messages that are too long and difficult to understand, and bury key information.

12 tips for writing emails your recipients might actually read

Peck offers 12 suggestions for improving your eQ and your emails, which I summarize here:

  1. Maximize the subject line. Use the subject line to tell your readers how the email relates to them, to preview the email's content and to identify any action they'll need to take. Instead of "Survey information," Peck recommends that you write "Draft survey attached: review by Jan. 9."
  2. Begin with a bang. The introduction of your email should make it clear why you're writing the message and what, if anything, you need your readers to do. Anticipating that her readers might see this as a repetition of the subject line, Peck presents this elegant analogy: "Think of the subject line as your knock on the door. Once the reader opens up, you still have to say why you’ve come calling. State the purpose of your e‑mail up front, in the opening paragraph or two."
  3. Ditch the optional details. "Many writers, feeling compelled to lead their reader on a gentle, meandering path to the main point, will always begin at the beginning (chronologically speaking), with background information," writes Peck. "The trouble is, background details are meaningless, and sometimes downright irritating, to a reader who doesn’t know why they’re being provided." Instead, she recommends that writers use hyperlinks for additional information.
  4. Be clear and concise. Because of the number of emails our intended recipients get, they're much less likely to read a long message than a short one. For my part, if I opened an email and saw that it would take me more than a minute or two to read, I would often close it and re-bold it to read later. You should strive to write emails that will be read the first time they're opened.
  5. Curb connectors. Avoid unduly wordy expressions such as "with regard to" and "in connection with"; opt instead for simple words such as "about" and "on."
  6. Pass on passives. Choose the active voice (subject-verb-object) as often as possible. The passive voice is not only wordier but also less clear. Rather than "a decision has been made," say "We decided."
  7. Minimize modifiers. Cut out words such as "very," "slightly" and (my personal pet peeve) "actively." If the nuance is important, use a more precise word such as "concerned" instead of "slightly worried."
  8. Consider contractions. Contractions such as "it's" and "we'll" cut down on words and mimic the way we speak, which is a more natural way of communicating. As Brenda Ueland says in If You Want to Write, "writing is...just talking on paper."
  9. Shrink sentences. Keep each sentence to one idea and, at most, one supporting idea (as illustrated in this sentence). You risk losing your readers if your sentences are too long and complex, which may dissuade recipients from reading your email at all.
  10. Pare down paragraphs. Because emails are meant to be read online, they should be made up of shorter paragraphs than you would find in a printed document. Long paragraphs appear daunting and may discourage readers from even starting to read your message.
  11. Use headings and lists. Headings and lists make it much easier for readers to follow your argument and to scan your email. Peck states: "Headings and lists (numbered or bulleted) quickly tell your reader what your main points are. And they signal where your main points are, an important consideration for e-mails that readers might refer to again in the future." Selective use of bold, italics and other formatting tricks can make your email more readable, much like a well-formatted CV.
  12. Be clear about follow-up. I liked to put what I needed from recipients, and when I needed it, in bold red type, for example, "Please send comments to me by May 21." Peck suggests: "Use a simple, clear heading such as 'Actions to Take,' 'Next Steps,' or 'Your Tasks.' Again, for easy reading and future reference, present the actions in a numbered list rather than in one continuous paragraph. Your reader will leave the e-mail thinking, 'Okay, I have four things to do.'"

Much of Peck's advice can be used in any form of written communication, particularly communication that is intended to elicit a response or follow-up from the recipient. Examples include writing to a member of parliament, seeking redress from a company, soliciting help from a teacher, and advocating for change. Anything you can do to make your message as easy as possible for your audience to comprehend—and thereby make your communication stand out—will increase the chances that your busy and overwhelmed recipients will actually read and respond to your missives.