Writing an email

If compared to writing letters or faxes, writing an email is a much faster and easier task. Emails generally contain fewer fixed expressions and are less formal than business letters.
Having said so, here are some tips and (hopefully) useful guidelines you can read to avoid making silly mistakes.

To begin with, decide the tone of your email. Should it be formal or informal?

If it is informal, e.g. for a friend or a relative, feel free to write whatever you want.
You may start with:
Hi/Hello/Dear + the name of the person you are writing to
And end with:
Bye/cheers

If it is formal, it may be worth paying attention to the way you start and end your email, and to some other rules as well.
You could start, for instance, with:

Dear Sir/Madam or Dear Professor (or other titles)/Mr + the surname of the person you are writing to

And end with:
Best/kind regards,
Yours,
Yours sincerely,
Best wishes,
& YOUR NAME

Once you have the adequate framework, try and organize the content of your email always bearing in mind that:

• you should create a subject line with impact, since it is more likely that someone will read your email

• you should start by saying the reason why you are writing (e.g. I am writing to confirm our appointment..)

• you should write short sentences (KISS = Keep It Short and Simple, please!)

• you should take paragraphs short (avoid the long and complex Italian structure)

In addition to this,

• remember that it may be worth using headings, bullets and numbering, which will guide the reader and make your message easier to grasp

• you have to proofread the message before sending it

• you should not use contracted forms if you want to be formal

Feel free to use the expressions you may have learnt for letters. But try and remember that you may always find a less formal expression, which may be more suitable for an email.

e.g.

Dear = Hi
Thank you for your letter of… = Got your message on…
Unfortunately, I shall be unable to attend… = Sorry, but I can’t make…
I would appreciate if you could… = Could you do me a favour and…?
Would you be so kind as to… = Can you please…?
Best wishes = Cheers
I’m delighted to tell you that as of January 2… = Good news: Jan 2…
If you wish, I would be happy to… = Shall I… ?
I regret to inform you that… = Bad news:…
I would like to apologise for… = Sorry about…
I’m writing to confirm our appointment… = Are we still OK for…?
With regard to… = About…
I enclose… = I attach/I’m sending you…as an attachment
I look forward to meeting you… = See you…
Further to our telephone conversation… = Following…
I’d be grateful if you could… = Please…
If I can be of any further assistance, please do contact me again = If you have any questions, let me know
I look forward to hearing from you/to receiving your reply = Speak to you soon
Now you have a set of more or less formal expressions, try and practice you emails and feel free to comment and add any further suggestions.

For more information visit BBC website

One Response to “Writing an email”

1. ;) scrive:

   3 dicembre 2008 alle 12:40

   ihihi nati… ne avevo giusto bisogno per chiarire un dubbio… mi sono detta proviamo con il natisito ed ecco la risposta ai miei problemi
   un bacin!
   ire