With email becoming the standard way business users communicate with suppliers, customers and staff, it’s worth taking a minute to take stock of how you use your email, and see what you can do to to make it more efficient, and less of a time sink;

Don’t forget to the subject
Too often we see emails sent in with no subject at all. Imagine if you received five emails, and one had no subject line, but the other four all pointed you to some pressing need by the sender for your action. Chances are you are going to ignore the email with no subject. Make sure you summarise your emails content in the subject line so the recipient can take action quickly.

Don’t start a new email by replying
Following on from the last point, we see many emails that are sent by replying to a previous email. The problem here is the subject never gets changed, and so the recipient sees an email that looks like it’s about something they’ve already dealt with, but in reality is a new issue. Often these types of emails get lower priority, so make sure you click NEW MAIL and start from scratch.

Make sure you include context in replies
When you are replying to an email, you would normally click the reply button, and your email client should include the contents of the original email at the bottom of your reply. This helps ensure the party at the other end can keep up with the conversation flow; Remember, they could be sending hundreds of emails, and getting a one line email back that just says “Yes, lets do it!”, may leave them wondering what they proposed.

It’s also a good idea to be clear in your own reply, so rather than just agreeing, include what you are agreeing to in the text you write back.

Make it clear what you want done
Where you want the recipient of your email to take action, make sure you spell it out in the email, don’t leave them guessing. At the end of your email, make a dot point list of the actions you need taken so the recipient knows exactly what you expect, and can take action accordingly.

Be Careful with “Reply All”
Often these days people will send the same email to several people; Be careful when replying, as your email software will have a “reply all” button that will send your return thoughts to EVERYONE who the original email was sent to. This can be embarrassing if part of your reply includes “I can’t believe you are including Mr X in this, he’s hopeless!”

Always Describe Attachments
When sending an attachment to a recipient, a file or document, always include a brief description within the body of the email of the attachment. Don’t “force” the recipient to download and review a document if he or she does not need to.

Pickup the phone
Too often things drag out via email that could be resolved with a short phone call; If a range of questions and answers need to be exchanged, it is often better to do that via phone, and then summarise the conversation via an email afterward so you have on record what was discussed or agreed to.

No Reply Necessary
This is a great tip and one that we will try and internalise at Shift Solutions; Where you are just emailing to ensure people are kept up to date, and you don’t even need to hear back from them, save them the hassle of replying at all by included the phrase “No Reply Necessary” at the bottom of your email.

Include Your Full Signature
Make it standard practice to include your full “signature” at the end of all emails. This includes your name, company name, phone number, etc. Make it easy for the recipient to get back in touch with you in the easiest way possible for them. Sometimes putting your phone number in the subject line is great when you need a quick reply to something important.