Whether you’re writing to complain to customer service, or just want to hear back from a coworker at the office, these six email rules will increase your chances of hearing back.
The purpose of writing an email to someone is usually to get a response, but more often than not, emails get passed over or forgotten about because they’re too long, too angry, too convoluted, or don’t provide enough information. Email-efficiency service Boomerang combed through data from over 5.3 million emails to see what kind of messages prompted the most responses from recipients and came up with some helpful findings. Alex Moore at the Boomerang Blog summarizes their top six tips based on their data:
- Use shorter sentences with simpler words. A 3rd grade reading level works best.
- Include 1-3 questions in your email.
- Make sure you include a subject line! Aim for 3-4 words.
- Use a slightly positive or slightly negative tone. Both outperform a completely neutral tone.
- Take a stand! Opinionated messages see higher response rates than objective ones.
- Write enough, but not too much. Try to keep messages between 50-125 words.
JosephReidNZ 