How to write a Friendly Email!

I am continually surprised at how many of these emails are somewhat… unfriendly. Sometimes it seems like everybody is too busy to take an extra moment to be kind and courteous in their emails. But those that do stand far above the rest — and that is where the opportunity for good relationship marketing begins

Here’s what I mean…

Each week, over 50% of the email messages I receive lack one or more of the basic common courtesies associated with good letter writing. It is very common for me to get email that doesn’t contain a greeting, a personalized closing, or a signature that contains complete contact information. I’ll bet you’ve noticed this alarming trend, too. I say alarming because poor email courtesies like these could adversely affect the impression your customer service representatives are making on your customers.

On the positive side, I think it would be smart to spend a little time thinking about this issue because I believe it represents a good marketing opportunity for your company. After all, if your company consistently provides warm and friendly email correspondence, you’ll differentiate your firm from many of your competitors.

Let’s start with the greeting. A surprising number of email messages don’t have a greeting. Can you imagine getting a phone call where the person started taking without even taking the time to say “hello”? Well, that’s exactly what happens with a lot of email. Often, there is no greeting at all, or the sender merely says “John” and then begins their email. I think it is always friendly and courteous to say something like:

Dear John,

Greetings John,

Good afternoon John,

Personally, I like something simple like ‘Hi John.’ If the email conversation goes back and forth a few times, I like to simply say ‘Hi again, John,’ as I begin each email.

Next is the close. Again, I frequently receive numerous emails where the sender chooses to omit a friendly closing statement. Often, all I see is their default signature line which often only contains partial information about who they are. It’s not a very friendly way to end a letter. I suggest using something like:

Sincerely,

Cordially yours,

Respectfully yours,

My two favorites are ‘Kindest regards’ and ‘Best regards.’ Whatever you choose, it’s important to include a warm closing statement.

And finally, about your signature. I would sincerely encourage you to take a moment to look at the signature information your company uses. (You do have a standard, company-wide signature that you have personally approved for all of your employees, don’t you?) Please double check to make sure it has all of the necessary contact information needed to transact business with your company. I think a good signature line contains the following information:

John Moroz
johnmoroz@pinepressprinting.com

www.pinepressprinting.com
120 Ellis Ave.

Lexington, SC  29072

Is your company using email correspondence to help you build a better relationship with your customers, or does your email come across a little cold and impersonal? Taking a few extra moments to insert a few well-selected cordial words in each email is all it takes to write a winning letter that is friendly and warm.