A tutorial for Business English courses on the basics for Writing of Emails at work. Prepared by Mrs Nives Torresi for use in courses held by Pegasus One, Italy.

1. EMAIL WRITING
NETIQUETTE
By Nives Torresi

2. WRITING - A FORM OF
COMMUNICATION
Writing emails in one’s native language is easier to fathom, but
when we apply the same logic or rule to another language then
understanding the basic essentials of that culture will assist in
the writing.
However a standard set of ‘netiquette’ can now be found freely
on internet and some links have been provided for further
research at the end of this presentation.
This presentation will however outline the ground theory in an
easy to follow guide but should always be used at the discretion
of the reader who is more apt to know their own form of
communicating with colleagues or such.

3. THE BASICS
Select the addressee (the person/s, company, that will receive the email)
Define the Subject – not too long but a title that is clear as to the
contents
Use a proper Salutation greeting – Dear Mr Peter Smith, Dear Joan, Hi
Sam, etc. depending on the formality or informality of the relationship
Use clear and concise language that is structured properly – appropriate
terms that relate to the topic, use of tables or point form for a list of
details, paragraphs that follow a logic.
The use of THANK YOU is an important diplomatic gesture and can be
used at the beginning of an email just as effectively as at the end of an
email message.
Closing remarks – will include follow up mentions.
Signature of sender (digital or printed) – would include full name and job
title, company, etc.

4. DEFINING THE ADDRESSEE
When you are ready to create your email, one of the first and
foremost actions is to choose the designated recipient of the
email. In today’s hectic business atmosphere in open office
surroundings it is one of the items we leave to the automatic
fill-in by the email program. BUT all too often their are
misnomers in a group of contacts, especially when the email
program has been set up by the company and includes all
relative personnel in every single department across the
board. Hence it is very easy to have either similar names and
surnames or even identical names that may have a suffix to
differentiate them.
Therefore before quickly passing on to the subject of the
email make sure the ‘addressee’ or recipient of the email is

5. DEFINING THE SUBJECT
The subject at times can be complex and create confusion, so
it is important to create a proper succinct subject title that
leaves nothing to the imagination avoiding misinterpretation
of the importance.
Most of us read the subject in the INBOX list prior to opening
the email to immediately judge if the email needs our
attention now or can wait (the waiting is subjective to many
factors as is the importance).
This is one of the reasons that the subject of the email should
be clear and not overly long as to get lost or unseen in the
inbox view.

6. PROPER GREETING
The opening greeting is very important and shows a respect
for the recipient person/s or company. A diplomatic approach
in writing is always a sign of good manners and proper
understanding of the limitations of the written word in
business communications.
By its nature any form of communication within a business
will always be considered formal and cold, as it is mostly used
for exchange of work related matters.
The use of Dear Mr Smith, Dear Peter, Hi Susan – will depend
on the formality or informality of the work relationship.
Follow this with a comma and one return carriage leaving a
line space, to begin the first entry with a capital letter at the
beginning of the paragraph.

7. STRUCTURE IN THE WRITING
The structure in the writing comes down to the related motive for
the communication. So if the form of communication is like a
‘story’ to unfold then the format should be as follows:
Introduction of the topic / subject at hand
Paragraphs 1-2-3-etc. will create the ‘body’ of the topic
Conclusion paragraph will arrive at the summation of the topic
The format is logic – therefore it will be necessary to open the topic
with the reason for the email, then go into the purpose of the
comunications such as details requested/required etc, elaborate on
the information/details, then arrive at a finality of the email. Don’t
hesitate to use tables, bullet lists, etc. where required.
Remember Carriage Returns (Enter key) to separate every single
paragraph. No need to create a tab indent as is used in letters or
writing of documents. But capitals at the beginning of every
paragraph and all Nouns in English carry the same rule.

8. ENGLISH LANGUAGE
English language writing used for business communications is
clear and concise. This means that the sentence structure
should comprise ‘shorter phrases’ and full terms avoiding the
short forms of verbs such as I’ve, better to use ‘I have’.
Nowadays the most frequently used email programs contain
spell checks for US or UK English, and more often seen is also a
handy Thesaurus to control the usage of correct synonyms. But
if your email program does not include this tool then there are
many document writing programs that are normally included in
the basic computer program packages that do – so make use of
these great tools.
Writing emails is a daily activity for most business people and is
carried out with quick gestures, understandably so in today’s
hectic business world. However stopping to think and re-read

9. THE INDISPENSABLE THANK YOU
Thank you either at the beginning of the email for the received prior
communication, requesting of information, etc. is just as important as
it can be at the end of an email when used as a compliment in lieu of a
follow up.
The simple gesture of saying Thank You whether it is warranted for a
service, etc., is however a diplomatic signal of courtesy and is always
welcome. It shows your good manners in acknowledging the existence
of the other person/s as a human counterpart in the business
communication.
The forms and expressions using Thank You can be found in many
online English guides, however the simple common forms are always
the better alternative.

10. CLOSING REMARK & SENDER
The closing remark including the invitation to respond by way
of an expectation of a return reply. The likes of ‘‘I look
forward to hearing from you’’ etc., is a part inciting a
response by way of email within a suitable time limit for
business interactions. Obviously it is by no means an
obligation to respond which will always be the prerogative of
the recipient, that may choose either to reply or not.
The closing remark is followed by the ‘signature’ of the
sender, be it in digital form or simply typed is obligatory and
should also include details of the company, department, etc.
The disclaimer would then follow in the bottom part of the
email normally having been set up by the company
administrative office for legal waivers.

11. SUMMING UP
Remember to check the recipient email address
Add a short and clear Subject
Salutation greeting &/or curteous Thank you
Body of the message – separated by line spacing
Include a closing remark &/or curteous Thank you
Signature/details of the sender
Check Spelling, Grammar, Re-Read for logic and
flow, maintain a diplomatic pattern of thought

12. FURTHER READING
http://evo-
training.pbworks.com/w/page/5965182/Netiquette
http://www.slideshare.net/josbor61/netiquette-tutorial-2-
guidelines
http://www.slideshare.net/floresnewcastleeduau/netiquette
-and-code-of-conduct-in-communication
http://www.slideshare.net/ctd515/netiquette-6055161
https://www.wiziq.com/tutorial/928605-sbf15-halina-on-
competence-in-communication-and-interpersonal-skills

13. A TUTORIAL FOR
BUSINESS ENGLISH
COURSES BY PEGASUS
ONE, ITALY
Tutorial prepared by
Mrs Nives Torresi
for use in Business English
Courses creative content.