How to Write a Professional Email?

In the professional world, clarity, tone, and precision determine the success or failure of your email marketing efforts. Whether you’re writing a formal inquiry or checking on a dialog, the structure and content of your email are very important to how it is received. 

This post will explain what makes up a professional email regarding creating a clear subject line, using a courteous tone, organizing your content properly, and closing with a call to action. 

Observing these details and avoiding common mistakes will make your emails more professional, helping you to collaborate more effectively and efficiently.

Steps to Make a Professional Email

Below, we have highlighted all the steps you need to follow to craft a professional-looking email for effective communication.

1. Use a Professional Email Address

Your email address influences how you appear. If you use funky names and are all over the place, you will lose credibility in the eyes of the recipient.

Instead, choose a more straightforward email address with either your official first and last name or your full name, followed by the organization tag. Below, we have given some examples to get you started.

Examples of Appropriate Addresses:

• Good: [email protected], [email protected].
• Avoid: [email protected], [email protected].

• Tip: If you can't get your preferred address, try to add numbers to the email address or mention something about your job (e.g., [email protected] or [email protected].)

2. Write a Clear and Concise Subject Line

When you write a professional email, you must keep the subject line as clear, concise and specific as possible. The goal is to quickly let the reader grasp the purpose and intent of your message.

The message should be written with a highly objective tone, focusing only on the main point of the email. Maintain a formal language and avoid any use of slang, jokes, etc.

Do: 

• Be specific: "Meeting Request: Client Presentation on Nov 15"

Don't:

• Use vague phrases: "Hi" or "Quick Question"

Examples by Scenario:

• Follow-up: "Follow-Up on Marketing Campaign Ideas (October 2024)"
• Job Application: "Application for Senior Content Writer Position – John Hancock"
• Request for Information: "Asking for Details about New Vendor Policy, 2025"

(Read these tips by Indeed.com on writing a concise, informative subject line.)

3. Use Proper Salutations

Proper greetings or salutations set a very good tone for the conversation. It showcases your manners and etiquette as a professional and allows you to leave a good impression on the recipient. 

There can be many ways in which you can write salutations when starting the email, however, this is dependent on whom you’re addressing the message to, or what is the case scenario.

Options:

• If you know the person: "Dear Dr. Chen," or "Hello Mr. Lopez."
• If you don't know the name: "Dear HR," or “Dear Sir/Madam.”
• For groups or teams: "Dear Team," or "Hello All."

• Tip: When writing to multiple people, be inclusive but don't use generic terms like "Dear Sirs" unless it's okay in that culture.

(Learn more about professional salutations and greetings in this blog.)

4. Start with a Polite Opening

After salutations comes the opening paragraph of your email which plays a pivotal role in successfully communicating your message. Openings must be polite and gentle to set a good reading mode for the email and send a professional gesture to the recipient. 

Ask about the other person’s health, if they’re doing well or not, but don’t dwell too much from the main topic. 

Examples:

• General Inquiry: "I hope this email finds you well. I am reaching out regarding..."

• Follow-Up: "Thank you for your reply earlier. I'd like to check in on..."

• Introducing Yourself: "…This is Samantha, the new Head of the IT department at [Company Name]. I'm writing to say hello and talk about..."
• Tip: If your email is urgent, keep pleasantries brief but stay polite. For instance, "I'm writing to discuss a crucial request about changes in the initial design..."

5. Keep It Simple and Direct

Professionals like emails that get straight to the point. Skip long-winded messages in your email body and put your thoughts right on the board for maximum engagement.

How to Structure:

• Put your main idea in the first line: "I'm writing to confirm we're meeting on November 10 at 3 PM."
• Give some background in the next couple of sentences: "This meeting is to wrap up the Q4 marketing budget and talk about possible partnerships with vendors."
• Use bullet points when you have several items or asks: 

"We'll cover:

• Budget for the next year.
• Q4 targets and what we need to deliver.
• Pitches from new vendors."

• Tip: Try to keep emails short around 150-200 words when you can. This will ensure that the readers understand the key points easily and effectively.

6. Keep Your Tone Professional

Your tone shows how professional you are and reflects one’s work ethic. It also shows the level of seriousness you have for your work, which can be a deciding factor for a lot of recruiting managers when hiring candidates.

Examples:

• Positive: Instead of "Can you send this to me ASAP?" Write "Could you please share this document with me at your earliest?"

• Neutral: Instead of "You didn't do this right," Write "I noticed a discrepancy in the report and wanted to discuss..."
• Formal for New Contacts: Use "I appreciate your thoughts on this matter" and avoid phrases like "Thanks a ton!"

(For more guidance, check out this blog on exploring different types of tones in professional emails.)

7. Format Your Email Properly

A professional email must be formatted properly. There must be a clear distinction between the greetings, opening paragraph, email body paragraph(s), and closing 

Plus, if you are using multiple bullet points in your message, try using the same structure and type throughout the email.

• Tips:
• Pick common fonts like Arial, Cambria, or Times New Roman (size 10-12.)
• Don't go overboard with bold, italic, or underlined text.
• Leave gaps between paragraphs to improve readability.

All these elements will ensure high readability of your email, allowing people to quickly get your main points.

(Read more tips on formatting your professional email here.)

8. Add a Call to Action

Professional emails are often overlooked if they don’t have a proper call to action (CTA.) You need to state what you want from the reader so that the whole purpose of writing the message is fulfilled.

CTAs can be included in any part of the email, but they’re mostly given toward the end. With that said, let’s review some examples below to help you out with this step.

Examples:

• Request a Response: "Could you confirm your availability for the HR meeting by the end of this working week?"

• Provide a Deadline: "Please review the attached documents below and share your feedback by the 22nd of October."
• Ask for Assistance: "Would you please connect me with the IT team to troubleshoot this issue?"
• Tip: Be specific in the CTA to make it easy for the recipient to respond. Use action words like, “Confirm”, “Review”, “Edit”, “Update”, “Remind”, “Follow”, etc.

9. Add a Professional Closing

The closing paragraph or line may contain phrases like “hoping for your cooperation”, “looking forward to meeting you in person”, etc. Such nuances leave a sense of fulfillment at the end of an email, marking your words in the reader’s heart.

Following the closing, you should also focus on signing off from the email in a professional manner. However, this may vary depending on the situation or the stature of the recipient.

Endings based on how formal they are:

• Very Formal: "Yours Sincerely," or "Respectfully."
• Somewhat Formal: "Best Regards," or "Kind Regards."
• Relaxed/Team-Based: "Best," or "Thanks."

(Check out more professional closings in this article.)

Add Your Signature:

• Full name, job title, and ways to get in touch: "John Smith | Marketing Specialist [email protected] | (123) 456-7890"

10. Check for Errors before Sending

Typos and grammar errors can hurt the credibility and professional image of a sender, especially when the working environment is rigid and unforgiving. So, it is important to recheck your email with a vigilant eye to look for such issues before hitting send.

Additionally, you should also judge logical issues in your email like a truncation of an important point from the discussion, or over-elaboration of something unneeded.

What to Look For:

• Correct spelling of addressee’s names and job titles.
• Proper grammar and punctuation.
• Attachments (if mentioned).
• Tip: Say your email out loud to spot clunky wording. Tools like Grammarcheck.ai offer extra help to make drafts pristine and presentable.

Examples of a Professional Email

Below, we have shown you some examples of professional emails. Review them to solidify your understanding of the tone, style, and structure required to leave a good impression on the recipient.

1. Confirming Availability

Subject: Marketing Presentation Confirmation - Nov 15

Dear Ms. Taylor,

I hope you're doing okay. I'm writing to check if you can make it to the presentation on Wednesday, November 15, at 10:00 AM. We'll meet in Conference Room B at our main office.

In this meeting, we plan to:

• Look at how we did in Q3.
• Show our plans for Q4.
• Talk about our big clients.

Can you let me know by Monday, November 13, if this works for you? Also, if you want to share any stuff for the meeting just send it my way by the end of this week.

Thanks for your time and help. Contact me for any more questions.

Best Regards, 

John Doe

Mechanical Engineer

[email protected] | (023) 556-7890

2. Requesting Collaboration 

Subject: Collaboration Opportunity: Sustainability Project Proposal

Dear Mr. Anderson,

I hope this message finds you well. I’m writing to introduce an exciting opportunity for collaboration on our upcoming Sustainability in Action initiative. This project focuses on implementing innovative solutions to reduce carbon emissions across the supply chain, a priority we believe aligns with your organization’s expertise.

Here’s an outline of the project:

• Objective: Develop sustainable packaging for consumer goods.
• Timeline: January 2025 to July 2025.
• Partnership Opportunities: Technical consultation, joint research, and pilot testing.

We’re particularly interested in leveraging your team’s experience with eco-friendly materials and would love to hear your thoughts on potential synergies. If this aligns with your goals, let’s schedule a brief call or in-person meeting to discuss how we can move forward together.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

Best Regards,

Samantha Reed

Sustainability Program Manager

[email protected] | (987) 654-3210

EcoVision Solutions Inc.

Wrapping Up

Professional email writing requires attention to detail. It comprises elements such as a clear subject line, proper salutations, a polite opening, direct and simple content, proper formatting, and a professional closing. 

By following the steps mentioned in this post, one can craft effective emails to enhance collaboration and efficiency in professional communication. 

That’s all from our side! We hope you enjoyed reading our content!