This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Myra Deshmukh, the 39-year-old founder of Leadership Lab and a former Amazon employee living in Montclair, New Jersey. It has been edited for length and clarity.
In the 10 ½ years I worked at Amazon, I held many different titles. My last role was senior manager of learning and development programs, and one of my tasks was to teach a business writing course to thousands of Amazon employees.
Overall, Amazon has a very heavy writing culture, so we write a lot of documents, emails, memos, press releases, and FAQs.
The course I taught was a six-week foundations course in business writing 101, and covered how to write concisely, tell compelling stories, and structure writing — from Slack chats and emails to a six-pager.
Email is one of the primary ways we communicate today, and how you show up in an email can make a real difference in how others perceive you.
Here are seven things you can try in order to improve your email communication.
1. Choose a specific and helpful subject line
The subject line is incredibly important; it lets the reader know the purpose of your email, and is the first impression they get of you.
When writing one, make it as specific and helpful as possible.
If it’s just for their information, include “FYI” in the subject. If action is required, add the deadline or the task itself so the recipient immediately understands the urgency and intention of your message.
For example, a good subject line is: Marketing Proposal – Feedback Needed by 8/13. A bad example is: Marketing Proposal Draft.
2. Make a good impression with your greeting
Second to the subject line, a greeting is one of the first impressions somebody will have of you. You don’t want it to be the reason that someone has a negative perception of you.
If you want to come off as professional or neutral, use “hi” or “hello.” It’s the most neutral greeting and is the least likely to be misunderstood by your recipient.
I avoid using “Dear ___,” in work situations, as it’s a very personal greeting, like something I’d use when writing to a close relative. I also wouldn’t use “hey,” as it’s very casual and can come across as too informal to different generations or cultures.
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Not using a greeting and just writing their name could be perceived as too curt.
After the initial correspondence, it can be appropriate to drop the greeting when responding to an email.
But tailor to your audience; if it’s with my manager, I may drop the greeting to answer their questions directly, but if it’s with my skip level or higher, I may keep the greeting for some formality and respect.
3. Be concise and know your objective
Before writing an email, you should know the purpose of what you’re writing; your email should be concise and specific. You should have one objective, not a million.
This might look like: “Hi name, I hope you’re well today. Can you give me feedback on this proposal by the end of the day tomorrow?” From there, you can provide context.
By writing it this way, you’re not leaving people to read through and figure out the point of the email.
The bulk of your email should fit into your iPhone screen, and the general gist of your email should just be one scroll. This is especially true if you’re writing for an ask, for feedback, or something that you need somebody to reply to.
4. Don’t use filler words or phrases
We use filler words or phrases to soften the ask, or to make an email more personal, but it really just comes across as less confident.
These might read, “I’m writing you because I’m hoping…” or, “I’m wondering if you can…”
Instead, try: “Can you send me feedback on this marketing proposal by the end of the day, [insert date],” and then add some context. This way, it becomes more of an action or direct ask, versus a passive statement.
If it’s not an ask, but rather, you’re telling someone information, you could say, “The marketing campaign that we ran last week was very successful; it exceeded our revenue goal.”
Some people use filler words to be kind, but you can balance being kind with being concise. You can include a short intro, like, “Hope you had a great weekend,” but don’t make it so long that it distracts from the purpose of your email.
Most people are busy and want you to get to the point of what you’re asking.
5. Avoid using emojis
When it comes to emailing someone, I’d suggest staying away from emojis for the same reason you avoid language that’s too casual — it can be misinterpreted.
For example, you might send a winky face with a completely platonic intention, but the person reading it could think, “Why are they winking at me? That’s creepy.”
You just never know with emojis, so I’d recommend staying away from them. It’s very hard to read tone over email, harmless emojis included.
6. Using exclamation points is fine — but don’t overdo it
I think punctuation like exclamation points is fine in an email if you’re trying to convey excitement or enthusiasm. That said, don’t overuse them. Use one.
For example, “We’re so excited about tomorrow’s launch!” is totally appropriate, but “We’re so excited about tomorrow’s launch!!!” isn’t necessary.
Use your judgment on how many you need for the whole email. As with any special formatting, use it intentionally. If every sentence in your email has an exclamation, it loses emphasis.
It’s the same with bolding; if everything is bolded, nothing stands out.
7. Don’t be afraid to follow up
After sending your original email, it’s appropriate to follow up after the date you asked them for feedback by.
You could say, “Hey, just following up on this, I would love your feedback.”
If you weren’t clear about when you needed an answer, you might write: “Hi. I just realized I didn’t send you a deadline. I would love the feedback by tomorrow, if you can.”
People fear being annoying, but if you think about all the emails you get, of course, a few might slip by that you forget to reply to. Putting yourself in the other person’s shoes, you realize a reminder isn’t annoying — it can be really helpful.
Communication is an essential skill for progressing your career
When writing an email, you should always write it as if it’s going to be forwarded to that person’s boss. Even if you’re friends, you don’t want to come off too casual or inappropriate.
Good communication helps you be seen as a great leader at work and makes you more likely to get promoted.
If you have to invest in one skill to enhance your career, invest in clear, effective communication — and that includes email.
Do you have a story to share about unique strategies you used to get promoted? Contact this editor, Jane Zhang, at [email protected].
