Email Lesson

Lesson ThirteenWriting Email

Email

Electronic Mail

The Internet is compiled of many different applications: Email takes up the most space and used more frequently than any other application on the internet.

Email

Each email address has a certain server that it is sent to, and that server takes the message and sends it out through the internet to the recipient

Question:Approximately how many emails are

sent each day around the world?A. 24 million B. 400 millionC. 31 billion D. 62 billion

AnswerAccording to a CNN article, in 2001, the

International Data Corporation (IDC) predicted the number of emails sent each day would exceed 36 billion by 2005. But in 2003, the IDC reported that 31 billion emails were already being sent daily, and they expected the number to double by 2006.

Approximately62,000,000,000

emails are sent each day.

Form and ContentTeaching email is difficult because there are

not many set rules. There are certain conventions that many people follow, but there is also a lot of room to diverge from

convention.

Form and ContentThe form and content of email is very similar to letters, so we will be able to apply most of

the knowledge that we already have.

In other words, you already have a good knowledge base from which to start.

Form and ContentHowever, there are some differences

between email and letters in terms of form and content because the medium of email allows us to perform special tasks that are

simply not possible with letters.

Parts of Email1. From

2. To

3. CC (carbon copy)

4. BCC (bi-carbon copy)

5. Date

6. Subject

7. Opening

8. Body

9. Closing

10. Signature Block

11. Attachments

Business Letter

• Date

• Sender’s Address

• Insider Address

• Salutation

• Body

• Closing

• Enclosures

• Typist Initials

Parts of Email

Body

Signature

Closing

Greeting

From

To

DateSubject

Parts of Email

Subject

From

Body

Greeting

To

Date

CC

Parts of Email

Body

Signature Block

Attachments

Part of EmailEven though there are many different parts

of an email, we don’t have to worry about some of them.

Two reasons:

1. The computer does it automatically

2. Conventions of email

1. The computer does it automatically

Types of Email:

1. Personal

2. Business

Both of these types of email have different conventions that most people will follow.

2. Conventions of email

Parts of Email1. From

2. To

3. CC (carbon copy)

4. BCC (bi-carbon copy)

5. Date

6. Subject

required

optional

optional

required

automatic

automatic

Parts of Email7. Opening

8. Body

9. Closing

10. Signature Block

11. Attachments

optional

optional

optional

optional

required

Form and ContentCompare the following sample with your

knowledge of business letters.

Form and ContentCompare the following sample with your

knowledge of personal letters.

How to write an email: Step-by-Step

1. Write appropriate email addresses correctly in the “To”, “CC”, and/or “BCC fields

2. Write the subject of the email. Be sure that the subject aptly identifies the topic of the email.

3. Write an appropriate greeting based on the level of formality and familiarity with the reader. (optional)


4. Write the body of the letter. Most people do not indent the paragraphs; instead, they use the ‘block’ style and skip a single line between paragraphs

5. Write a closing punctuated with a comma (optional)

6. ‘Sign’ your name (optional)

7. Attach documents (optional)


• Spell Check

• Send

[email protected]

[email protected]

Birthday Wishes!

Mr. Simoneaux,

I just wanted to wish you a happy and let you know that I bought you a new car as a present. You can pick the keys up tomorrow!

Take care,

Michael

birtdaybirthday

Email EtiquetteHow do I compose an email to someone I

don't know?There are a few important points to

remember when composing email, particularly when the email's recipient is a

superior and/or someone who does not know you.


don't know?

1. Be sure to include a meaningful subject line; this helps clarify what your message is about and may also help the recipient

prioritize reading your email


don't know?

2. Just like a written letter, be sure to open your email with a greeting like Dear Dr.

Jones, or Ms. Smith:


don't know?

3. Use standard spelling, punctuation, and capitalization. THERE'S NOTHING

WORSE THAN AN EMAIL SCREAMING A MESSAGE IN ALL

CAPS.


don't know?

4. Be friendly and cordial, but don't try to joke around (jokes and witty remarks may

be inappropriate and, more commonly, may not come off appropriately in email)

Email EtiquetteWhat are some guides for continuing

email conversations?

1. Once you have exchanged emails with a person on a given subject, it is probably

OK to leave greetings out of your follow-up emails.



2. Try to respond within a reasonable time frame, though "reasonable" will depending

on the recipient's expectations and the subject being discussed



3. Trim back the old messages: most email clients will keep copying older messages to

the bottom of an email. Delete older messages so as to keep your message size from getting too large, and to keep your

messages looking clean.

Email EtiquetteWhat sorts of information shouldn't be

sent via email?

Most people do not realize that email is not as private as it may seem. Without additional setup, email is not encrypted; meaning that your email is "open" and could possibly be read by an unintended person as it is transmitted to your reader.


sent via email?

Avoid sensitive information that could be potentially damaging to someone's career and/or reputation, including your own.


sent via email?

Beyond email's general lack of security and confidentiality, your recipient can always accidentally hit the Forward button, leave her email account open on a computer, or print and forget that she's printed a copy of your email.

Email EtiquetteWhat about sending attachments?

The ease of transmitting files to a particular person makes email very attractive.

However, there are some guidelines you should follow:


1. Never send an attachment to someone you don't know the first time you contact them (unless, of course, the contact has posted a job ad requesting a resume in a

Word document). They (or their computers) might think it is spam or a

virus, and delete your message.


2. Avoid unnecessarily large file sizes. Digital photos especially: most digital

photos come off the camera much larger than can be viewed on screen. Learn how

to resize your digital photographs.


3. When you must send a large file or set of files, do the recipient the courtesy of

sending an email telling them what you'll be sending and why.


3. When you must send a large file or set of files, do the recipient the courtesy of

sending an email telling them what you'll be sending and why.


4. Be sure to have anti-virus software installed on your computer to scan all of

your outgoing and incoming messages for viruses.

Writing Assignment

Write a business email in reply to the business letter that you wrote last week.

Due via email before our next class.

Writing AssignmentInstructions:

1. Read your original business letter from the perspective of the PR Department at Nike.

2. Compose a response to the letter.3. Include your name, class, and student

numbers in the subject line of your email.4. Send your email to the following address:

[email protected]

Situation TwoYou work in the Public Relations Department

at Nike and you must respond to a letter that you just received from concerned citizens from Neijiang. After doing some research, you find out that the environmental impact on the Tuo Jiang could be very bad.

Write a business email in response to alleviate their concerns and assure them that Nike is doing everything possible to minimize the negative environmental effects on the Tuo Jiang. The problem is that you must be honest as you write this letter, so you must use your knowledge of rhetoric to write a letter that emphasizes the positives.

Accentuating the Positives When you need to present negative information,

soften its effects by superimposing a positive picture on a negative one.

•Stress what something is rather than what it is not.•Emphasize what the firm or product can and will do rather than what it cannot.•Open with action rather than apology or explanation.•Avoid words which convey unpleasant facts.

Embedded PositionPlace good news in positions of high emphasis: at the beginnings and endings of paragraphs, letters, and even sentences.

Place bad news in secondary positions: in the center of paragraphs, letters, and, if possible, sentences.

Effective Use Of SpaceGive more space to good news and less to bad

news.

Evaluate the following examples to determine whether or not they present negative

information favorably.

Email Lesson

Technology

address email

conventions of email

types of email

medium of email

content of email

writing email

formandcontent teaching

continuing email conversations