Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
SKILLS FOR WORK AND TRAINING
Writing a formal E mail
Format a formal E mail
Send a formal E mail
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Writing a Clear and Simple E-Mail (reading)
The e-mail is a common and often preferred form of transmitting information.
Electronic mail is a quick, convenient form of communication that saves time. Emails allow you to send short messages and lengthy documents to multiple readers
via your computer.
In large organisations management may use the e-mail as a bulletin board to send
messages internally to staff, and it may also be used by staff to communicate with
others. E-mails also provide a quick and easy way to send messages externally to
clients and other organisations.
Advantages Of E-Mails
- An e-mail is fast and inexpensive to send.
- An e-mail provides a written record and provides more accurate and reliable
information than a telephone.
- An e-mail provides a convenient way to send and receive messages
to and from staff, clients or organisations overseas or in remote areas.
- You can send one or more other documents as an attachment to an e-mail
message.
- You can reply or forward the information on to others.
Disadvantages of E-Mails
- You need to check your e-mail regularly so you access all messages within a
reasonable time.
- You need to remember to make a hard copy or keep a storage file in your
computer of important messages sent and received.
- Some organisations are concerned that messages sent by staff using e-mail
bypass management before they can be checked to ensure they are legally
correct. For this reason some organisations have a disclaimer at the bottom of
their e-mails.
- E-mails may seem less personal to customers and may not suit all customer
groups or all circumstances.
- E-mails are very easily intercepted and are therefore unsuitable for confidential
matters.
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Writing a Clear and Simple E-Mail (reading)
When writing an e-mail:

use an informal, conversational tone. E-mails are less formal than a memo or
letter

plan the content. Even though an e-mail uses an informal tone it should be
produced with the same degree of attention as a formal document to ensure
the reader will understand your message.
Before sending your e-mail:
 check that your message is clear
 check spelling and grammar
 make sure your message will not embarrass your receiver. Remember
other people in their office or department may have access to the e-mail
message. Treat your e-mail as a postcard.
You also need to remember that an e-mail is a legal document which may
be subject to Federal and State Acts of Evidence.
Keep a copy of your e-mail just in case it is lost in cyberspace.
E-mail Etiquette
In most organisations it is policy that you do not use another person’s e-mail.
Consider your colleagues. It is not acceptable to take up computer time sending
unnecessary e-mails.
As with all business documents you should consider the time you use writing your
e-mails. Try to manage the time you spend planning and writing your e-mails.
Personal use of e-mails should not interfere with normal business.
Personal use of e-mail should not potentially embarrass your organisation.
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Spotlight: Netiquette
Netiquette, short for “network etiquette” is the term used to describe the rules and
guidelines that have developed for proper, polite e-mail and internet behaviour. It is
very important for the new user to learn. Following these rules can help you avoid
misunderstandings.
Use a search engine in your internet program to look for “netiquette” guides. You
will come up with pages of rules and suggestions. A few important and common
ones follow.
Adding emphasis
Emphasising a word in a sentence can change the meaning of the sentence. In
face-to-face communication we add emphasis to certain words by using volume,
tone and body language. When using e-mail, there are other methods.
Add light emphasis to a word by surrounding it with asterisks, e.g. Do you *really*
have to go?
Add strong emphasis by using capital letters, e.g. I just CAN’T miss it.
Be aware of the effect of capital letters though. Don’t use them too often. They
appear to the reader as though you are shouting. Don’t leave your caps lock
function on. It is considered rude. If you are feeling lazy in an informal e-mail, you
are better off typing in all lower case rather than all capitals.
Replying
Reply to e-mails quickly. If you can’t reply completely straight away (don’t have
time or need further information) at least send a short note to say that you have
received the e-mail and are working on it. Otherwise the sender is left wondering if
you ever received it.
When replying, the sender’s original message is kept in your reply e-mail. Make
sure that you leave enough of that message there so that the receiver (the original
sender) can recall what your reply is about. If the original message is very long, do
delete some of it. If you delete parts from the middle, you can show that by using
ellipsis (…).
No second chances
After you have sent a message, it has gone. You can’t change your mind. If you
are feeling emotional (e.g. angry) when writing a reply, put it in a “drafts” folder for a
while, take some time out, then go back and reread it before sending it.
Be particularly careful if sending an e-mail to all employees in the organisation or
other large groups. You may want to forward a draft of very important e-mails to a
colleague for checking.
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Writing a Clear and Simple E-Mail (reading)
Subject headings
Give your e-mails a useful heading in the subject line. This will help your reader in
understanding and prioritising.
Acronyms

Acronyms can be useful in e-mails to save time when typing. There are
phrases that seem to be used over and over. These can be abbreviated to
the initials.

Be careful not to overuse acronyms. Many people don’t know what they
mean. They are best used only with people who you e-mail often and who
also use them. Also, too many acronyms in the one e-mail can get difficult to
read.

Some common acronyms and smiley (emoticons):

FYI – for your information (very useful as the start to an e-mail that
you are sending to a colleague to inform them that this is just for
their information and you are not asking them to do anything)

BTW – by the way

Some fun acronyms and smiley that you might have come across in
your personal e-mails:

LOL – laughs out loud (useful after a comment to show the
reader that you are joking)

ROTFL – rolling on the floor laughing

: - ) smile / : - ] bigger smile
/ : - D laughter

; - ) wink / : - 0 shock
/ I - ) sleeping

: - ( frown / : - [ bigger frown / > : -< anger
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Writing a Clear and Simple E-Mail (writing)
Activity
Match these e-mails to the subjects in the boxes.
E-mail A
E-mail B
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Writing a Clear and Simple E-Mail (Cont)
Email C
Subject A:
Subject B:
Subject C:
Change to roster
Staff meeting
Weekend specials
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Format of E-Mails (reading)
The most common arrangement for headings at the top of an e-mail are:
 From
 To
 Copy to (CC)
 Subject
As with faxes and memos, the format used for the headings on an e-mail may vary
slightly depending on the software used by the organisation.
Who sent
the e-mail?
Who receives
a copy?
Who has the email been sent
to?
What is the content
of the e-mail
regarding?
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Sending an E-Mail
The following information comes from a workplace e-mail. However, it is out of
order. Using the blank e-mail form on this page, rewrite the e-mail in the correct
order.
Virus problem
I would appreciate that all staff scan any foreign files that they may bring in from
other sources. e.g. e-mail and floppy disks.
10 July 2012
Dear All Staff.
I performed a virus scan on the U drive yesterday afternoon which identified the
following files being contaminated with a virus.
Tony Jackson
U:\Outreach\Projects\Draft Management Report
U:\SRains\Doc1.doc
U:\Bellows\Evaluation\Systems 2000
Computer Systems Officer
These files have been successfully cleaned and restored.
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
How to Send an E-Mail
Make a list of the steps involved in sending an e-mail. If you do not know how to
send an e-mail, ask a colleague or friend to show you how and note each step as
they explain the process.
1.
2.
3.
Dos
 Be polite. Respect the recipient's feelings an opinions.
 Be clear. This will help prevent misunderstandings.
 Add your name (or signature) to the end of an e-mail message.
 Check your spelling before you click "send".
Don'ts
 Avoid spamming. Don't send the same message to many people.
 Avoid flaming. Don't get into on-line arguments.
 Avoid shouting. DON'T WRITE YOUR ENTIRE MESSAGE IN CAPITAL
LETTERS.
Use common sense. Before you send a message, ask yourself how you would
feel if you received it.
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
 Writing an E-Mail
1.You look after rental properties for a real estate agent.
Write an e-mail to Mrs Jackson (invent the address) regarding her application to
rent a house. Explain that she needs to provide a written reference and contact
details for her current land lord/agent before you can process her application.
You may include additional information that you think would be required for this
e-mail.
2. You are a team leader.
Write an e-mail to all staff in your section advising them that the next monthly
meeting will be held next Friday (include a date) at 2pm in the conference room.
All staff are expected to attend and afternoon tea will be provided.
If anyone would like to put anything on the agenda for this meeting they need to
let you know by Tuesday 5pm.
3. You are yourself!
Write an e-mail to your manager, requesting a day’s study leave to sit an exam.
You would like an answer to this request as soon as possible so you can
organise your work schedule.
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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Communication Skills for Business Services - Written Communication
Email and Internet Use Policies
Most large organisations now find it necessary to have policies to cover
the use of e-mail and the internet. You should make sure that you read
any relevant policies that your organisation has. These may be on an intranet
(internal corporate network which uses Internet protocols to manage availability and
storage of business information) or in an employee manual.
- Email and internet use policies may cover such things as:
- Sending personal e-mails
- Personal use of internet
- Internet sites that you cannot visit
- Content of e-mails sent to clients
It is likely that even if your organisation permits limited personal use of e-mail, they
actually “own” all of your e-mails – this means that they can be audited at any time.
You must be careful not to send e-mails containing complaints about your work,
applications for other jobs or offensive material.
Many organisations require a disclaimer to appear at the foot of all e-mails that are
sent outside the organisation. It may read something like this:
“This e-mail and any attachment are confidential. If you are not an intended recipient
of this e-mail any use, disclosure or copying of the information in this e-mail and any
attachment is unauthorised and strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in
error, please notify the sender by e-mail and delete any attachment from your
computer.”
TAFE NSW – Access and General Education Curriculum Centre 2004 adapted for SWT 2013
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