- Keep your messages short and to the point.
Long email may never get read!
- Be sure the subject line describes what the message is about.
One topic per message lets the receiver (and you too!) keep what is needed for later and discard the rest after reading it. Email piles up quickly and the saved messages must be thinned out from time to time. A good subject line helps immensely.
- Be informal.
Email messages are more like little notes or memos than formal letters.
You can use informal grammar freely here!
- Never use all upper case unless you really mean to be YELLING.
- Quote enough of a previous message to be sure that the reader knows what you are talking about.
Be careful: A reply to a reply that was a reply to a reply ... can get very long.
Long files take a long time to load and read.
Your email program may automatically quote the whole message that you are replying to. Delete the parts that aren't needed to make your own message clear.
- Say "Thanks in advance" in the original message rather than sending separate thank you's later.
- Use emoticons and <what I'm doing> expressions to convey the mood of your remarks.
It is very easy to offend people with "jokes" that don't read on the screen the way they sounded in your head. Sarcasm is difficult to get across accurately. Adding the right smiley face or <grinning> to a remark can make all the difference.
- Limit your use of abbreviations since many won't understand what you mean.
Here's your message. Short and sweet.
Next the message needs to be sent.
So just  click the Send button.
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