How To Write An Effective Email As A Virtual Assistant

Do you want to learn how to write an effective email? Writing friendly, approachable, and professional emails is a skill every Virtual Assistant should have. It requires a balance between getting straight to the point with suggesting you’re available to answer any questions. Here are six tips for Virtual Assistants to help make sure your emails are both friendly and professional.

Write An Effective Email: Know Your Goal as a Virtual Assistant

As a Virtual Assistant, what do you want the reader to take away from your email? It’s tempting to think only about what we have to say. By considering what your reader needs, you’re more likely to cover their key questions, which helps you appear professional as a Virtual Assistant.

It also makes you seem more approachable in that you’ve shown you take professional communications seriously and are therefore someone that would respond appropriately to any further questions. Think about what your audience needs when you write a professional email. Thinking about what your audience needs to know will help you consistently write an effective email as a Virtual Assistant.

Format your email appropriately

To write an effective email you need to start with a story. Break your email down into a beginning, a middle, and an end. Use salutations like “Dear” or “Hi” instead of “Hey.” Doing so will help distinguish between writing to a friend versus a business associate.

Use subheads and bullet points in the middle section of your email if there’s a lot of content to cover. Subheadings help readers skip to details they’re most interested in, as well as find that information again at a later date. Harvard Business Review also recommends sticking to one readable font to not detract from your overall message.

Finish your email professionally and include contact details to show you are available should the reader have any questions — end with “Yours sincerely” or “Kind regards” over “Cheers.” Invite your reader to contact you with a line like, “Please don’t hesitate to contact me,” and include your direct line, mobile and main reception telephone numbers.

Understand Your Audience

How you tailor your email depends on your audience. If your email is going to several clients, they’re probably time-poor and want to skim read for critical facts. It’s more important to them that you write a professional, transparent, easy-to-digest email. Spending time adding extra friendliness to your email may be a wasted effort.

Being more chatty might be appropriate if you’re trying to charm potential customers into building a relationship with your company. Their main concern could be whether you’ll be there to help if they run into trouble with your product. It is essential to take some time to show you’re an actual human they can talk to when they need to.

Personality

Adding a bit of your personality into business emails is acceptable in certain circumstances. Consider how well you know the person, what they’ll think of colloquialisms or jokes, and the impression you want to give. If in doubt, avoid being too personal. Stick to conveying the essential information as professionally as possible.

If you know something about the reader, make a short reference, but don’t go overboard. Something like, “I hope your son’s football game went well,” is enough. There’s no need to ask how many goals he scored, what the weather was like, or the next match. If you know you have something in common, or they’ve also exchanged a few personal insights, sign off with something similar, such as, “Have a great weekend – mine is all about getting the kids to sports matches on time!”

Proofread Before You Send

No matter how friendly, approachable, or professional you try to make your email, a communication full of mistakes always looks terrible, especially when from a Virtual Assistant. Grammatical errors and typos give the impression that you haven’t dedicated any time to the interaction so learn how to proofread your work effectively as a Virtual Assistant. Grammar is critical when you need to write an effective email.

Did you use any of these tips, or have others you think are helpful? Follow CanScribe on Instagram to share your thoughts and ideas with us! Check out the below video to learn more about how to write an effective email like a professional.

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