5 E-mail Tips for Newbie Entrepreneurs

 Many entrepreneurs, especially first-timers take e-mail communication casually and in the process, hurt their own interests. Here are a few simple tips that will help show your business in a better light.

1.Stop using free e-mail for your business: If you want to be taken seriously, do yourself a favor :quit using free e-mail like yahoomail,g-mail,hotmail etc.for business.

Get your firm a domain name and use Google Apps or the services provided by your domain host to get a business-like e-mail ID.

Don’t be cheap here.Don’t go for free e-mail hosting.The inappropriate ads and security issues are bound to put- off a saint.

2.Make the subject line clear: Busy people want to allocate their time well. A clear title allows people to decide quickly on the importance and urgency of your e-mail.Avoid wasting other people’s time and they will think better of you.So take the time to write a good subject line.

3.Write actionable e-mails:There are two kind of emails. One that converts into actionable point , and the other that goes nowhere.

Spot the difference:

“Please let me know when can we talk.”

vs

“How about a call, say 5 PM today?”

Which one will lead to better conversion? Which one puts a pressure on the receiver to respond?

Send e-mails that have a strong ‘call to action’ component. Force the other person to act but use caution.This may back fire if you are in no position to make demands of the other person.

4.Don’t opt for a read receipt: Are you sending legal notice to the other party via Registered Post?Read receipts are irritating as they look like you are spying on people.Beware !The other person might place you e-mail ID in their junk folder.

5.Handly nasty e-mails calmly: If you receive a nasty email from a customer/partner don’t reply in full steam telling them how much they suck and how you don’t give a damn who they are or what they do and that you don’t need them and they can F**k -off.Hang on.Do not reply to nasty e-mails immediately, especially if it’s from somebody who matters i.e. a business partner/potential customer/journalist etc.Take a deep breath. Take a walk. Go for a smoke. Do whatever you need to so that you can unwind a little bit. Then think of writing an e-mail that doesn’t acerbate the situation.In some cases, simply calling up the other person is better than carrying the conversation over email.