Communication is the key to successful outcomes and healthy relationships and in the times when it is very hard to put a single step forward in the rat race of corporate world, I think it’s safe to say that email is one of the top “professional” communication tools. So, mastering this tool is highly essential nowadays for students, to cope up with the current demands and strengthen their existence in the vast professional world. Here are ten common mistakes that student generally make while writing email which makes their communication process inefficient.

1. Writing inappropriate subject line

This is the first and most common mistake made by the students. An email subject line should always be relevant to the content contained in the email. They should be short, crisp and absolutely to the point.

For example, if the email is regarding a meeting request, a subject line which says, “Meeting request to discuss the financial issues of XYZ Company” will suffice in lieu of “Hello” or a long paragraph.

2. Unprofessional Salutations and Greetings

While writing an email, students should always try to know about their recipient and use an appropriate salutation and greeting. Nowadays, its so easy to find out who you need to talk to or to whom you are sending the email through apps like linkedin, facebook etc. It always looks purposeful when you know whom you are contacting. So, it’s better to greet accordingly.

3. Overshooting the mark

In the times when the workplace situation is a mess with overflowing email inboxes, it is quite atrocious for a person to read a whole long email. Email is always meant to be read quickly. Thus, it is very important for a student to learn to keep their emails clear and concise so that the recipient can address the topic and move on, at a single go.

4. Not following the basic email format

Though it takes some extra bit of time, it is advisable for students to maintain the basic email structure i.e. Subject-Content-CTA. Some good practices also include:

• Instead of long paragraphs, use bullet points
• Use standardized font colour and size
• Keep some white space so that it doesn’t hurt the recipient’s eyes

5. Neglecting Proofreading

While it’s easy to send a quick reply from your phone, it’s important to take the time to double check every email you send. It is always advisable to check the spelling and grammar before hitting send which most students miss out nowadays.

6. Using Colloquial and ambiguous language

Usage of colloquial language in an email reflects a very casual and relaxed attitude. May be too much of social media is eating away our minds!