How to create a better office environment with furniture, supplies, and products

There are lots of ways you can improve office emails. Eventually we’ll look at more ways to improve office emails but today we’ll look at a basic web writing rule.

When using email to communicate the best advice is to “write like you talk.” While many English, psychology, and sociology teachers do not agree (I’ve found) most instructors who teach web course will say that writing like you talk is best for web writing – including websites, emails, and company blogs. I love writing how I talk as easily noted by my weird insertions of words like “fly, lame, and cool beans” but some people have trouble doing this.

Tips for writing like you talk:

One way to easily figure out if you are sending emails that read clean and easy is to read them out loud. I don’t mean out loud in your head. Use that voice. Your ears will be able to tell in most cases if you are indeed writing how you talk or writing like a computer animated robot. Co-workers like the real you better.

Another way to write like you talk is to skip the old thesaurus. Watch this:

Hey Joe, I noticed that our shipment arrived late yesterday. Could you please check with Sue and see what happened?

There, nice simple just like I talk. If I use a thesaurus I could sound better though.  

Salutations Joe, I’m presently aware of the quandary that our shipment reached its destination on a belated timeframe yesterday. Is there a high probability you could converse with Sue and establish what came to pass?

Holy! That is a confusing (and long) question. Not to mention it sounds fake. Most of us do not talk like this. 

Yes I have gotten emails from thesaurus happy individuals and it’s super annoying and unnecessary. One bad thing about using the thesaurus is that the words, while not entirely incorrect, do sometimes end up out of context.

In the first sentence the sender is making a simple request of Joe. In the second it could be a request but it also might be a question. A large benefit of sending easy to read emails is that people will understand you better and tasks will get accomplished quicker.

Writing like you talk also includes eliminating jargon words specific to your business, using shorter words when possible (eat not consume), and being as polite as you would be if you were talking to someone face to face.

Lastly writing like you talk means none of this; BYOB, SOS, IMO, ROTFL, TDR, DMIL, etc. The last one you can use. NO ONE should talk like this and I've seriously spent 30 minutes trying to hunt down obscure ones in emails sent to me. That makes me mad. Just don't do it. It'll take you about three extra seconds to simply type the word.  

Writing emails that read like you talk can save time, save other's sanity, and make you seem more approachable. Why not give it a try.