Your written correspondence is often the only impression a client has of your organisation. These are the errors we see most often — and the fixes.
Most professionals write dozens of emails a day and receive almost no feedback on them. The result is that small habits harden into a professional signature — for better or worse.
1. Burying the request
If the reader has to reach the fourth paragraph to learn what you want, you have made your problem into their problem. State the ask early, then supply the context.
2. A subject line that says nothing
“Follow up” and “Quick question” tell the reader nothing and make the message impossible to find later. Write the subject line the way you would write a headline.
3. Writing while annoyed
Tone is the hardest thing to control in writing, because the reader supplies their own. A sentence that felt neutral when you wrote it can read as curt on arrival. When the subject is sensitive, consider whether a phone call would serve better.
4. Copying people as a weapon
Adding a senior name to the copy line to apply pressure is noticed, and it is remembered. Copy people who need the information, not people whose presence you want felt.
5. Skipping the read-back
One pass before sending catches most errors. Read it as though you were the recipient, on a bad day, in a hurry.
None of these are complicated. They are simply habits — and habits respond well to deliberate practice.