Email Basics
Email (short for electronic mail) is a virtual version of regular mail. It lets you send messages to other people in a split second. Email has countless uses, from getting in touch with a friend to contacting a business. It is important to have if you’re applying for a job, training program, scholarship, or any other program.
How to Set Up Your Account
You’ll need to set up an email account and address before you can use it. Start by choosing an email service. You could use a free service like Google’s Gmail or Microsoft’s Outlook.com. On the other hand, if you have Internet at home, your provider may offer email service. Here are some free email service options1:
Next, you’ll need to set up an email address and a password for your account. Just remember to keep both of them safe, especially your password, so no one else can access your account!
No matter what email service you use, you will have the option to fill out a personal profile. This profile contains personal information like your name, email address, picture, and phone number. This is what people will see when they look you up to add as a contact, so it’s important that you fill it out.
Speaking of which, you should definitely add some contacts! Every email service has some kind of contact list where you can add people.
Choosing an Address
Choosing an email address is more important than most people think. After all, once you’ve picked an address, you can’t change it. An example of a professional email address would be jsmith@gmail.com. This is a good example for John Smith, using his first initial and last name. Now, let’s go over what you shouldn’t do when you pick an address:
- Do not use inappropriate words in your email address. This will reflect badly on you.
- Never put personal information in your address, like your birth date or any ID number.
- Fight the urge to be silly in your email address. It can break the professional image you’re trying to build for yourself when you apply for a job. It is not likely that many recruiters are going to take a person seriously if their address is crazyjohn@gmail.com or butterflygirl1994@yahoo.com.
Basic Sections of an Email
Since email is a virtual version of “snail mail,” it is more formal than texting or instant messaging. When you write an email, treat it as a letter. This means you should include the parts of a basic letter:
- Greeting (Dear [name]…)
- Body
- Closing (Sincerely, or Thank you, [your name])
However, emails have a few other parts you should include.
- “To” line: If you don’t fill this out, no one will get the email. You can type your recipient’s address in manually or add them from your contact list.
- Subject line: This tells the recipient what the email is about. This can’t be stressed more – always fill out the subject line. If you send an email with no subject, it can make you look lazy or careless.
Attachments
You can also attach a file to your email if you want the recipient to have it. For example, you may attach your resume if you’re applying for a job.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind:
- Make sure attachments are named. This way, the person receiving the email knows what it is before they open it.
- When naming files, follow the same rules as the ones for email addresses. Like picking an email address, don’t be silly in your file names or include personal information.
- Attachments are a popular way to spread viruses. Never open an attachment from someone you don’t know or trust.
Signatures
Some mail services and programs let you set up a signature. If you do this, every message you send will have the signature at the bottom.
You can put anything in your signature, but depending on who you are emailing you may want to be careful with what information you are sharing. In professional emails, it should include some of your contact information, but you don’t want to share too much. A professional signature can include your:
- Full name
- Phone number
- Alternate email address (if you have one)
Other Tips
Here are some DOs for writing email:
- Try to check your email every day. It’s a good habit to get into and you want to check often if you are applying for jobs, scholarships, or anything else that you would get an email about.
- Use proper spelling and grammar. An email might be the first impression a hiring manager gets of you and you want to have a positive impression.
- Proofread your emails. Spelling and grammar mistakes should not be made.
- Attach files before you start writing. It’s surprisingly easy to forget an attachment.
- Be polite.
- Keep your messages short. Most people don’t want to read a wall of text.
- Think before you send! Once you’ve said it, you can’t un-say it, especially online.
And here are some DON’Ts.
- Do not use slang or text-speak.
- Do not use ALL CAPS. To many people, reading all caps is like being shouted at and can be considered rude.
- Do not forget about the Cc and Bcc boxes. “Cc” stands for “carbon copy,” and you can use it to let people know about an email without making them direct recipients. “Bcc” means “blind carbon copy.” People in the Bcc box don’t appear to the recipient. So, use Bcc when you don’t want the recipient to know who else got the email.
- Do not attach anything without mentioning it in the email.
- Do not attach huge files. They can take a long time to download, and could be difficult for the recipient to access.
- Do not send extremely sensitive information. Contact information is fine in professional emails. However, avoid sending things like your bank or credit card information or your Social Security Number.
Extra Resources:
1 - https://www.lifewire.com/best-free-email-accounts-1356641
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