Use the following checklist to ensure that your e-mail reflects your professionalism and increases your credibility within your company:

1. Company e-mail is the appropriate choice for this document. The e-mail, which may reside in your system's memory and be accessible to people other than the intended reader:

• Contains information that pertains only to your job responsibilities or to company-approved functions. You followed company guidelines for using e-mail for personal communications.
  
• Contains no confidential or sensitive information. It could be made public or subpoenaed without embarrassment to your company or you, the writer.
  
• Is not a way of avoiding talking to someone in person or by telephone. Don't let e-mail replace human interaction that builds relationships and allows you to observe or hear people's reactions to what you are saying.
  
• Contains no reprimanding or emotional wording. Constructive criticism is received best in one-to-one, in-person coaching sessions.
  
• Requires immediate response.
  
• Is not information required by the reader for long-term reference.

2. The distribution list is appropriate:

• All those who should receive the information have been copied. For example, you have not relied upon the primary reader to distribute the information to his/her direct reports if you require them to have the information.
  
• Those who do not need to know the information have not been copied.

3. You have respected your reader's time and edited the e-mail for clarity. You:

• Eliminated wordiness; eliminated any "streams of consciousness."
  
• Used short words, sentences, and paragraphs.
  
• Used precise, factual wording.
  
• Translated technical jargon and acronyms as appropriate for the distribution list.
  
• Deleted any unnecessary "document trail."

4. You have used professional presentation, tone, and courtesy. You:

• Used a simple format that will convert well to all computer systems/programs.
  
• Used upper- and lower-case letters rather than all capitals. Upper and lower case letters are easier to read; using all capitals seems like yelling. The rule of thumb is to put no more than eight words in all capitals; you have saved all capitals for emphasis or headings.
  
• Have written the e-mail from your reader's point of view. Your wording is considerate and polite; it is objective and direct without being abrupt.
  
• Used words that are appropriate for a business environment.

5. You have organized the e-mail strategically. You ensured accurate and complete content. You:

• Provided a subject heading and opening purpose statement that predict the document's content.
  
• Anticipated and answered your reader's questions, providing background information when it helps your reader understand your message.
  
• Double-checked the accuracy of facts and figures.
  
• Clearly and explicitly asked for action or described what you will do next.
  

6. You have proofread the e-mail. You:

• Used correct, consistent punctuation.
  
• Used your spell checker and double-checked the spelling of people's names and of company products and services.
  
• Replaced "brief hand" abbreviations such as "w/" and "info" with standard spellings.
  
• Ensured your precise use of all vocabulary, especially of any unfamiliar vocabulary gleaned from your computer's thesaurus.
  
• Checked grammar (especially subject-verb agreement) and usage (for example, commonly confused words such as "there" and "their").
  
• Checked sentence structure (especially to correct any fragments or run-on sentences).