Writing in English: Replying to Business & Personal Emails - JenniferESL

There are two basic kinds of messages.

Either you send an initial email, or you reply to one.

Let's take a look at a reply in a work-related situation.

Earlier Vance wrote a message to Evan.

And he asked Evan to confirm a meeting for that following Monday.

Now Evan is replying.

We writes:

Remember to keep the same subject heading on the same thread.

That's a series of replies on one subject.

You can add to it, but changing the subject heading completely can create confusion.

This message is brief and to the point.

The most important information is given immediately.

And yet Evan took the time to be polite.

He wrote an appropriate "thank you" and included a pleasantry.

This message is good to go.

Replying to a business email in some ways is easier than starting a discussion via email.

The first person sets the tone.

So if you're replying to a message, most of the time you can use the same tone that the sender uses.

If they're friendly, you can be friendly.

If they're formal, you can be formal.

Here are some useful expressions you can use in a reply.

Let's take a look at another model.

This one will be slightly less formal.

Here's another message to Evan.

It's about a reference.

Can you predict how Evan will respond?

Let's take a look at the reply.

Evan replies:

What's good about Evan's message?

He used the same subject heading in his reply.

He kept the same friendly tone.

And this message is brief with a clear purpose.

That's all for now. Thanks for watching and happy studies!

Remember to visit www.englishwithjennifer.com for more practice.