How to Format an Email

Parts of an Email

1. Subject
   • Short title summarizing the email content.
2. Salutation
   • Greeting to the recipient.
3. Body
   • Main message of the email.
4. Closing
   • Goodbye line.
5. Electronic Signature
   • Your first and last name.
6. Optional Signature Block
   • Additional contact information.

Capitalization Rules

Subject

• Capitalize like a book title:
  • First word, Last word, and Important words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs).
  • Important words examples:
    • People: teacher, boy, parent.
    • Places: school, city, library.
    • Things: book, homework, idea.
    • Actions: run, ask, meet, help.
    • Adjectives: sick, easy, great.
    • Adverbs: not, very, always.
  • Not important words: articles, conjunctions, or prepositions (3 letters or shorter):
    • Examples: and, but, by, for, or, in, if, out, of, off, so, on, a, an, the.

Salutation

• Capitalize the first word plus all nouns.
• Examples:
  • Formal:
    • Dear Hiring Manager:
    • Dear Professor Smith:
    • Dear Board of Directors:
  • Informal:
    • Dear Mom and Dad,
    • Dear Sofia,

Punctuation in Salutations

• Formal: Use a colon (:) after the salutation.
  • Situations: job applications, emails to leaders or higher positions.
• Informal: Use a comma (,) after the salutation.
  • Situations: friends, family, people seen daily, teachers/professors (depending on culture/relationship).

Closing

• Capitalize only the first word.
• Examples:
  • Best regards,
  • Sincerely,
  • Thank you,
  • Best,
  • Yours truly,
  • Respectfully,

Spaces and Empty Lines

• Empty line after salutation.
• Empty lines between paragraphs.
• Empty line before closing.
• Empty line after closing.
• No empty line or comma after electronic signature.

Optional Signature Block

• Contains contact information and additional professional details.
• Examples:
  • Example 1: Name, email, website, YouTube channel.
  • Example 2: Name, phone number, position/job, company, mailing address (use comma after job).
  • Example 3: Name, phone number, position/job, company on different lines.
  • Example 4: Name, phone number, position (student), university.

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