In the 21st century, emails make up an incredibly large chunk of all communications between people in the workplace. Sending and composing emails multiple times a day is now second nature and an unspoken prerequisite to nearly every job you will apply for.
It’s important to be able to effectively communicate your ideas and concerns as well as answering and asking questions when you write an email especially if during the recruitment process.
During this period, a candidate’s email communication skills can make or break the outcome of their application.
As a candidate, you want to showcase your skillset, and if you want to come across as a strong communicator, you will need to pay attention to emails in particular, because a big portion of the correspondence between you and the recruiter will happen via email.
Email etiquette is important.
If this term is new to you, don’t stress. You’re probably aware of the principles already. The term email etiquette refers to a set of certain values that should be upheld when writing or answering emails.
The content as well as the tone of your email will depend on who the recipient is and in the case of the recruitment process, you’ll want to make sure that you come across as professional.
It’s also important to be sound confident when you respond, without seeming arrogant. You can read your emails out loud to hear for yourself how they will sound before hitting send.
Spend some time on your subject line.
This will only take a few extra seconds but will make such a big difference in determining whether your email gets opened or not as well as the kind of response you’ll receive.
Make it easy for the recruiter to see exactly what the email is about and what they can expect from the contents by including a simple, clear-cut subject line.
This will not only help your emails get opened faster but you’re also much more likely to receive a timely response and follow-up messages from the recruiter.
Get the grammar right.
This is actually such a small, yet very big thing that people can easily forget about. Make sure you check the grammar and spelling in your email.
There is nothing more distracting than a bad typo or a basic grammar mistake, and after that it becomes hard to focus on anything else, like the actual content of the email.
Speaking of spelling, make sure that you spell the recipient’s name correctly. For obvious reasons, you want to get this right.
Focus on the language and tone.
Of course, by now you know all about the stress on professionalism but there is also a risk of going overboard.
You want to showcase your abilities without making the recruiter feel like they’re reading a passage from a legal document. Stay true to your own vocabulary. There’s no point in including words both you and the recruiter will need to look up…
Respond in a timely manner and be patient.
The best thing you can do is to respond to all of your professional emails as soon as possible.
It’s important to show that you care, and that the conversation is a priority for you. That’s exactly what you respond quickly. Not only is this respectful but it’s also impressive.
In saying this, your recruiter may not respond as quickly, and the key is not to follow-up every day no matter how tempting it may be. Be patient and wait it out. Now that you’ve responded, you can sit back and breathe.
Paying attention to the little things will make all the difference in how you come across to the recruiter, and you definitely want to be memorable for all the right reasons.
