#24523
Power Emails: How to Write Them
Most emails have lousy subject lines, are too wordy, and probably are deleted unread, read but not responded to, or filtered out as spam. Learn how to avoid these fates by composing Power Emails that are legal, ethical, and effective.
Streight, Steven. Blogger.com (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Rhetoric
#13560
Email is a powerful way to reach customers, but overdoing it is risky. Let users know up front that you'll respect their mailboxes. Otherwise, they won't give their email addresses, and you'll lose a unique channel for marketing and customer service.
Nielsen, Jakob. Alertbox (2002). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#30380
A Theoretical Approach to Using Electronic Mail or Why Doesn't Anyone Respond to My E-Mail 
The features of time, place, speaker, and audience define the situational context of any communication--face-to-face, paper-based, or electronic. However, they are significantly altered in electronic communication. If participants in electronic communications do not recognize how these features are altered they may not be able to use their electronic mail effectively.
Goubil-Gambrell, Patricia and Rockie Beaman. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#12939
Understanding Business Communication Copyright Laws 
For some reason, there is a common misconception that correspondence and other forms of communication are not subject to protection by U.S. copyright laws; however, generally, that is not true. The U.S. Copyright Act states that protection exists 'in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.' Therefore, letters typically are protected by copyright law.
Isenberg, Doug. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Intellectual Property>Correspondence>Business Communication
#29149
The Use of Pathos in Charity Letters: Some Notes Toward a Theory and Analysis 
Americans contribute $240 billion dollars to charities each year, raised in part by writing letters to potential donors. While it is debatable what the reasons are for donors to give so much money, most donors seem to be moved to contribute by pathos, particularly pity. The concept of pathos as a rhetorical appeal has become more complex over the years, growing from a simple strategy to a complicated set of parameters requiring careful delineation. Beginning with the Greeks, particularly Aristotle, pathos was defined with greater clarity (especially the concept of enargia), with Aristotle's formal definitions of the emotions, and with the use of an image upon which to direct the audience's pity. Cicero adds to the theory by calling for the use of pathos in the peroration and reinforcing Aristotle's emphasis on careful audience analysis. St. Augustine and those who follow, including Renaissance, 18thcentury rhetoricians, and 20th-century scholars like Kenneth Burke, argue that style can also be an effective persuasive strategy for a pathetic appeal. Accordingly, the charity letters examined illustrate not only Aristotle's and Cicero's tenets but also show that elements of style, particularly rhetorical figures and schemes, are common rhetorical strategies used in these charity letters. While at first the rhetoric of charity letters seems simple and straightforward, to raise billions of dollars every year charity letters use sophisticated appeals to pity that have a long and interesting history.
Myers, Marshall. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Rhetoric
#31551
Using E-mail To Make Your Pitch
Gone are the days when you called a reporter, mailed a letter or sent a fax and expected to get a callback. These days, more reporters than ever are relying on e-mail to review news pitches or story ideas. Pitching by e-mail is sometimes more difficult than sending a pitch letter by standard mail or calling a reporter on the telephone, because with more and more e-mail being sent these days, yours needs to stand out from the rest. Here are tips on how to make your pitch stand out in the maze of e-mail communications that reporters, and other media contacts, receive each day.
Lee, Terry and Rich Brant. Communication World Bulletin (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#24548
Walking a Fine Line: Writing Negative Letters in an Insurance Company
This limited case study examines the situated-language practices associated with the production of negative letters in an insurance company. Using genre and sociocultural theories, the study combines textual analyses of a set of negative letters together with writers' accounts of producing these letters to identify effective (as defined by the company) strategies for composing this correspondence. These letters are examples of generic action, and they demonstrate that genres function as constellations of regulated, improvisational strategies triggered by the interaction between individual socialization and an organization. Moreover, these constellations of resources express a particular chronotopic relation to space and time, and this relation is always axiological or value oriented. In other words, genres express space/time relations that reflect current social beliefs regarding the placement and actions of human individuals in space and time. The article identifies some of the strategies that characterize effective negative messages in this organization. It also critiques this text type for enacting a set of practices and related chronotopic orientation that is against the interests of its readers and writers.
Schryer, Catherine F. Journal of Business and Technical Communication (2000). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence
#28843
Where is Email 2.0? And Why is Commercial Email So Boring?
I don't recall the last time I received a commercial email that made me take notice or smile.
Usborne, Nick. Excess Voice (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#28832
Why "Best Buddy" Emails Work So Well. Sometimes.
The best buddy approach works within specific product and service sectors, where readers can easily be tripped into a state of dissociation...because they have problems that the writer promises to solve.
Usborne, Nick. Excess Voice (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#23163
If the average business letter starts poorly, then it invariably finishes poorly. Your closing paragraph should bring your letter to a polite, businesslike close. Typical final paragraphs in business letters invite the reader to write again or use overused and meaningless phrases that detract from the impact of the letter.
Newman, Judith M. LupinWorks. Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Rhetoric
#23162
Writing a Strong Opening to Your Business Letter
Your first job in writing any letter is to gain your reader's attention. It's an important principle of effective writing to put the most important information first. Your opening paragraph is both the headline and the lead for the message that follows in the rest of the letter.
Business Letter Writing. Articles>Writing>Correspondence>Business Communication
#19620
Writing Effective E-Mail: Top 10 Tips
The informal e-mails you exchange with your friends don't have to meet any particular standards, but if you want to be taken seriously by professionals, you should learn proper e-mail etiquette.
Bauer, Jessica and Dennis G. Jerz. Seton Hill University (2000). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#13049
Writing Effective E-Mail: Top 10 Tips
This document offers 10 tips to help you write effective professional e-mails. The informal e-mails you exchange with your friends don't have to meet any particular standards, of course, but if you want to be taken seriously by people who use e-mail frequently, you should know e-mail etiquette.
Bauer, Jessica. University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (2001). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#26003
Always start by putting your main message up front. Some people feel that bad news should be buried. But research shows that readers will always look for the bottom line.
PlainLanguage.gov (1995). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Minimalism
#23161
Writing Powerful Headings for Your Business Letters
Can you imagine reading a newspaper or magazine without any headlines or headings? Headlines and headings help us find our way around, decide what to read, signal what's coming next and highlight key points.
Business Letter Writing. Articles>Writing>Correspondence>Business Communication
#23160
Writing your Business Plan in Plain English
Plain English is clear English. It is simple and direct but not simplistic or patronising. Using plain English doesn’t mean everyone's writing must sound the same. There is no one ‘right’ way to express an idea. There's plenty of room for your own style—but it will only blossom once you have got rid of the poor writing habits that are typical of most business writing.
Business Letter Writing. Articles>Writing>Correspondence>Business Communication
#32371
This handout will help you solve your memo-writing problems by discussing what a memo is, describing the parts of memos, and providing examples and explanations that will make your memos more effective.
Purdue University (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Genre
#33407
One of the most fundamental tools used in any form of e-business is email, but most of us don't really think about it - we just use it out of habit, not with any real plan. And as business becomes ever busier it's easy to become inundated with email and fall so far behind that it becomes useless and customers get frustrated with lack of responsiveness.
Oxer, Jonathan. Internet Vision Technologies (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#34447
Is Your Email Businesslike — or Brusque?
Anyone whose ever been part of an online "flame war" has had the experience of a tiny "e-mole" becoming a mountain. Studies have shown that readers add (or invent) emotional bias that is often counter to your intent as the sender. In this case, all of the niceties you thought you were writing ended up sounding very different in the mind of your employee.
Silverman, David. Harvard University (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#34560
Learning about writing for the web has made me a better email communicator and project manager. Email would be much more effective if content was broken out in easy-to-understand sections with a clear guide for next steps at the end.
Johnson, Beth. Brain Traffic (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#35135
Although extensive research has been done on teaching emails and on the use of emails in organisations, little research exists about how to incorporate organizational practitioners' views as the voices of the community of social practice. To remedy this pedagogical gap, this article uses a genre approach to discuss organizational practitioners' views on the use of email in organizational settings. It also develops seven teaching and learning stages for situated learning and teaching in business communication based upon the presented study findings.
Zhu, Yunxia and Catherine White. Business Communication Quarterly (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
