Well, most people are not very good at email. Your email can appropriately represent what you want to say and instill in that person the emotions you wish to inspire … or it can instill some other emotions that you don’t wish to inspire, such as confusion or fear or anger or irritation or disbelief.

There is an old saying that etiquette exists so that ladies and gentlemen never insult another person accidentally. That should be your idea with email: if somebody gets offended by your email it should only be because you wanted to offend them.

Here are 10 tips you can put to use right now to help your emails say what you want them to say (and nothing more or less):

1. If you have to be clever, save it for the subject line. A catchy or clever subject line can help your email get opened. Even corporations will let you use a little levity here, but make sure you’re really witty if you try to be witty. Otherwise, be factual. When in doubt, clarity is a good policy.

2. Don’t use cute email names, even in your private accounts, if there is even a remote possibility that anybody from your serious business world will see those accounts. So SmokinHotBabe27 and BugaBoo and CrazyDave are out.

3. We all should know by now that all caps is the online equivalent of shouting. Don’t use all caps. But remember all that fancy stuff (fonts, underlines, colored text, images, sayings, etc.) makes your emails harder to read. Clarity is king in the corporate world. There is nothing wrong with plain text. (As a matter of fact, a lot of big-time marketers are shying away from fancy emails in favor of plain text since plain text gets taken more seriously!)

4. Try to be extra courteous. Say “hello” or “good morning.” Make appropriate wishes (“Happy New Year!” “Aren’t you glad it’s Friday?” or “Hope you survived the launch!”). Ask appropriate questions if they are relevant (“Did you get my report?” or “Have you seen the new logo?”) but only if they are neutral and won’t provoke a visceral or strong reaction. And then make sure you say please, thank you, and other kindnesses (“I appreciate your help!”). Remember, the email has no way to convey your tone of voice, body language, or other things in which we express our friendliness. You have to do it all in words.

5. If you are writing something complicated, make sure you write it in the right order. If a chain of events happened that you need to relate, say A happened, then B, then C. Keep everything brief (when in doubt, be briefer than you think you ought to be).

6. Most emails are written for a reason; keep that in the forefront of your mind as you write. Either you want to convey something (“This confirms that we sent your order today”) or you want to solicit an answer or response. If you are conveying something say it in the first sentence as clearly as you can. If you want a response, ask the question as clearly as you can as the very last thing in the email. And don’t ask more than one question. Most people who respond to an email respond to one question and that question is the very last thing. (Yes, that’s right. Two questions means two emails, at least for most people.)

7. Believe it or not, the simpler your language and tone, the better. Big words are only OK if you are emailing some snooty-cazooty academic type or if those words are part of your business jargon. For most emails, use the simple basic words since big words are more likely to have connotations to them that can twist your meaning and intention. For instance, if you need a response quickly, say, “Please let me know as soon as you can.” That sounds neutral. But if you said, “I would be most grateful for an expeditious reply” that sounds sort of confusing (promoting the dreaded “huh?” response). And if you say, “An immediate response is required” it sounds sort of pushy. The best words for just saying what you mean (no more, no less) are the simple ones.

8. Edit your email. That’s right, after you write it, re-read it and pretend you are the recipient. Is it clear? Does it make sense? In most cases, you will find it is way too long. You may introduce some tangential information, get things mixed up, or go into unnecessary detail. If you re-read your email and wind up discarding about 25% of what you wrote on the first pass, you’re about right.

9. Never ever put anything in email that you would not want read aloud in a court case. Never put anything in an email that you would not want all people involved (even if they’re not recipients) to read. This means that if you think Bob is a knucklehead, you should avoid putting that in your email. Emails have the possibility to pop up at the most inconvenient times so you don’t want to leave a written record behind. (If you must say troublesome things, pick up the phone or have a private closed-door meeting.)

10. Send the email to the right people. Check it at least twice. This has gotten more people into trouble than any other email problem. Ever written, “Bob is a knucklehead” and then sent it to Bob? This is an error you can easily avoid if you follow our tips 9 and 10. Furthermore, you should make sure you send your email to the right folks. If you’re sending it to a special committee or launch team, make sure all of the key members receive the notice. Being excluded on an email list can make people paranoid, crazy, irritated, or sad. If you are not sure who should receive an email, you can sometimes get by in sending to it one key person with the note, “You’re the only person receiving this email; please forward it as you see fit.”

These tips may sound obvious–and they are, perhaps–but how many mis-fired emails do you see in the business world? A few simple tips can help your emails be more effective.

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