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Tip 34: Include Contact Info

I have gotten two emails from Melinda at Wright State University, who wants to interview me as a business writer. I would love to be interviewed, and I have responded to her email. But based on her second email in which she asks me once again to agree to an interview, I can tell she did not get my first response. With another day having passed, it is clear that she hasn’t gotten my second response either.

I should just phone Melinda and let her know my replies must be caught in her spam filter. Unfortunately, she has not provided a phone number in her emails. All I can do is respond by email and hope a message gets through.

Email Tip 34: Include contact information in your message and on attachments. Include phone numbers, physical locations, mailing addresses–whatever your reader may need to contact you or others.

Why Tip 34?  I am pleased to announce that I have published 110 Tips for Sending Email That Gets Read–and Gets Results. These are practical tips I gathered in classes from employees and managers at companies such as Weyerhaeuser, REI, Microsoft, and Russell Investment Group.

I hope Melinda will read this entry and send me her phone number. I would like to talk with her about business writing.

Lynn

 

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By Lynn Gaertner-Johnston

Lynn Gaertner-Johnston has helped thousands of employees and managers improve their business writing skills and confidence through her company, Syntax Training. In her corporate training career of more than 20 years, she has worked with executives, engineers, scientists, sales staff, and many other professionals, helping them get their messages across with clarity and tact.

A gifted teacher, Lynn has led writing classes at more than 100 companies and organizations such as MasterCard, Microsoft, Boeing, Nintendo, REI, AARP, Ledcor, and Kaiser Permanente. Near her home in Seattle, Washington, she has taught managerial communications in the MBA programs of the University of Washington and UW Bothell. She has created a communications course, Business Writing That Builds Relationships, and provides the curriculum at no cost to college instructors.

A recognized expert in business writing etiquette, Lynn has been quoted in "The Wall Street Journal," "The Atlantic," "Vanity Fair," and other media.

Lynn sharpened her business writing skills at the University of Notre Dame, where she earned a master's degree in communication, and at Bradley University, with a bachelor's degree in English.