How to Write a Follow-up Email: A Complete Guide

The writing of a follow up email may at times be very important to the life cycle of a business relationship, contract negotiations or just doing business or assignment. Whether you’re writing an email follow-up afterward, an interview, sales meeting, or a networking event, an effective email will help keep you fresh on the recipient’s mind and help move things forward. You can Read this guide here

What is a follow-up email?

A follow-up email is a message that is sent at some later date than the previous conversation, after for example a meeting, an interview, or an email conversation. Its reason is to refresh the client’s memory, ask for progress, or to continue further the discussion held previously. This creates the understanding to the recipient of what they previously talked about with you, hence creating the background of the email.

 How long should a follow-up email be?

The content of a follow-up email should not be protracted in the least. Do not write long paragraphs, however the main point must be captured. This should range from 3-4 small paragraphs. Do not take too much of the recipient’s time by being brief but also make sure that you give all the necessary information.  So, if you want to be specific about what you want, be sure to stay polite and wait because people might be occupied.

Should I follow up if I didn’t get a response after my first email?

In fact, it is okay to write a follow-up message if you did not receive a response to your initial message. The idea is to provide the recipient with some time to respond (generally 3-5 days) and then it is correct to send a follow up message in prosthetic. This makes the conversation alive and you show that you have not expired in your interest towards the conversation. Your follow up email must start with politeness and an acknowledgement that you owe the recipient a follow-up. This warms up the lead and ensures the recipient remembers your previous conversation when they read the email.

Steps to Writing a Successful Follow-up Email

The Subject Line is the first thing that a recipient will see, so it is properly done for them to have good initial impression towards the mail. Do not generate general headings orstates and make sure to state specifically why you are writing a follow-up. The first thing in writing an email is to always start with a business like greeting. If you’ve communicated before, you could write something more directly related to yourself, but do so with courtesy.

Conclusion

A follow-up email is the crucial instrument for keeping the conversation going when it is impossible to talk at the moment and important issues are to be solved. In this brief and informative guide, you’ll learn how to write an awesome follow-up email to a job interview, a meeting, or a sales call, among others. If you want to know more about this, then Read this guide here.