Avoid These Three Common Mistakes When Emailing Employers

I hear it all the time.  “I’ve emailed many employers responding to jobs for which I’m qualified, by I never hear back from them.  What can I do?”  This is a common problem.  It’s true that some employers are just rude and don’t acknowledge emails.  On the other hand, you could be making some common mistakes that result in no response from employers.

My friend Daniela McVicker has some great tips on how to avoid response killing email mistakes.  Check out what she has to say…

Are you on the job hunt? Have you found your potential employers and about to email them?

Wait a minute!

As excited as you are right now, you still need to write an email that will impress your employer and get you the job. And did you know that even a small mistake can cost you this opportunity?

One of the 50 most widespread reasons why employers reject job applicants is the inability to express oneself, either verbally or through an email. Email is not just a channel for quick communication. It can say a lot about you, that’s why it’s important to pay attention when you’re emailing your potential employer.

If you want to make sure that you create the right image of yourself, also make sure that you don’t make these common mistakes when emailing a potential employer.

1. Misleading Email Subject

Your potential employer does not have time to read emails that start with ambiguous misleading email subjects. Employers do not like intrusive emails that don’t convey the purpose of the message in short. Thus, such emails are frequently sent to “Spam”.

What should you do? Experts from Business Insider offer the following advice:

• Keep the subject line short: maximum 35 characters is just enough to convey the purpose of your email;
• Begin with the most important words: put the position you’re applying for first and then add the words “job offer” to make clear what you’re looking for;
• Put your name in the subject line: there’s a number of people who’re probably applying for the same position as you are. So to make it easier for your potential employer to find your email, put your name in the subject line.

So, don’t make the first mistake: don’t turn your email into a clickbait.

2. Inappropriate tone of the email

If you want to land the job of your dreams, you need to understand that choosing the right tone for your job landing email will define whether you’re serious about your inquiry or not.

Inappropriate tone includes making various mistakes, from addressing your potential employer in the wrong way to using words that don’t fit into the context of your email. Some applicants make mistakes by adding emojis to their emails. Renato Libric from Bouxtie Inc. says that once there is an emoji in an email, he immediately marks it as Spam: “Emojis are for friends, not professional relationships.”

Here are a few tips on how to improve the tone of your email:

• “To whom it may concern” is not an appropriate way of addressing the recipient of the email, as it shows a complete lack of initiative on your side. So take some time and find out who you’re contacting if the name wasn’t mentioned in the references.
• Don’t be too personal when writing an email. Getting this job might be an exciting and world-changing opportunity for you, but don’t be too emotional when you email a potential employer. You’ll get enough opportunities to build a personal relationship with your employer when you get hired.
• Watch your language, meaning that there’s no place for grammatical, spelling or punctuation mistakes when you email your potential employer. They are not acceptable in business communication in general. Use grammar check online tools like Grammarly or Hemingway App to correct possible mistakes in your emails.

When creating an email to your potential employer, you should remember that you’re contacting a complete stranger, who might not enjoy your attempts to sound too friendly. You might have your best intention at heart but this is still business communication. So keep it strictly professional if you want your email to be taken into account.

3. Even Small Blemishes Kill Your Reputation

If you think that your email to your potential employer looks fine enough, think again. There might still be some blemishes that are hidden from your sight but if they get noticed, it will be hard to repair your reputation.  Plagiarism can be a big problem.  You might want to use an online plagiarism checker to be sure that you’re not creating any problems for yourself.

What are the most common mistakes that rarely get noticed?

• Misspelling the company name or the name of your potential employer: being careless is not an option if you want to get a job or at least to get noticed. Carefully check the name of the company and the name of the recipient before pressing “Send”.
• Not structuring your email properly: to express the main point of your email you have maximum 5-7 sentences. Of course, all applicants want to describe themselves as vastly as possible. But your potential employer is busy enough to read your essay, so it will probably get deleted. That’s why try to structure your email properly and put your main point into a few sentences.
• Make sure that you include all references if necessary. If you have recommendations, you can also put the person who recommended you in the copy. Make sure that you don’t miss any detail, as they are all important for the final decision whether to offer you a job or not.

Applicants make a very rude mistake by having the same template for all potential employers. Writing an email to your potential employer isn’t a very time-consuming job, so try to be original and at least paraphrase some parts of your email. When it comes to job emails, each detail counts. So be particularly attentive, as you can miss a perfect opportunity to get a job of your dreams.

Be Attentive!

When you’re on a job hunt, you send so many inquiries every day that it gets hard to focus. But through an email to your potential employer you create your image, so even the smallest mistake can damage your good reputation. Look out for the mistakes we mentioned. Hopefully, they’ll help you land the job you’ve always wanted.

Daniela McVicker is a career coach and an editor at Top Writers Review. She’s also a business communication coach, helping future job applicants to write business emails to help them achieve success on their career paths.