I read a post recently over at Passive Panda entitled How to email important people (5 tips you need to know). Sometimes I email important people so I appreciated the tips.
Photo by Sean MacEntee.
I don't consider myself an important person (except to my family because let's be real, how would they eat?) and I don't get "hundreds or thousands of emails" each day, but still, I get about 50 emails a day and that's quite a few for me.
I got to thinking about the emails that land in my inbox and what I tend to respond to and what I don't respond to. There are five things that make me more likely to respond.
1. Be super brief
When I open an email that is paragraphs long, I feel overwhelmed. I try to sail through my emails as fast as humanly possible which puts me in sprinting mode. A loooong email makes me feel like I'm grinding into marathon mode. When that happens, I tend to resent it and then I delete. I'm not saying that's good, I'm just sayin'.
2. Cut to the chase
A lot of emails I get provide a lot of background. I understand this tendency because I am the QUEEN OF GIVING TOO MUCH BACKGROUND. I'm trying to work on this though, because when I read emails, I really prefer only the essential background details. If I need more background, I can ask.
3. Use numbered lists
I like numbered lists, as in, if you have 3 questions for me, I'd much rather they be clearly identified by a "1. 2. 3." instead of being buried in a lot of text. I don't do so well with questions buried in text. I tend to miss them. That leads me to…
4. Tell me what you want
Sometimes I get emails and by the time I get to the end, I have no idea what the sender wants from me. Do they want advice? Do they want me to check out their site? Are they just sending encouragement? Are they telling me in a not-so-direct way that they don't like my post? I know it's crazy, but this makes it really challenging to know how to respond. 
5. Make it easy for me to answer
If I can answer an email with a quick "Yes!" or "No." or "I wrote about that here…" or "Thank you for your note!" or "That looks great to me!" or "I'd go with Option A over Option B." or something similar, I usually respond. But if you pose a very open-ended question, I often would like to answer but simply don't have time.
Mostly because I probably have to go make dinner.
You know, because there are 5 people around here that think I'm important that way. 
FURTHER READING: All my email management tips.
What about you? Got any more email pet peeves or helpful tips?
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Excellent list! I especially like #2 and #4…probably because those are the ones I'm horrible at following.
Thanks so much for the fabulous tips!
Add to sorting through the legitimate emails you so often get spam emails… if only more people would abide by these!
Great list. #2 is my big issue since i hate receiving unclear emails i tend to cover all my bases.
Wonderful list! I'm awful with putting in too much backstory.
Oh, and I went and read your other e-mail tips and, thanks to your suggestions, now have only one e-mail in my inbox. The rest, which I didn't need/had already taken care, are safely archived. It feels SO good. Thank you, thank you!
Sage advice! I would also add that when I email, I state what may be the best option/idea and ask if they agree or not. Usually, I will say, something like, "if not, then what time/option would be best for you?" Of course, that pertains mostly to coordinating times and/or joint ventures…
This tends to elicit a response faster than constant back and forth, which can potentially take several emails over several days. Do you use this technique? If not, what other technique can you recommend to cut down on multiple back and forth emails? {see, totally just utilized that device..hahaha!}
Great suggestion, Gwen! Thanks.
Some of the emails are quite legitimate and we might want to help them out. But majority of them are spam. Webmasters can easily know which of them are spam by looking at the way the call for action is communicated. I guess we start recognizing them once we have seen a sufficient number of emails.
Thank you, Amy. Excellent points. I like the brief part a lot.
Great advice.
Backstory is such a time-waster. Brings to mind something Rush said a long time: "Before you open your mouth to speak, asks yourself one question: will anyone care?"
Love lists – glad to know they are helpful and not too abrupt.
I mean "Rush said a long time AGO!!"
I think you're important!
In fact, around here you're just known as "Amy." If I say Amy, my husband knows exactly who I'm talking about. Ha!
You are crackin' me up. I'm so glad to hang out with you!!
great tips! duly noted. thanks, girl.