“You have absolutely no idea who I am, and I have absolutely no idea how to start this email.”

You wouldn’t begin writing an email this way, right? Unfortunately, some business professionals pour a ton of effort into writing compelling email subject lines that get their emails opened, but drop the ball once they get to the body by:

• being too casual or formal;
• being too cheery or disingenuous;
• offending the recipient.

If you want to appear confident, sincere and likeable in your emails – and convince recipients to take a desired action – steer clear of these opening lines that make you look clueless:

“Hey there”

This opener may be fine for personal emails or emails to coworkers, but steer clear of it if you’re writing to someone you’ve never met. It’s too casual, and it sounds like you’re trying to gloss over the fact that you don’t know the recipient’s name (believe us, your recipient will notice).

“To whom it may concern”

It’s cold. It’s impersonal. And your reader will likely think, Alright, this doesn’t concern me, so there’s no need to read further.

“Dear Sir or Madam” or “Dear [job title]”

Nothing screams “I don’t know who you are!” quite like these greetings. If you’re not convinced, consider how likely you’d be to read an email from a stranger that started one of these ways.

“You don’t know me but”

You may be a stranger, but there’s no need to emphasize that fact; it only puts more distance between you and your recipient. In most cases, you can eliminate this opener entirely and just get to the point: “You don’t know me but I’d like to invite you to our business mixer on July 17^th.”

Want a better alternative?

If you’re writing a business email to someone you don’t know well (or at all), keep it simple! A variation of “Hi [first name],” is usually your best bet. It’s friendly, innocuous, straightforward and sincere. And if the situation dictates a bit more formality, you can always use the person’s last name.

Looking for more tips for writing effective business emails?

Check out these earlier posts:

Secrets to Writing Clear and Effective Emails

Writing Email Subject Lines? Here’s What NOT to Do

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