A short request email in four parts
At this level, a request email has four parts, each with one job. Ask for one document per email; it is easier to answer. Put the opening, the message and the closing on separate lines, with your name under the closing.
- Opening: “Dear Ms Cole,” or, for a colleague you know, “Dear Owen,”
- Reason: “I’m writing about Friday’s office visit.”
- Request: “Can you please send the floor plan?”
- Closing: “Kind regards,” then your name
Formal or friendly: openings and closings
“Dear” + Mr or Ms + surname is formal: “Dear Ms Cole,”, “Dear Mr Hart,”. “Ms” works for any woman, married or not. For a colleague you know, write “Dear Owen,” or, more relaxed, “Hi Owen,”. In a reply, add thanks: “Dear Ms Cole, thank you for your email.”
- “Kind regards,” – polite and safe for almost any work email
- “Best,” – short and friendly, for people you already write to
Asking for a file or sending one
These phrases look alike but do opposite jobs: the first two ask for a document, the last two go with a file attached to your own email. “Please find attached …” in a request sends the reader looking for a missing file.
- Asking: “Please send the price list.”
- Asking: “Can you please send the floor plan?”
- Sending (formal): “Please find attached the invoice.”
- Sending (less formal): “Here is the floor plan.”
Places at work for the reason line
The reason line often names a place: reception, office, warehouse, factory, car park or cafeteria. Say where people are with “we are” and “they are”, and ask with where, what or who.
- “I’m writing about Monday’s visit to the factory.”
- “Where are the visitors?” – “They’re in the cafeteria.”
- “What is behind the office?” – “It’s a big warehouse.”
Making the request on the phone
The request often starts on a call. Below, a caller asks a contact at another company for a floor plan before Friday’s visit. “I’ll send it this afternoon” is only a promise, so a short email afterwards puts the request in writing. Take one role, then swap and change one detail.
Maya Hello Owen, it's Maya. I'm calling about Friday's visit.
Owen Hi Maya. What do you need?
Maya Can you please send the floor plan?
Owen Yes, of course. I can email it today.
Maya Great. My email address is maya at clearpath dot com.
Owen Thanks. I'll send it this afternoon.
Saying an email address out loud
Read an address symbol by symbol: @ is “at”, the full stop is “dot”, - is “dash” (or “hyphen”) and _ is “underscore”. Say it in short groups; if you miss a part, ask “Can you repeat that?”
Maya My email address is maya at clearpath dot com.
Owen My email address is owen underscore hart at north dash dock dot com.
Maya Can you repeat that?
Owen Yes. Owen underscore hart at north dash dock dot com.
Common mistakes
People will understand you, but these stand out:
- “Dear Ms Maya,” Use the surname (“Dear Ms Cole,”) or just “Dear Maya,”.
- “Please find attached …” when you want a file. Ask instead: “Can you please send …?”
- “Send me the floor plan.” Without “please” or a question, it sounds like an order.
- “clearpath point com”. In an address, the full stop is “dot”.
- Mixing up dash (-) and underscore (_): one wrong symbol, and the email does not arrive.
A 10-minute daily practice routine
Use documents from your own job and speak out loud.
- 3 minutes: write a four-part request email to a real contact; you don’t need to send it.
- 2 minutes: say three email addresses: yours, your company’s and a colleague’s.
- 2 minutes: play the address recording, write what you hear and compare.
- 3 minutes: play the call, repeat each line, then take one role and change one detail.
What comes next
Next, practise the other side: answering a request with “Here is …” and attaching the file. Then move on to taking a phone message and checking a number, and to confirming an order by email.