{"id":70214,"date":"2015-08-26T15:04:57","date_gmt":"2015-08-26T15:04:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/insight\/what-does-your-email-sign-off-say-about-you\/"},"modified":"2015-08-26T15:04:57","modified_gmt":"2015-08-26T15:04:57","slug":"what-does-your-email-sign-off-say-about-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/us\/insight\/what-does-your-email-sign-off-say-about-you\/","title":{"rendered":"What does your email sign-off say about you?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s anticipated that by the end of 2017, business email will account for over 132 billion emails sent and received per day. As the medium becomes a more and more important way of communicating, we\u2019re seeing articles like this Forbes piece<\/a> and this Guardian feature<\/a> pop up.
\nLike Forbes points out, most of us (quite literally) develop a signature way of doing things. For example, I tend to start with \u2018Hi [Joe]\u2019 and end with \u2018Best wishes\u2019, or maybe \u2018Many thanks\u2019 if it\u2019s relevant. \u2018Thanks so much\u2019 or \u2018Kindest regards\u2019 creep in every now and again too.
\nThe Forbes article lists \u2018Best\u2019 as the safest and most recommended sign off. But a recent Bloomberg report<\/a> suggested that although it\u2019s a safe bet, it\u2019s also \u201ccompletely and unnecessarily ubiquitous\u201d. An email etiquette consultant even labelled it \u201ccharmless, pallid, impersonal or abrupt\u201d. While that\u2019s a rather strong critique, there\u2019s certainly a point there. Best what exactly? Is it really worth writing at all?
\nThat same Bloomberg report suggests that actually email sign-offs just aren\u2019t necessary \u2013 as email becomes the standard way of doing things, it has become a tool for continuous conversation, just like WhatsApp or iMessage, so constantly signing off is perhaps redundant.
\nHowever, I\u2019d argue it\u2019s definitely a case of different sign offs for different purposes. Here are our top suggestions for some of those classic email scenarios:
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Kindest regards\u2019 – a trusty, mid-formal sign off for your first email conversation.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Many thanks\u2019 or \u2018Thank you\u2019 \u2013 simple, clear and meaningful. Great when someone has been of some support\/help.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Thanks so much\u2019 \u2013 a solid option for when someone has\/is going to put time and effort into something for you.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Hope this helps\u2019 \u2013 a good one when it\u2019s you doing the helping.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u2018All the best\u2019 \u2013 use this when the conversation has come to its natural close.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Regards\u2019 \u2013 Quite formal, and useful when you want to ensure you sound professional and authoritative.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Your name only \u2013 good when emailing frequently\/conversation is ongoing.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Your initial only \u2013 concise and quick, this is a good one for conversational internal emails.
\n 
\nAs you can see, there is no right or wrong answer to the email sign-off conundrum. There will be times where formality is called for and other times when a more relaxed approach will work better. The key is to know when. <\/strong>
\nAnd for those email sign offs that really grate on people; why not consider these quirky alternatives:
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Sent from my iPhone = Sent by magic.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Sent from my mobile please ignore any typos = I can\u2019t spell. Sorry.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Follow me on Twitter @joebloggs123 = I\u2019m desperate for followers.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cheers = Let\u2019s go for a pint.
\n\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Please consider the environment before printing = Make sure you plant a replacement tree in the office if you print this off.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s anticipated that by the end of 2017, business email will account for over 132 billion emails sent and received per day. As the medium becomes a more and more important way of communicating, we\u2019re seeing articles like this Forbes piece and this Guardian feature pop up. Like Forbes points out, most of us (quite […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[314,448],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-70214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-copywriting-us","category-digital-copywriting-us"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat does your email sign-off say about you? - Stratton Craig - Global Copywriting & Content Strategy Agency<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/us\/insight\/what-does-your-email-sign-off-say-about-you\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What does your email sign-off say about you? - Stratton Craig - Global Copywriting & Content Strategy Agency\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It\u2019s anticipated that by the end of 2017, business email will account for over 132 billion emails sent and received per day. 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