Emma: Hi Andy! Still there?
Andy: Still here! And glad to be, because this week we have a very special edition of Write Better Emails.
Emma: Over these past few weeks, we’ve all received an onslaught of emails about the coronavirus, from our jobs, from our local governments, from the yoga studios we tried out for a week of free classes back in 2011. Today, we’re going to take a closer look at a few that have hit our and our readers’ inboxes.
Andy: We read through a bunch this week — a big thank you to the readers who sent them our way! Some are great, some are dismal, all are trying really hard to blend need-to-know information with confidence, comfort, a sense of security. It’s a tricky balance that most of us have very little practice pulling off.
Emma: The most applicable experience I’ve had is communicating via email after my team was acquired and we were all either laid off or slotted under a new, unknown manager in an office 3,000 miles away. There was a similar vibe of “Wait, but what does this all mean for me?” that I’ve been feeling since late February, but you know. It also wasn’t a pandemic. This feels different.
Andy: Totally different. The good news is that email communication doesn’t need to change all that much. The same rules still apply. We noticed four straightforward strategies the best coronavirus emails employ to communicate with their readers.
Emma: We present these knowing everything is very hard right now. You are not on the hook to write emails perfectly. But you can certainly write them well. That in and of itself can bring some comfort to your team. It can also give you something to feel good about.
4 Ways to Write Better Emails About COVID-19
1. Just delete any opening paragraph summarizing COVID-19.
You’re burying the real lede: what you have to say that’s specific to your team, your company, and your jobs. The real information is usually either tucked away somewhere in the second or third paragraph, or used as the final parting line.
Here’s a perfect example:
Subject line: ‼️COVID-19 Update‼️
Dear Bike Share Connect rider,
As you are aware, the situation is rapidly evolving with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and the need to prevent the spread in communities around the globe. Our partners, directors, and managers are closely monitoring the situation and working in cooperation with Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and following the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In order to ensure the availability of reliable transportation options through this uncertain time for essential trips outside the home, Bike Share Connect is continuing to operate normal service. For the next month, Pay-as-you-go, Student, Monthly, Bike Share for All, and Annual members can ride free for 90 consecutive minutes at a time per trip with an unlimited number trips per day.
The Bike Share Connect team is currently taking additional steps to sanitize our fleet of bicycles and minimize the spread of COVID-19, including:
● Focused cleaning on high contact points on the bikes, not only at the station but before coming into and out of the warehouse.
● Increased cleaning and sanitization of tools and surfaces in the vehicles and our HQ.
● Strategic scheduling to distance staff from each other.
● Non-essential maintenance staff are working remotely.
In addition, we recommend that our customers strictly follow official public health guidance and frequently wash their hands with soap and water after each ride. If soap and water are not available, use alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol.
We will continue to update you of any changes to service.
Best regards,
Bike Share Connect
Andy: Ditch that intro. We all know it’s a hard time, etc, etc. Equally frustrating: the most important information is buried in the second paragraph.
Emma: At a skim level there’s no way to tell that the Bike Share is a) operating as normal and b) completely free right now. If you desperately feel like you need the info from that first paragraph, pop it at the end as a closing.
Andy: Also, this email has a !!TERRIFYING!! subject line. Why not simply use the main takeaway?
Our edit:
Subject line: Bike Share Connect is free through March 31
Dear Bike Share Connect rider,
Bike Share Connect is continuing to operate normal service. For the next month, all rides are free for 90 consecutive minutes at a time per trip with an unlimited number trips per day, no matter how you typically pay (Pay-as-you-go, Student, Monthly, Bike Share for All, and Annual memberships).
We’re also taking additional steps to sanitize our fleet of bicycles and minimize the spread of COVID-19:
● Focused cleaning on high contact points on the bikes, not only at the station but before coming into and out of the warehouse.
● Increased cleaning and sanitization of tools and surfaces in the vehicles and our HQ.
● Strategic scheduling to distance staff from each other.
● Non-essential maintenance staff are working remotely.
In addition, we recommend that our customers strictly follow official public health guidance and frequently wash their hands with soap and water after each ride. If soap and water are not available, use alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol.
Our partners, directors, and managers are closely monitoring the situation and working in cooperation with Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and following the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to ensure the availability of reliable transportation options through this uncertain time for essential trips outside the home
We will continue to update you of any changes to service.
Best regards,
Bike Share Connect
2. Hard news comes first. Always.
We saw an email this week announcing furloughs in paragraph 8(!) of an 11(!) paragraph email. Very few people are going to make it that far — and for those who do, the bad news feels worse. Tell it to us straight!
Here’s that email, lightly edited for anonymity:
Subject line: COVID-19 Store Update
A MESSAGE FROM BOB & BILLY OF BOB’S T-SHIRTS
We hope you and your families are all staying well. Many of you have expressed concerns about what COVID-19 means for our business and how that will impact you.
During this time of great uncertainty, we’re making decisions to best position Bob’s T-Shirt Brands for our employees, customers and communities. We have a responsibility to protect the health of our people, while also preserving our long-term ability to offer jobs and benefits to all of you. This bears repeating, because the decisions we make are with that in mind.
We are proactively taking steps to strengthen our financial position for the long term to help us navigate through this challenging time. We announced Monday to our shareholders that we’re suspending quarterly cash dividends and share repurchases. As a company, we have also suspended hiring, and we’re targeting further reductions of more than $45 million in operating expenses, capital expenditures and working capital. This includes ongoing efforts to realign inventory to sales trends.
To do our part to help slow the spread of the virus, we will continue to keep all our U.S. and Canada stores closed beyond the original two-week period we announced on March 16 and will extend for at least another week, through April 5. It’s clear the situation is evolving and at this time we don’t know for certain how long our stores will be closed. Our distribution and fulfillment centers, as well as a small team of store fulfillment, will remain open where permitted by local authorities to help us continue serving customers online and through our apps. We appreciate their commitment to serving customers and we are grateful to these employees for their dedication.
There’s no doubt we’re facing a challenging and unprecedented situation that could be potentially devastating to our industry. Bob’s T-Shirts is also affected by the realities of today’s environment. We’re in the business of selling, and our stores, which are nearly 85 percent of our business, are a critical part of that. With stores closed, our online business has become our only method of serving customers.
We are taking action to respond to the challenges we are facing today, while also working to prepare for what the future may hold. The decisions we make will impact our employees, customers, shareholders, brand partners, suppliers and our business. The gravity of that responsibility is very real to us, which is why we are being thorough and deliberate with every decision we make.
Since March 17, we’ve provided ongoing pay and benefits to all Bob T-shirt store employees impacted by our temporary store closures. We’re able to offer our store employees an additional week of pay through April 5, as well as benefits through April.
During this time while our stores are closed, we require a smaller workforce to execute on the critical activities of our business. As a result, we’ve decided to furlough a portion of our corporate employee base for six weeks starting April 5. Our impacted corporate employees who are currently enrolled in our benefits program will continue to receive full benefits.
Our Executive Leadership Group will continue to work through this crisis to support the company and will forgo a part of their salary from April through September. Both of us are declining our salaries from April through October. Similarly, all board members will forgo their cash compensation for a seven-month period.
We realize the significance of this for you and the hardship it will cause for many. This is the most difficult decision we’ve made in our company’s long history, because it impacts the people who matter most — you. This incredibly tough decision enables us to continue providing much needed benefits, including health care, to our people. It means that when life goes back to normal, as we know it eventually will, we can keep providing consistent employment and pay to tens of thousands of people.
We are living in very difficult times and there are many unknowns. What we do know is we have been around for 121 years. Our company has survived wars, a depression, several recessions and natural disasters. The strength of our culture and the loyalty of our customers are what have sustained us through tough times. We can’t predict what’s next, but you have our commitment that we are here to support you and we will get through this.
Bob & Billy
Emma: Well, this is long.
Andy: So long! I’ve read novels shorter than this! And, those novels never told me in the middle that I might have just lost my job. Surprise! Thanks for reading this far.
Emma: There’s a lot about this email that I question — why one mass email to everyone at once? — but I can say I truly feel that Billy and Bob did not want to write this email, or deliver any of this bad news. Their pain and sorrow just radiates out of my computer screen. Yet it’s a disservice to the people they are talking to.
Andy: When you have bad news, it’s best to get in and out without too much disclaiming or buildup or explanation. That’s one of the beauties of written communication. You can draft it all messy, and then simplify it. Add some bullets and headers while you’re at it!
Emma: There is room for emotion, but it has to come at the end. I will maybe allow one line of emotion at the beginning.
Our edit:
Subject line: COVID-19 Store Update
A MESSAGE FROM BOB & BILLY OF BOB’S T-SHIRTS
Today marks the most difficult decision we’ve made in our company’s long history, because it impacts the people who matter most — you.
We have two updates to our strategy to help slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus, and to best position Bob’s T-Shirt Brands for our employees, customers and communities:
● Our U.S. and Canada stores will remain closed through at least April 5, another week beyond the original two-week period we announced on March 16. Our distribution and fulfillment centers, as well as a small team of store fulfillment, will remain open where permitted by local authorities to help us continue serving customers online and through our apps. It’s clear the situation is evolving and at this time we don’t know for certain how long our stores will be closed.
● A portion of our corporate employee base will be furloughed for six weeks starting April 5. Managers will be holding meetings Monday at 3pm to discuss how this impacts your team.
Pay and Benefits
● Store employees will receive pay through April 5, as well as benefits through April 30.
● Furloughed corporate employees will not be paid for six weeks beginning April 5. Any corporate employee currently enrolled in our benefits program will continue to receive full benefits for the duration of the furlough.
Our Financial Positioning
We are proactively taking steps to strengthen our financial position for the long term to help us navigate through this challenging time. The Executive Leadership Group will continue to work through this crisis and will forgo a part of their salary from April through September. Both of us are declining our salaries from April through October and all board members will forgo their cash compensation for a seven-month period. Shareholder quarterly cash dividends and share repurchases have been suspended as of Monday.
As a company, we have also suspended hiring, and we’re targeting further reductions of more than $45 million in operating expenses, capital expenditures and working capital. This includes ongoing efforts to realign inventory to sales trends.
If You Have Questions
Your direct manager can help. Your manager will be holding a meeting Monday at 3pm to discuss how this impacts your team. Our HR team is also available by email (hr@bobsmarket.com), phone (800-BOBHRDEPT), and video chat (@BobsTshirtsHR on VidCaller).
We are living in very difficult times and there are many unknowns. What we do know is we have been around for 121 years. Our company has survived wars, a depression, several recessions and natural disasters. The strength of our culture and the loyalty of our customers are what have sustained us through tough times. We can’t predict what’s next, but you have our commitment that we are here to support you and we will get through this.
Bob & Billy
3. Use bold and color sparingly.
Stick to one color for one reason — and stop there.
Here’s an email with way too much color (also lightly edited):
Subject line: Fwd: NCIS Online Teaching Resource
Dear Faculty,
Please take a minute today and join this teaching resource classroom in google classroom. The class code irmerp5757uh7 in the google classroom app. This is run by the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning and this resource is very valuable.
In the Classwork tab, we currently have topic headings that include Zoom Instructions, pdfs of Important NCIS Emails, Online Teaching Resources and Articles, as well as pdfs of NCIS Daily Health Updates.
Additionally, we’ll post updates on the Slide, and this could also serve as a message board for all of you to ask and answer questions as new inquiries come up during your online endeavours.
We hope you’ll find this resource helpful, and as you come across relevant information, please feel free to share it with the rest of the classroom, and/or forward it to me so that I can post in the Classwork page.
Thank you again for your dedication and time during this period. And please remember, we’ll only be successful during this transition by exercising patience and understanding. We are all in the same boat, and we all have the same goals, but this is unchartered territory, so there will inevitably be some road bumps along the way. If we work together though, open up lines of communication, and keep an open mind, we’ll no doubt be successful and turn this unfortunate situation into a positive experience.
*Joining this class will not affect your other classes on the google classroom platform.
Thank you!
Marcus A.
Andy: Nothing draws attention to how wacky your email is than a lot of different colors and font weights.
Emma: It’s a total trustbuster. There’s no hierarchy, no consistency, no place to anchor a reader’s eyeballs.
Andy: A light touch can go a long way. Use one color for one type of information — and make sure it’s very important.
Emma: Then, put your paintbrush down.
Here’s a great use of spot color:
Subject line: Documents & Planning Requested
Good afternoon General Managers,
To do our part in protecting the health of our teams, we are canceling all remaining formal Operations meetings and replacing them with an on-site visit by Roger. The Sr. Executive team will review Operations packets virtually.
Please be prepared to review your store projections with Roger by submitting all of the following documentation to the GM Google Drive, no later than 3:00 PM Thursday, 3/19/2020.
Documents:
● Current as of today: Store Balance Sheets
● 6-week look-ahead Store Projections
● Last 5 days of Orders
● Facility Contacts call sheet
● Completed time cards
Planning:
● Daily recap of inventory and active orders
● Develop plan to clean and secure your store, including periodic checks
● Burn down of personal protective gear, including gloves and masks
This may feel tedious, but with your cooperation and support, we can prepare for the worst while hoping for the best. Thank you again for your partnership while we navigate through these challenging times.
Joe
4. Templates are your friend.
You can do this well! We were inspired by a great, specific, useful, and heartfelt email to create a quick template that you can use to keep your team informed.
Here’s the email:
Subject line: Math at SVU COVID-19 response update: 04-01-20
Colleagues,
We are three days into Spring quarter. A number of you have shared anecdotes with me about your classes. A couple of highlights to share:
● Tara is teaching a section of STATS 200 with 300 students. She is having one weekly synchronous session and teaching the rest asynchronously. At her first synchronous session, she had 233 students show up!
● Eckhart started both of his classes (MATH 534 and CALC 583) with open mic time, for students to share how they were feeling. Students shared videos of their babies, pets, and workspaces, and shared feelings of boredom, anxiety, and being terrified and overwhelmed. They appreciated having the space to share.
Lastly, Marsha and I received an email from a junior who is not in Math who sent a long email singing the praises of our faculty. I’ll quote one paragraph:
“You have amazing people in your department that have positively shaped my experience at SVU as a whole. They are the most genuine people I have been the student of so far, and I’m grateful to have experienced professors who care about their students truly learning material and growing as people. Overall, they have ultimately helped me realize that I want to be in Math next fall. Thank you for continuing to have great people and professors in your department. Stay healthy!”
Today is April 1st — April Fools’ Day. While it doesn’t seem like the time to be pulling pranks on anyone, I am curious what Zoom-based pranks we’ll see today.
SVU Updates:
No updates.
What to expect:
Previously presented guidelines are still in effect. Work from home, and don’t come to campus.
We have finalized details for the Math Emergency Student Fund and will be sharing information about how to apply later today. If you know of Math students experiencing financial hardship, specifically those with immediate needs, please direct them to the online application at svu.edu/mathemergencyfund.
As a reminder, we have updated the Intranet site on what you should do and whom you should contact if you fall ill.
We have received a number of questions about enrollment and when we will know if and to what extent the move to remote instruction has impacted Spring quarter – this information will be forthcoming. This data is typically collected after several weeks of instruction (Week 3).
As always, don’t hesitate to reach out with questions or concerns at mathprocess@svu.edu. No problems are too small to mention.
Facilities:
No updates.
Academics/Teaching:
As a reminder, students are able to remote into the Windows computers in Math labs. If students in your class have Macs and your syllabus requires the use of a Windows-only application, or if students need software in our labs that they can’t install on their personal devices, this might be a solution. Please encourage them to utilize this freely and contact mathhelp@svu.edu if they have questions or issues.
Yesterday, SVU IT wrote about privacy concerns with Zoom, and changes in how to share screens. It’s a quick read, and definitely worth it.
A reminder that our Online Learning team is available for 1:1 support all of this week, in case you need some just-in-time or real-time assistance with your course. Reach out to them at matholt@svu.edu.
Researchers:
No updates.
Faculty:
No updates.
Staff:
No updates.
Events:
No updates.
If you’re like me, there are days when you wake up and for a short while, you forget that the whole world has changed. On some of those days, those fleeting moments where I’m half-awake are the best part of my day. Then I look at the notifications on my phone and remember what’s happened in the world. Our shared situation is both surreal and absurd, yet all too real.
Reading your accounts of how well your classes launched, watching what healthcare providers are doing everyday to save lives, and seeing how people all over the world are banding together to help each other, that is real. That is something to behold. That is uplifting and something that leaves me optimistic about our future. Thank you again for all that you do to support your families and communities, to support the Math community and to support each other.
Best,
Oliva
Andy: This email is so good! It brings me real hope. The intro is long, but it’s bulleted, specific, and meaningful. There’s no generic COVID recap — every word is highly topical to the audience. If you need to be reminded that COVID is serious, dangerous, and constantly changing, well, I don’t know how to help you at this point.
Emma: I love how genuinely positive this email is. Plus there are headers! And bullets! It’s quick to skim. There’s an easy way to see updates and where there’s no new information.
Andy: You too can write an email like this! We’ve created a template just for you.
Our template:
Subject line: [Department name] [Situation name] Update [Date]
Colleagues,
[One sentence recap of what’s happened since the last email.]
● Bullet point highlight
● Bullet point highlight
● Bullet point highlight — if you have more than three or four, edit down!
[Company Name] Updates:
Use short, clear, and concrete sentences like: Previously presented guidelines are still in effect. Work from home, and don’t come to work.
If you find yourself beginning to write long paragraphs, edit to use bullets.
When there are no updates, write “No updates.”
[Department/Team] Updates:
Add team-specific information here. Your template headers should remain the same for every email. This is one moment of consistency you can provide in a rapidly evolving situation.
[Department/Team] Updates:
You can have as many headers as you need to cover all necessary information. It’s okay if it’s long if it’s well-organized.
Questions?
Make sure to include where someone can get their questions answered. Whenever possible, link to the resource.
Close out with some human thoughts, if you have any to share. These can be as simple as a one-sentence thank you, or it can be a few paragraphs from the heart. Be real and don’t force it.
Best,
[Your Name]
Good Boss Achievement Stickers: Email Throwback
These stickers are from a 2019 newsletter about emailing — like we said, same rules still apply.
