Lisa Writes Her First Work Email

On Wednesday morning, Helen stopped at Lisa's desk with a cup of coffee in her hand.

"Lisa, can you write to the bookshop today? Tell them about the quiz night idea and ask if they're free for a meeting next week. You can send it from your own email."

"Of course," Lisa said with a smile.

When Helen walked away, the smile went with her. Lisa looked at her new email address on the screen. She had written hundreds of emails in her life, but never one like this. This was her first real work email, to a real client.

She opened a new message and started typing.

"Hi! I'm Lisa from the studio.

So, we had this really fun idea in our meeting about doing quiz nights at your shop, because young people love events, and I used to work in a bookshop so I know it works, and we think it could be amazing.

Do you want to meet? Let me know!"

She read it again. It sounded like a message to a friend, not to a client. She deleted everything.

Her second try was very different. It was long, formal and full of words she never used. She read it out loud quietly and almost laughed. It didn't sound like her at all.

Mia looked over from the next desk. "Your first email?"

"How did you know?"

"You've been looking at that screen for twenty minutes," Mia said. She pulled her chair over. "Can I help?"

"Please."

"Okay. Keep it short and clear. First, a good subject line, so they know what it's about before they open it."

Lisa typed: "Ideas for your new campaign."

"Good. Now, the greeting. The owner's name is Mrs Hill. So, 'Dear Mrs Hill.' Then one friendly line, like 'I hope you're well.' After that, say who you are and why you're writing."

Lisa typed slowly, and Mia watched.

"Dear Mrs Hill,

I hope you're well. My name is Lisa, and I'm the new marketing assistant at the studio. I'm writing to share an idea for your new campaign."

"Perfect," Mia said. "Now explain the idea in two or three sentences. Not more. If she's interested, you can tell her everything in the meeting."

Lisa thought for a moment, then typed.

"We would like to build the campaign around events, starting with a book quiz night. In my old bookshop, quiz nights brought in a lot of young people, and they always bought something before they left."

"Great. Now the most important part. What do you want her to do?"

"Meet us next week."

"Then ask her directly, and make it easy to say yes."

"Would you be free for a short meeting next week? We can come to the shop on Tuesday or Thursday afternoon, whichever works best for you.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Best regards,

Lisa"

Mia read it and nodded. "That's a really good email. Short, friendly, and clear. Send it."

Lisa's finger stayed over the button for a second. Then she clicked send.

She tried to work on something else, but she checked her inbox every five minutes. At half past two, there was a new message.

"Dear Lisa,

Thank you for your email. A quiz night is a wonderful idea. Thursday afternoon works well for me. See you then!

Best wishes,

Jane Hill"

Lisa turned her screen so Mia could see it.

"Look at that," Mia said. "Your first work email, and your first meeting with a client."

Lisa smiled at the screen. It was only a few lines, but it felt like a small victory.