商务英语：电子邮件写作

商务英语电子邮件以其方便快捷，在现代商务活动中起着重要作用。商务往来中的电子邮件代表着公司的形象，显示着公司的水平和实力，直接影响到客户对公司的评估。所以，商务电子邮件的写作在业务往来中占据着举足轻重的地位。据调查，约有88%的互联网用户使用电子邮件，而在商务领域中约有90%的员工通过电子邮件的形式来联系公务。随着全球经济一体化的发展，商务英语电子邮件的写作越来越受到重视，本文将着重探讨商务英语电子邮件写作的格式和应遵循的相关原则。

一、商务英语电子邮件的格式

常见的商务英语电子邮件包括以下五部分：

①写信人Email地址、收信人Email地址、抄送收信人Email地址、密送收信人Email地址。②标题。③称呼、开头、正文、结尾句。④礼貌结束语。⑤写信人全名、写信人职务及所属部门、地址、电话号码、传真等。

其中邮件主题应体现邮件主旨，要引人注目、意思明确，最好为名词或动名词短语；称呼礼貌得体，符合商务英语写作习惯，如不知对方姓名只知头衔，可用 Dear + Title作为称呼，如只知对方姓名不知性别，可用Dear+全名，如邮件为一封通函，则用Dear All作为邮件称呼；正文应结构清楚，便于阅读，如正文内容较长，可使用小标题、小段落，或利用星号、下划线及段落间空行等方式使邮件眉目清楚、一目了然。

二、商务英语电子邮件写作应遵循的五C原则

商务英语电子邮件的正文写作应该遵循五C原则，即Correctness、Conciseness、Complete、Clarity和Courtesy原则。

准确原则

由于商务英语电子邮件涉及的是商务活动双方的权利、义务关系，其准确性对商务治理与沟通至关重要。具体而言，不仅电子邮件的英语语法、标点符号和拼写要做到准确无误，电子邮件内容还要叙述准确，以免引起误会纠纷。

简洁原则

简洁原则是商务英语写作最重要的原则，指在不影响完整性和礼貌性的前提下，尽量使用简单句子和简短词语。一封拖沓冗长、措词复杂的电子邮件既浪费写的时间，也会给阅读者带来不必要的麻烦，故商务英语电子邮件应以简明扼要为第一要务。

在具体写作中，商务英语电子邮件呈现出的句法特征是句子结构简单明了，有大量省略句和不完整句。其词汇特征是用语简洁，语言简明扼要。

另外，为了节约时间和空间，电子邮件中可使用缩略语，如U表示you，Pls表示please，Info表示information，Qty表示quantity，P“C表示piece，L“C表示Letter of Credit，FOB表示Free on Board。 例1 It is very difficult to sell man hole covers in France. This product must have the quality certificate issued in France.

例2 Price：FOB Shanghai USD 96“PC.

例3 Hope you can accept it.

例1中的两个单句具有明显的因果关系，但写并不使用表达因果关系的连接词如since、because，这种舍长句、复合句，选短句、简单句，喜并列、弃从属的句法特征在商务英语电子邮件写作中十分常见。例2中缩略语的使用，例3中不完整句的选择，反映了与普通商务信函相比，商务电子邮件更倾向于非正式文体，更为口语化。

完整原则

商务电子邮件内容应力求具体、明确、完整，提供读者所需要的信息，尤其像盘、询问贸易条件等需要回函的电子邮件，更需要清楚完整，因为只有包含具体信息的邮件，才能达到良好的沟通效果。邮件是否完整，可以用5W1H来检验，即who，when，where，what，why和how。

清楚原则

商务英语电子邮件的写作要做到层次清楚，用词准确。具体表现在：

例1 We will deliver your goods soon.

例2 中significant一词意为明显的、不小的，语义模糊，故可以用具体数字替换。例2中soon表示不久、很快，语义不明确，没有指出具体的供货时间，可改为具体的年月日。

礼貌原则

商务英语电子邮件应遵循措词婉转、礼貌的原则。鉴于电子邮件直接影响到整个交易的成败，买卖双方应十分注重措辞方式，要婉转、礼貌，使对方轻易接受。在写作电子邮件时，可以通过使用虚拟语气、委婉语气等方法迂回地表达观点，提出要求。

例1 If it is not for the larger orders we receive from a number four regular customers，we could not have quoted for supplies even at that price.

例2 I would appreciate it if you could give me your best quotations for 65，000 pieces. 例1中虚拟语气和例2中委婉语气的使用，缓和了商务谈判的语气，既明确了自己的立场，又使对方的面子免于受损，语气自然诚恳，礼貌得体，很轻易为对方接受。

三、结语

随着国际商务活动的不断扩展，商务英语电子邮件的重要性也日益明显。同时，电子商务的普及，往往会让写忽视商务英语电子邮件应有的规范和格式，难免会出现这样或那样的问题。然而准确规范的英文邮件，不仅能反应写信人的英语及业务水平，还可以体现写信人为人处事的态度和风格，有助于建立良好的商务关系，最终对达成贸易起到重要的作用。因此，有必要熟悉商务英文电子邮件应有的规范和格式，遵循邮件的写作原则。

The Internet has changed a lot of things within the business world, including business correspondence. here once traditional, formal business letters were normal, quick business e-mails now rule the day. The ease and informality of the Internet often makes it seem we can write business e-mails poorly and get away with it; yet, it’s actually the contrary. Because e-mail is so accessible, people receive that much more of it and disregard anything less than perfect. Your business e-mails must stand out from the junk. The following tips will help you to create concise, engaging business e-mails for any purpose.

网络改变了商务世界的很多方面，商务信函便是其中之一。曾经，传统且正式的商务信件很常见，而今，快捷的商务电邮成为主流。网络的便捷性和随意性常常让我们觉得，似乎商务电邮写得糟糕没什么大不了的。然而，事实恰好相反。因为写一封电子邮件太轻而易举了，所以人们收到那么多之后，便只处理那些写得好的——你的商务电邮必须从电邮堆中脱颖而出才行。以下要点能帮助你写出适用于任何目的的简洁、抢眼的商务电邮。

STYLE

The human eye reacts differently to a computer screen than a piece of paper, so how you format your e-mail is vital. Use short, succinct sentences that get to the point immediately; remember, your goal here is to dispense important information, so give that to the reader right up front. Always include a greeting and a signature, and use as many line and paragraph breaks as possible; this makes the e-mail easier to read. And resist the urge to write a book. Business e-mails are better off short; the equivalent of a page or so is sufficient.

风格

人眼对电脑屏幕和纸张的反应不同，所以如何安排电邮的格式非常重要。使用短小简洁的句子直奔主题；记住，写电邮的目的是为了传达重要信息，所以要让读邮件的人首先看到要点。不管什么情况都要包含问候语和署名，并且尽量多折行多分段——这能使邮件更易读。还有，要抑制长篇大论的冲动：商务电邮最好简短；相当于一页纸左右的量就足够了。

TONE

For better or worse, the Internet breeds a nasty habit of informality. It’s okay to be slightly informal with your e-mail (people tend to expect it lately), but don’t write as if you’re talking to your mother or best friend. You need to strike a balance between traditional formality and e-mail informality. Think about your recipient and how they’d most likely write an e-mail. What words would they use? Would slang or jargon offend your readers? Use these considerations to create a concise, customized e-mail.

语气

暂不论其好坏，网络滋生了“非正式”交流的恶习。电邮稍微非正式一点没有关系（人们最近开始接受了），但是不要写得好像是在跟妈妈或最好的朋友谈话一样。你需要在传统意义上的正式和电邮的非正式中找到平衡。想想收件人的风格，以及他们最可能怎样写电邮。他们会使用什么词汇？俚语或行话会不会冒犯到读邮件的人？将这些因素考虑在内，才能写出一封有针对性的简洁邮件。

GRAMMAR

Informality, whatever its root, does not excuse grammatical errors, and these can damage your e-mail. Grammatical errors show that you didn’t put much time into your business e-mail and you probably don’t care much about your message. Go through your e-mail carefully to make sure you have spelled correctly, and you have fixed all grammar and punctuation mistakes. Remove all redundancies and get rid of any clichés. Recipients, especially professional business people, will appreciate your attention to details and they will respond better to your message when no errors exist in your e-mail.

语法

不管“非正式”如何发展而来，这都不意味着允许犯语法错误—这些错误会毁了你的电邮。语法错误说明你没有在商务电邮上下多少功夫，而且你很可能不太在乎你所传达的信息。仔细通读电邮，以确定拼写正确，并且修订了所有的语法和标点错误。删除所有的多余信息和陈词滥调。收件人—尤其是那些职业商人—会很欣赏你注重细节，而且，如果你发给他们的电邮里没有错误的话，他们会态度更好地回复你的消息。

RESPONSE

Since e-mail is an immediate medium, and a highly accessible one at that, it's far easier than in paper letters to request a response – and far more likely that you’ll get one! Before signing off with your signature, be clear about what you want the recipient to do. Need a response via phone or with certain information attached? Say so! Your recipient will have a difficult time responding if they have no idea what you want from them. But remember: be polite when requesting action. There’s little worse than an overly forward or pushy ending.

回复

电邮是即时媒体， 也因此是一个高度普及的媒体。和纸质邮件相比，通过电邮要求对方回复更便捷—而且，你更有可能收到回复！在落款之前，一定要清楚你期望收件人做什么。需要电话回复还是附上特定的信息？ 说出来！ 如果收件人不知道你想要什么，他们答复你的时候就会很费神。但要记住：要求回复时一定要客气。几乎没有什么比在邮件结束时过度催促或强求更糟糕了。

缩写：

ASAP = As Soon As Possible 尽快

FYI=For Your Information 你要的信息

PLS=Please 请

BTW=By The Way 顺便

AMMOF =As a Matter of Fact 事实上

IC?= I see 我明白了

OTOH?=On the Other Hand 另一方面

NRN?=No Response Necessary 无需回复

IMO=In My Opinion 依我之见

1.Initiate a meeting 发起会议

I suggest we have a call tonight at 9:30pm (China Time) with you and Brown. Please let me know if the time is okay for you and Ben. 我建议我们今晚九点半和Brown小聚一下,你和Ben有没有空?

I would like to hold a meeting in the afternoon about our development planning for the project A. 今天下午我建议我们就A项目的发展计划开会讨论一下。

We‘d like to have the meeting on Thur. Oct 30. Same time. 十月三十号(周四),老时间,开会。

I want to talk to you over the phone regarding issues about report development and the XXX project.

我想跟你电话讨论下报告进展和XXX项目的情况。

2. Seeking for more information/feedbacks/suggestions 咨询信息/反馈/建议

Thank you and look forward to having your opinion on the estimation and schedule. 谢谢你,希望能听到更多你对评估和日程计划的建议。

Look forward to your feedbacks and suggestions soon. 期待您的反馈建议!

What is your opinion on the schedule and next steps we proposed? 你对计划方面有什么想法?下一步我们应该怎么做?

Feel free to give your comments. 请随意提出您的建议。

Any question, please don't hesitate to let me know. 有任何问题,欢迎和我们联系。

Any question, please let me know. 有任何问题,欢迎和我们联系。

Please contact me if you have any questions. 有任何问题,欢迎和我们联系。

Please let me know if you have any question on this. 有任何问题,欢迎和我联系。

Your comments and suggestions are welcome! 欢迎您的评论和建议!

3. Attachment 附件

I enclose the evaluation report for your reference. 我附加了评估报告供您阅读。

Attached please find today's meeting notes. 今天的会议记录在附件里。

Attached is the design document, please review it. 设计文档在附件里,请评阅。

For other known issues related to individual features, please see attached release notes. 其他个人特征方面的信息请见附件。

4. Thanks note 感谢

Thank you so much for the cooperation感谢你的合作!

Thanks for the information 谢谢您提供的信息!

I really appreciate the effort you all made for this sudden and tight project. 对如此紧急的项目您做出的努力我表示十分感谢。

Thanks for your attention! 谢谢关心!

Your kind assistance on this are very much appreciated. 我们对您的协助表示感谢。

Really appreciate your help! 非常感谢您的帮助!