-First of all, operate under the assumption that the person you are trying to arrange a meeting with is busy, much busier than you. Keep this in the forefront of your mind throughout this process.
Subject Lines
-As part of this course, each of you will be required to interview two “experts” in your field of inquiry. If you do not have any contacts in this field, you may have to send a “cold email.” Even if you do know some experts in your field, I recommend reaching out to a stranger for at least one of the interviews. To do this successfully, your subject line has to compel the recipient to open and read your email. Remember, this individual is much busier than you; he or she doesn’t actually read every email he or she receives. To this end, your subject line must capture their attention and also convey the content of your email. Vague subject lines such as “Interview” will likely not pass muster.
-To capture the recipient’s attention, some professional tipsters recommend using all caps for your subject line. In my opinion, this is a little obnoxious, and far too many people do it, which a) indicates that many people don’t understand the importance of their emails, and b) prevents emails that are actually important to be distinguishable. Instead, I suggest using the recipient’s name. “Mr. Goes,...” People’s eyes are drawn to their own names, and I doubt anyone else in the recipient’s inbox will have adopted a similar strategy.
-As for content, like I said above, vagueness turns people off. Many people mistakenly believe that the subject line should be vague, or general, or summary. Following this approach makes your email indistinguishable. For cold emails, put your request right into the subject line. Be as specific as possible. “Mr. Goes, I would like to interview you about the economic effects of climate change.”
Body Content
-Remember that the recipient is very busy. Therefore, your email should be very short. Get right to the point. Don’t waste time with apologies for bothering them. At the same time, don’t lose sight of the fact that the recipient will not likely say yes to a meeting with you if they have no idea who you are or what you’re about. Many of you made big assumptions in setting up your summer interviews, which I suspect would not be the case for your communications with your “experts.” Still, it’s worth saying: “Ben, Just wondering when would be a good time to interview you? Thanks.” would be inadequate.
-Do introduce yourself. Briefly. “My name is Benjamin Goes, and I’m working on a project studying climate change as an economic opportunity.” If you have some network connection to this person, mention it here. Don’t try to include a short biography of you or your work.
-Do explain why you’ve chosen them to contact. “I’ve read a number of books and articles in this area, and a number of them included references to your work.” You should try to establish some ethos in this step; show them that this isn’t random, that you are actually doing work in their area. Don’t offer flattery. Don’t overstate your own credentials.
-Do tell them why you’re contacting them. “I would like to meet with [or call] you to ask some questions I have about your findings and hopefully gain some insights that would be helpful in my own project.” This request is really what this email is all about. I personally would embolden it. Don’t ask them to look at your project and offer feedback. Don’t ask them to help you with your project.
-Do offer a concrete plan to meet. See below.
Scheduling
-Many of you did not offer a concrete plan for meeting, leaving much of it up to the coordinators. I know that you probably thought that you were being helpful, making things easier for us, by being “wide open” or “flexible.” You were the opposite. Remember, the recipient is very busy. If it feels like it would take too much effort to set up this meeting, the recipient won’t bother trying. Again, you may think that it’s more convenient for the recipient if he or she gets to decide when and where to meet. But the truth is, making decisions is inconvenient. To make this easy for the recipient, you ultimately want to present them with a situation where they just have to agree or disagree. The more specific you are, the easier it becomes for the recipient to look at his calendar and see whether the offered times “work” or not.
-So, offer a plan. “The library.” “Coffee.” “Lunch.” “Phone call in the evening.” Offer a location, if you can. “The UAlbany library.” “The Starbucks on the corner of 155 and Route 20.” And offer some dates. One date is probably too narrow; it runs the risk of an outright rejection of the meeting. A string of dates is probably too broad; it starts to feel like work for the recipient to try to see how they all might fit into his or her schedule. 3 or 4 dates is probably best. Try to scatter the times a bit: two on different Saturday mornings, one on a Tuesday evening, for example.
-This will make some of you nervous, because "what if none of the times work for the recipient?" Well, there is a possibility that you will just be turned down. However, there is also a possibility that the recipient will be appreciative of the fact that you made things easy for him or her and make a counteroffer.
Other Things
-The initial email should be short. 5 or 6 sentences, max. To test this, email your message to yourself, first, then look at it on your phone. Is there a lot of scrolling involved? Could the recipient read through and understand your message in 30 seconds?
-Match the Recipient: Some of you started to treat your emails like text messages. Stay appropriately formal. There is a point where you no longer have to address the recipient (Mr. Goes, …) at the beginning of an email or sign off (Thanks, Ben) at the end; the second email you send is not that point. As long as the recipient is addressing you, address them back. Same goes for tempo. Once you send an important email, monitor your inbox. If the recipient responds within the hour, you should also respond within an hour of receiving the response. If the recipient takes a few days, you can probably take a few days too. This is an indication of how the recipient operates, and you want to show that you can fit into that operation comfortably.
-Always send a “thank you” note. Like this initial email, it should be brief, and it doesn’t have to mention anything of substance that was discussed, but it does need to get sent. These notes may be rarely read, but people definitely notice when they don’t get one.
-If you want the recipient to learn about your project, which I know you do, leave the choice up to him or her by linking to your website. Do this at the bottom of the email, after your sign-off (but don’t use “P.S.”). I recommend linking to your About page, not your Home page.
-Proofread. And then have someone else proofread. Typos tell the recipient that you don’t care. Don’t send any emails in the chain from your phone, if you can avoid it.
Sample Email
Subject: Dr. Anderson, I would like to interview you about the economic effects of climate change.
Dear Dr. Anderson,
My name is Benjamin Goes, and I am working on a project studying climate change as an economic opportunity. I have read a number of books and articles in this area, most recently Block’s Water Capitalism, and many of these sources included references to your work. I would like to meet with you to ask some questions I have about your findings and hopefully gain some insights that would be helpful in my own project.
Are you available for coffee at the Starbucks on the corner of State and Broadway this upcoming Saturday (9/2) morning? Or perhaps next Saturday (9/9) morning, or Tuesday (9/12) evening?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Benjamin Goes
No comments:
Post a Comment