Question: What’s Your Favorite E-Mail Salutation?

by Brad Isaac on October 3, 2007

I was wondering what everyone uses to break the ice in their emails. 

It seems “Dear” went out in digital form years ago.  I typically use “Hi” or “Hello” when I start mine.

salutations

Yet sometimes I think about using “Greetings!”  It seems fun and lively, but I don’t know if I’m a Greetings! type of guy…  I always feel like ending the salutation with “Earthling!” as in “Greetings Earthling!”

So my current breakdown is when I am mailing an informal email I typically use “Hi” first name.  For more formal emails or mails sent to more than one person I use “Hello”. 

But what’s your favorite salutation?

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{ 25 comments }

October 3, 2007 at 8:24 am

Good morning!
That’s how I start my messages — unless, of course, I’m writing them in the afternoon, in which case I write “Good afternoon!” Unless I know the person won’t be READING the message until the following morning, in which case I go back to “Good morning!”

October 3, 2007 at 10:19 am

It depends on who I’m emailing. Formal relationships and new clients get “Hello, John, …” or “Hello, Susan,…” If I’ve worked with them a while, I’ll move to “Hi, Jane. How are you?…” Good friends get “Dude! Howsitgoin?”

Jamie October 3, 2007 at 2:00 pm

Usually, I stick with the good morning, afternoon, evening route. Sometimes, however, when I’m feeling particularly jaunty, I open with Happy Monday! (or Tuesday, Wednesday, etc…)

October 3, 2007 at 4:49 pm

Hmm… I just use “[NAME],” to open an email. Salutations always strike me as too perky.

October 3, 2007 at 5:12 pm

Same…Hi or Hello….Dear is definitely out

Brad Isaac October 3, 2007 at 9:24 pm

Sometimes I get caught when emailing 2 people. Like “Hi Jay and Sarah,” That opening seems clumsy to me for some reason. Am I making too much of this?

October 4, 2007 at 9:39 am

I like ‘ Hey ! ‘

and I end my communications (online and offline) with ‘Be Great,’

October 5, 2007 at 4:36 am

Aren’t we a boring lot? I often don’t even start with a greeting. I just plunge right in:
“Ted, Let’s meet at the Old King’s Head at 5pm sharp!”

The follow-up to this post should be “Creative e-mail salutations and why you should use them”. Why? Because it’s a helluvalot more fun.

October 7, 2007 at 10:55 am

Like Benjamin, I use “Hey” almost exclusively, unless I’m at work and the e-mail needs to be a little more official, and then it’s a “good morning/afternoon”, or “gentlemen” (for an all-male e-mail), or else I just dive in cuz I’m impatient.

October 7, 2007 at 3:26 pm

Fitting, since I believe impatience was the impetus behind email :)

October 7, 2007 at 4:16 pm

Hi Brad,

(As you can see, that’s my normal salutation.)

I’m a very informal kind of guy and almost always open with Hi. If I’m opening a negotiation for a new business deal, I’ll usually start with Hello Mr Lastname or Hello Ms Lastname.

Later, when we get to know each other better, I’ll switch back to Hi firstname.

On the other hand, now that you mention it, I may start using “Greetings Earthlings!” That ought to wake a few people up.

(grin)

Act on your dream!

JD

October 7, 2007 at 4:30 pm

I signed an email “Bach on” (like ‘rock on’) recently. I believe Phil Gerbyshak suggested that one to me

People remember things out of the ordinary

Brad Isaac October 7, 2007 at 9:23 pm

Greetings and Salutations!

I was lead to believe “Hey!” was a southern opening. Is that not true? I know, I know yes I live in the south, so I could get away with it, but I communicate with people all over the world.

I used to open all my negative emails with Good Morning. Like “Good Morning, your server was hacked last night. I’m working to repair it.”

And Benjamin, how could I end my emails? Your’s truly, Brad (Brad to the bone) Isaac? :)

October 8, 2007 at 12:46 am

ooooh, that’s brad !

October 9, 2007 at 10:56 pm

Brad – if I were you, I’d end my e-mails Brad Isaac (not the one on the Love Boat). But that wouldn’t beat “Bach On!” not by a long shot :)

Or how about Brad (not Pitt) Isaac?

Or how about Brad Isaac Hayes? He’s…BRAD!

Sorry, just feeling a little like Berman tonight.

Phil Gerbyshaquille (no relation to O’Neal)

October 9, 2007 at 11:17 pm

LMAO

David October 14, 2007 at 10:07 am

I often end “Rgds” expecting it to catch on in the world of electronic abbreviations and quick communication.

It didn’t catch on.

Rgds,

David

October 14, 2007 at 12:11 pm

If you didn’t drop the second ‘r’ it may have caught on better

Rgrds vs Rgds

Be Great
Benjamin

July 13, 2008 at 8:44 am

When do you use Always in your ending to an email or card -what does always imply rather than just signing your name at the end

November 9, 2008 at 10:13 pm

I’ll tell you my favorite type of greeting.

“Salutions!”

January 28, 2009 at 4:26 pm

My favorite greeting is:

Hi Friends~

My favorite closiing is:

Carpe Diem Creo!
(seize the day to create)

Jodis last blog post..From the Heart

Leez May 24, 2009 at 11:23 pm

I really appreciate this. After wandering around these Dear Abby sites that told me I have to use DEAR (figures), I finally found a few greetings here that I can use. Or…not. :)

Thanks!

Lills October 29, 2009 at 8:26 pm

I start emails with “hello” in different languages…. hola, bonjour, etc… sometimes it’s Hi, never Hello, lots of times Hey, Maddy. Formally I start with Good morning (sometimes informally) and often Happy Friday!!

I have a lot of fun with sign-offs. Never just bye, sometimes I say Adios, See ya, or funny ones like MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU, off like a prom dress, yours till Niagra falls, etc. Lots of times I sign off with :-) or ttyl from IM-inspired lingo.

:-)

LILY :-)

November 3, 2009 at 12:25 pm

I started saying, “Oh what up ______ ” in person and so if I ever talk to that person in an e-mail I use the same greeting. It looks kind of weird otherwise :)

Otherwise, I simply just say, “Hi _____,”

Followed by a couple paragraphs. Then I say, “Thanks,” followed by name.

Gireesh April 7, 2010 at 4:51 am

I read all comments,

somethign that i use for informal communication or sometimes even formal with close buddy’s

Knock Knock…..

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