Most emails that don’t get a reply aren’t ignored on purpose. They just make the reader work too hard. The ask is buried in the fourth paragraph, there’s no deadline, and answering would mean writing an essay back. So it sits there, and a week later you’re sending “just bumping this up”.
I used to send a lot of those. These days, before I send anything that matters, I give it ten minutes with AI. Here’s how.
Step 1: Write the messy draft first
Don’t try to get it right straight away. Write the email the way it comes out of your head. Then take out names, numbers and anything private or confidential before it goes anywhere near a chat. You want the shape of the email, not the sensitive details.
Step 2: Ask what it’s really asking for
Paste the draft in and use this prompt:
“Here’s an email I’m about to send. In one sentence, what is it asking the reader to do? Could they answer it in one line? If not, tell me why. Don’t rewrite it yet.”
This is the step that catches me out most. Sometimes the honest answer is “it isn’t really asking for anything”. That’s usually why nobody replied last time.
Step 3: Put the ask up front
Now ask for a rewrite:
“Rewrite this so the ask and any deadline are in the first two sentences. Keep the context short and put it after the ask. Make it as short as it can be without losing anything that matters. Keep my tone friendly and plain.”
If there’s a choice to make, ask it to offer two clear options the reader can pick from. “Tuesday or Thursday?” gets a faster answer than “when suits you?”
Step 4: Make it sound like you again
AI is good at tidying, but it can also make you sound like a stranger. Read the new version out loud and swap anything you’d never say. Put back the warmth, the in-joke, the way you normally sign off. The structure is the useful part. The voice should be yours.
Step 5: Check the subject line and first sentence
Imagine the reader only sees the subject line and the first sentence in their inbox preview. Would they know what you need and by when? If not, fix the subject line. “Quick yes or no on the venue by Friday” beats “Following up”.
Where AI stops
AI can tighten an email, but it can’t tell you whether you should send it, or whether a call would be better. If the topic is sensitive, emotional or likely to be misread, pick up the phone. And for work emails, only paste content into tools your company has approved, and keep anything confidential out of the chat.
Quick questions
Is it safe to paste my emails into AI?
Take out names, numbers and anything private or confidential first. For work emails, only use tools your company has approved.
Won't it make my emails sound robotic?
It can, which is why step 4 matters. Keep the structure the AI suggests and put your own words and tone back in before you send.
What if my email genuinely needs a lot of context?
Put the ask first anyway, then the context underneath. If it's really long, consider a short email with the ask and a separate note or a quick call for the detail.