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Before I dive into the list, here are my four general rules for signing off on emails:
1. Don’t include quotes. They bog down emails and take up readers’ precious time.
2. Avoid oversized corporate logos. Sometimes we have no choice about this, because our companies insist we include these things, but if they are too big, they draw the eye away from the message.
3. Include your title and contact info, but keep it short. In most business emails, you’re doing the person a favor by sharing your vital information. But make it minimal. Mine just says, “Susan Adams, Senior Editor, Forbes 212-206-5571.” A short link to your website is fine but avoid a laundry list of links promoting your projects and publications.
4. Do include some kind of sign-off in the first email in a chain (once you’ve started a thread, you don’t need to keep signing off).
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Favorite sign-offs:
Best
All Best – Harmless.
All the best – This works too.
Best Regards – More formal than the ubiquitous “Best.” I use this occasionally.
Regards – Fine, anodyne, helpfully brief. I use this too.
