Plain English for buyers who don't speak it natively

Most export emails are written by one non-native speaker and read by another, often with a translation tool in between. A sentence that sounds friendly and natural to you can come out of the tool meaning something different, or nothing at all. The fix isn't better English. It's plainer English.

The advice below follows the same principles as public writing guides such as GOV.UK's style guide and the European Commission's How to write clearly, applied to sales emails. It's not about any one country's "style". It works for every buyer.

One idea per sentence

Long sentences with several clauses are where translation tools go wrong, because they have to guess what "it" or "which" refers to. As a guide, the European Commission's handbook suggests about 20 words per sentence on average, and GOV.UK suggests splitting any sentence over 25 words. For sales emails, shorter is better.

Number your questions

If you ask three things in one paragraph, you'll usually get an answer to one. Put each question on its own numbered line, and make it one that can be answered in a word or a number. The same applies to the first reply to an inquiry; relaysolo.com covers what to ask in how to reply to a new inquiry.

To prepare your quotation, could you confirm:
1. Quantity per order: [e.g. 2,000 pcs]?
2. Destination port or city?
3. Do you need [certificate] for your market?
4. Your target delivery date?

Dates that can't be misread

03/04/2027 is 3 April in most of the world and March 4 in the United States. Never write dates in numbers only.

• Write the month as a word: 3 Apr 2027 or 3 April 2027.
• Or use the international standard format ISO 8601: 2027-04-03 (year, month, day).
• Add the weekday for anything urgent: "Friday 3 Apr 2027". It catches mistakes.
• For deadlines, give the time zone: "by 17:00 Singapore time (UTC+8)". Remember your buyer may not work the same days as you; see working weeks and holidays.
• Avoid "next Friday", "end of the month" and "after the holiday". Write the date.

Numbers, money and units

"1.250" is one point two five in some countries and one thousand two hundred and fifty in others, because the decimal marker can be a point or a comma. In a price, that's a 1,000-fold misunderstanding.

• Decide on one format and use it in every document. If there's any doubt, spell it out once: "1,250 pieces (one thousand two hundred fifty)".
• Always write the currency: USD 4.80 or EUR 4.80, not "$4.80", which could be several currencies.
• Always write the unit and what it applies to: "per piece", "per carton of 24", "per metre".
• For quantities and weights, say net or gross, and the unit: "gross weight 12.5 kg per carton".
• Repeat the key numbers in the same format in the quote, the proforma invoice and, if there is one, the letter of credit. A bank checks that they match.

Use their words, and keep them

• Copy the buyer's product name and model number exactly, including spelling, and keep using it. If they say "tote bag" and you say "shopping bag", their tool may think you mean a different product.
• Use one word for one thing. Don't alternate between "lead time", "production time" and "delivery time" if you mean the same thing. If they mean different things, define each once.
• Spell out abbreviations once, except trade terms everyone uses, and even then give the full name the first time: "FCA (Free Carrier) Incoterms 2020". See which Incoterms rule to quote.

Drop idioms and soft phrases

Plain doesn't mean rude. "Please" and "thank you" translate perfectly. What doesn't translate is hedging. "We might perhaps consider a small discount" can come out as a promise or as a refusal.

Be most careful with bad news and conditions

When you change a date or a price, or set a condition such as a deposit, there's no room for a soft sentence the buyer can read two ways. State what changed, the new number, and what the buyer can choose. Templates are in telling a buyer about a delay or a price increase. The same goes for payment terms: "30% deposit by bank transfer before production, 70% balance before shipment" can only be read one way. "30/70" can't.

Check before you send

• Could each sentence stand alone? If it starts with "which" or "as mentioned", rewrite it.
• Is every question numbered?
• Does every date have a month in words, or ISO format?
• Does every price have a currency and a unit?
• Did you use the buyer's product names?
• Paste it into a translation tool, translate it into the buyer's language and back again. If the result is still clear, send it.

Plain writing also makes fraud easier to spot. A message "from you" in a strange style stands out to a buyer who knows how you normally write; see bank detail change fraud.

Sources

• European Commission, How to write clearly (about 20 words per sentence on average, as a guide).
• GOV.UK, A to Z style guide (date format such as 4 June 2017; explain abbreviations the first time) and Clear language (split sentences over 25 words).
• MIT International Students Office, Date format in the United States (month first in the US, day first in most countries).
• ISO, ISO 8601 date and time format (YYYY-MM-DD).
• BIPM, The International System of Units (SI Brochure), section 5.4.4: the decimal marker is a point or a comma on the line; digits may be grouped in threes with a space.

Read next

• Working weeks and holidays across export markets; all of Working across markets.
• Sample requests and delay and price-increase emails, in Samples, orders and documents.
• Fake inquiries and phishing, in Fraud and safety; Getting paid; Quoting and trade terms.
• How we check sources: about this handbook.