A note on Memorandums

“What is the difference between a memorandum and an email?”

“Why is it so important to learn and remember how to format a memorandum correctly?”

“Are Memorandums ‘old fashioned’ and “hardly ever used anymore?”

If these questions are bothering you, you are not alone. These are questions I’ve been asked by frustrated students who have difficulty believing that learning the art of Memo Writing is worthwhile, there seems to be an idea that Memos are out of date, which is so mistaken. I hope the following three excellent reasons to learn how to format memorandums correctly will relieve any frustrations or notions that the Memorandum is an outdated form of writing:

1. A Memorandum is a distinct genre of communication with a unique purpose; it is not a letter and not an email, a memo indicates 1) that the information included is ‘in house’ information. In other-words, when a reader sees the title ‘Memorandum’ at the top of an email, they immediately know the information is shared  to the department, or office or team … ; 2) the information is important, official and will be formatted in a manner that is clear, concise, using bullets and a distinctly detailed yet brief style; 3) learning to follow genre and formatting rules is part of learning how to be a technical/ professional writer.

Check out this link –

When to Write a Memo, Not an Email