Alexey
Is "hi both" pharse is pertinent in business emails?
Hi italki's native speakers. I have just received an email from one of my colleague who is a native speaker. An email starts with the phrase "hi both".

Honestly, I find the phrase impolite.

Is it ok to use this phrase in business English email communication?

Thank you
2019年12月13日 20:36
留言 · 4
4
Alexey

Was the email sent to two people?
When the sender wrote "both", did he/she mean both people he/she sent the email to?

If the sender sent the email to two people, then he should have said Hi (name 1) and (name 2) e.g., Hi Alexey and Richard
Using people's names, especially in business, is proper, polite and professional.

After 28 years as a business consultant, I have never seen an email "Hi both"
2019年12月13日
2
Alexey

Sometimes, in business, people know each other quite well because they have met before or spoken or emailed each other often.
If the email sender and the recipients (the people who the email was sent to) know each other well and work together often, then the email can be more informal, more friendly.
So, Hello both would be OK, but business relations should not be too informal - they should be a bit formal.

2019年12月13日
2
Honestly it makes me laugh... I hardly can imagine the quality of company culture where such greeting would be apropriate:)

2019年12月13日
1
Hi Richard.

Yes. The email was send to 2 people. Names of all people had been known before.

So it was 3 participants in email.
2019年12月13日