Busy people have little time to read, let alone respond to, email. If you want your email to stand out and get a response, you must write it with care. This is your opportunity to be heard and engage with someone you respect or admire. Make it count. Here are ten tips to help you get busy people to respond to your email and start a conversation:

1. Write a catchy title.

Is your email click-worthy? It depends on the subject or title of your email. A recipient is more likely to read an email entitled, “In NYC tomorrow (March 14): Available?” than “Hi.” You do not have to exaggerate or be over the top. (Language that is larger-than-life can sometimes be mistaken as spam.) Show specificity and immediacy.

2. Mention something you have in common.

A great way to connect with someone you do not know is to highlight something you have in common with the other person. It helps to develop an emotional connection. Are you both alums of Colgate University? Did you both live in Baltimore at one point? Do you have a mutual friend? If you see on their LinkedIn profile that you have something in common, point it out.

3. Reference positive, recent news connected with the person.

If positive news about the person prompted you to write the email, mention it. You could say, “Congrats on your award.” Acknowledging a recent win of theirs makes them feel good and lets the person know you have an interest in their work.

4. Be concise, and write short paragraphs.

It is exciting to engage with someone you respect or admire. But don’t let your excitement cause you to be verbose. For emails, follow the rule of three: Try to stick to three sentences or three lines of text per paragraph and no more than three paragraphs.

5. Use bullet points.

If you want to share multiple pieces of information, make it easy for the recipient to digest. Use bullet points and phrases. Parse the information out so you don’t loose the reader.

Written by
Avery Blank, Contributor, Forbes