Emojis in emails, on social media and as punctuation

Emails
In emails, emojis work best as small tone enhancers. A neutral emoji like 🙂 can be used to signal positivity – even when you don’t know the recipient. More expressive emojis (e.g. 🤩, 😜 or 😂) should be reserved for informal emails where the tone is relaxed. In formal contexts, emojis should generally be avoided.

Social media
On social media platforms like LinkedIn, emojis can make posts more engaging and easier to skim. Use them to highlight key points or create bullet lists (e.g. 👉, ⭐ or 📈), but in moderation so they support your message without stealing the spotlight.

Emojis and punctuation
There are no strict rules for using emojis as punctuation, but in informal writing they are often used instead of a full stop. If a new sentence follows an emoji, usage varies: some start with a capital letter, others with lowercase or even a line break. Typically, a space is placed before the emoji:

• The lecture was engaging 😊
• The seminar was great 😄 Next time, I’ll ask more questions.
• The meeting ended earlier than expected 😎 even though we covered all the agenda items.

Shortcut keys for inserting emojis
If you use emojis frequently, these shortcuts make it quick and easy to insert them:

• Windows: Press Windows key + period to open the emoji panel in Outlook, Word or Teams.
• Android: Tap the emoji key on your keyboard or hold Enter to open the emoji panel.
• Mac: Press Control + Command (⌘) + space.