asymmetric-al Aussie Business English
Professional but not corporate. Warm without being forced. Direct without being blunt. Naturally Australian without stereotyping. Write like a competent professional who happens to be Australian — not like an American pretending to be Australian, and not like a stuffy corporate drone.
Spelling (EN-AU)
| Pattern | Australian | Not |
|---|---|---|
| -our | colour, favour, honour, behaviour | color, favor |
| -ise | organise, realise, specialise, recognise | organize, realize |
| -re | centre, fibre, metre, theatre | center, fiber |
| -ence | licence (noun), defence, offence | license (noun) |
| -ise/-ize | Both technically valid in AU, prefer -ise | — |
| Double L | travelling, cancelling, modelling | traveling |
Noun/verb splits:
| Noun | Verb |
|---|---|
| licence | license |
| practice | practise |
| advice | advise |
Common traps: enquiry (general), inquiry (formal/legal), kerb (road edge), tyre (wheel), programme (general), program (computing).
Tone Ladder
Match formality to context. Default to "friendly professional" — the middle ground.
| Context | Formality | Greeting | Sign-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slack/Teams (internal) | Casual | "Hey" / first name | None needed |
| Email to existing client | Friendly professional | "Hi [Name]" | "Cheers" / "Thanks" |
| Email to new client | Professional | "Hi [Name]" | "Kind regards" / "Thanks" |
| Proposal or quote | Professional | "Hi [Name]" | "Kind regards" |
| Follow-up after meeting | Friendly professional | "Hi [Name]" | "Cheers" / "Talk soon" |
| Cold outreach | Warm professional | "Hi [Name]" | "Cheers" / "Thanks" |
| Formal letter or legal | Formal | "Dear [Name]" | "Yours sincerely" |
Never use: "Dear Sir/Madam", "To Whom It May Concern" (unless truly unknown recipient in formal/legal context), "Warmest regards", "Respectfully yours".
Sign-off Ranking
From most to least common in AU SME context:
- Cheers — default, works almost everywhere
- Thanks — when you're asking for something or appreciating effort
- Kind regards — one step more formal, good for new clients
- Regards — neutral, slightly cooler
- Talk soon — casual, signals ongoing relationship
Avoid: "Best" (American), "Best wishes" (too formal), "Warm regards" (overdone), "Respectfully" (too stiff for SME).
Avoid List
American Corporate-isms
Replace these reflexively:
| Instead of | Write |
|---|---|
| "reach out" | "get in touch" / "contact" |
| "circle back" | "follow up" / "come back to" |
| "touch base" | "check in" / "catch up" |
| "leverage" (verb) | "use" / "make the most of" |
| "moving forward" | "from here" / "going forward" (or drop it) |
| "actionable insights" | "useful information" / "what we found" |
| "deep dive" | "closer look" / "detailed review" |
| "bandwidth" (for time) | "time" / "capacity" |
| "pivot" | "change direction" / "adjust" |
| "loop in" | "include" / "bring in" |
| "align on" | "agree on" / "sort out" |
| "unpack" (an idea) | "look at" / "go through" |
| "cadence" | "schedule" / "rhythm" |
| "deliverables" | "what we'll provide" / "the work" |
Forced Australianisms
Avoid in written professional comms:
- "G'day" — fine spoken, awkward in writing
- Overuse of "mate" — once is fine, every paragraph is cringe
- "No worries" for serious issues — fine for acknowledgements ("No worries, I'll sort that"), wrong for "Your server has been down for 3 days"
- "Fair dinkum", "strewth", "crikey" — never in professional writing
- "Arvo", "brekkie", "barbie" — slang, not business English
Writing Principles
Lead with the point. First sentence answers the question or states the purpose. Context comes after, not before.
Short paragraphs. Two to three sentences max. One idea per paragraph. White space is your friend.
Natural contractions. "We've", "I'll", "that's", "won't" — reads human. Don't overdo in proposals, but emails should sound like a person wrote them.
Active voice. "We'll send the report Monday" not "The report will be sent on Monday."
Specific over vague. "I'll have this to you by Thursday" not "I'll get back to you soon."
One ask per email. Multiple requests? Number them. Don't bury the second ask in paragraph four.
Match their energy. Short email from client? Short reply. Detailed brief? Detailed response. Don't write five paragraphs when two lines will do.
Examples
Status update to existing client
Too corporate:
Dear Mr Thompson, I am writing to provide you with an update regarding the progress of your website redesign project. Please find below a summary of the deliverables completed to date and the anticipated timeline for remaining action items.
Right tone:
Hi David,
Quick update on the website — we've finished the homepage and the three main service pages. Looking good so far.
Next up is the contact form and booking system, which we'll have ready by end of next week. I'll send through a preview link once it's live on the staging site.
Cheers, [Your name]
Delivering a quote
Too stiff:
Dear Client, Please find attached our formal quotation for the proposed scope of work as discussed. We trust this meets your requirements and look forward to your favourable response at your earliest convenience.
Right tone:
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for the chat yesterday — good to get a clear picture of what you need.
I've put together a quote based on what we discussed. The short version: $4,500 for the full site, including the booking system. That covers design, development, and getting it live on your domain.
Happy to jump on a call if you've got any questions.
Cheers, [Your name]
Saying no to a request
Too blunt:
We can't do that.
Too soft:
While we certainly appreciate your suggestion and would love to explore this further, unfortunately at this current juncture it may not be feasible for us to accommodate this particular request.
Right tone:
Hi Mark,
Thanks for thinking of us for this. Unfortunately it's not something we can take on right now — we're at capacity through March.
If timing works, we'd be happy to look at it in April. Otherwise, I can recommend a couple of people who might be able to help sooner.
Cheers, [Your name]
Context Rules
Corporate clients: Match their formality up one notch but keep the warmth. "Kind regards" instead of "Cheers", but still "Hi [Name]" not "Dear Mr Smith". Never mirror their jargon back — if they say "synergies", you say "working together".
Delivering bad news: Be direct but kind. State the issue, explain why briefly, offer the path forward. No waffle, no excessive apologies. One "sorry" is enough — two is apologetic, three is grovelling.
Quoting prices: Direct and confident. "The cost for this is $X" not "We would like to propose a fee of $X for your consideration." Include what's covered. No hedging.
Saying no: Respectful and brief. Give the reason (one sentence), offer an alternative if possible. Don't over-explain or apologise excessively.
Following up: Casual but purposeful. "Just checking in on this" is fine. "I trust this email finds you well" is not.