By Jacquelyn Smith
Research has found that US employees,
on average, spend about a quarter of their time at work combing through the
hundreds of emails that each worker sends and receives every day.
And yet, according to career coach
Barbara Pachter, plenty of professionals still don't know how to use email
appropriately.
Pachter outlines modern email-etiquette
rules in her book "The Essentials of Business Etiquette." We pulled
out the most important ones you need to know.
Vivian Giang contributed to an earlier
version of this article.
1. Include a clear, direct subject line.
Examples of a good subject line include
"Meeting date changed," "Quick question about your
presentation," or "Suggestions for the proposal."
"People often decide whether to open an email
based on the subject line," Pachter says. "Choose one that lets
readers know you are addressing their concerns or business issues."
2. Use a professional email address.
If you work for a company, you should use your
company email address. But if you use a personal email account — whether you
are self-employed or just like using it occasionally for work-related
correspondences — you should be careful when choosing that address, Pachter
says.
You should always have an email address that
conveys your name so that the recipient knows exactly who is sending the email.
Never use email addresses (perhaps remnants of your grade-school days) that are
not appropriate for use in the workplace, such as "babygirl@..." or
"beerlover@..." — no matter how much you love a cold brew.
3. Think twice before
hitting "reply all."
No one wants to read emails from 20 people that
have nothing to do with them. Ignoring the emails can be difficult, with many
people getting notifications of new messages on their smartphones or
distracting pop-up messages on their computer screens. Refrain from hitting
"reply all" unless you really think everyone on the list needs to
receive the email, Pachter says.
4. Use professional
salutations.
Don't use laid-back, colloquial expressions like,
"Hey, you guys," "Yo," or "Hi, folks."
"The relaxed nature of our writings should not
affect the salutation in an email," she says. "Hey is a very informal
salutation and generally it should not be used in the workplace. And Yo is not
okay either. Use Hi or Hello instead."
She advises against shortening anyone's name. Say
"Hi, Michael," unless you're certain he prefers to be called
"Mike."
5. Use exclamation
points sparingly.
If you choose to use an exclamation point, use only
one to convey excitement, Pachter says.
"People sometimes get carried away and put a
number of exclamation points at the end of their sentences. The result can
appear too emotional or immature," she writes. "Exclamation points
should be used sparingly in writing."
6. Make your message easy to read.
Vary the length of your sentences and paragraphs. "Long sentences
or paragraphs are more difficult to read," says Pachter. "Use bullets
to set off points you want to make."
7. Do not come across
as sounding abrupt.
"Read your message out loud. If it sound harsh
to you, it will sound harsh to the reader," she says.
Avoid negative words such as "failure,"
"wrong," or "neglected."
8. Know that people
from different cultures speak and write differently.
Miscommunication can easily occur, especially in
the writing form when we can't see one another's body language. Tailor your
message depending on the receiver's background or how well you know them.
A good rule to keep in mind, Pachter says, is that
high-context cultures (Japanese, Arab, Chinese) want to get to know you before
doing business with you. Therefore, it may be common for business associates
from these countries to be more personal in their writing. On the other hand,
people from low-context cultures (German, American, Scandinavian) prefer to get
to the point very quickly.
9. Be cautious with
humor.
Humor can easily get lost in translation without
the right tone or facial expressions. In a professional exchange, it's better
to leave humor out of emails unless you know the recipient well. Also,
something that you think is funny might not be funny to someone else.
Pachter says: "Something perceived as funny
when spoken may come across very differently when written. When in doubt, leave
it out."
10. Reply to your
emails — even if the email wasn't intended for you.
It's difficult to reply to every email message ever
sent to you, but you should try to, Pachter says. This includes when the email
was accidentally sent to you, especially if the sender is expecting a reply. A
reply isn't necessary but serves as good email etiquette, especially if this person
works in the same company or industry as you.
Here's an example reply: "I know you're very
busy, but I don't think you meant to send this email to me. And I wanted to let
you know so you can send it to the correct person."
11. Proofread every
message.
Your mistakes won't go unnoticed by the recipients
of your email. "And, depending upon the recipient, you may be judged for
making them," Pachter says.
Don't rely on spell-checkers. Read and reread your
email a few times, preferably aloud, before sending it off.
"One supervisor intended to write 'Sorry for
the inconvenience,'" Pachter says. "But he relied on his spell-check
and ended up writing 'Sorry for the incontinence.'"
12. Be cautious with
emphasis techniques.
With all the options available on computers, it can
be tempting to get carried away using very small or large fonts, bolding,
italics, and different colors. "Don’t," says Pachter. It's
distracting and may be perceived the wrong way.
13. Add the email
address last.
"You don't want to send an email accidentally
before you have finished writing and proofing the message," Pachter says.
"Even when you are replying to a message, it's a good precaution to delete
the recipient's address and insert it only when you are sure the message is
ready to be sent."
14. Double-check that
you’ve selected the correct recipient.
Pachter says to pay careful attention when typing a
name from your address book on the email's "To" line. "It's easy
to select the wrong name, which can be embarrassing to you and to the person
who receives the email by mistake."
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/email-etiquette-rules-every-professional-should-know-2015-4?op=1#ixzz3Z1dwgh5l
