Email Etiquette Tips for Professionals Even after the advent of social media and improvements in text messaging, email is still the mode of communication that continues to prevail in the professional realm. The ability to give direction, put out fires, and more without being face-to-face has enabled many businesses to use email as a productivity tool. However, there are times when professionalism goes out of the window, and etiquette rules are forgotten. Today, we will take a look at 12 email etiquette tips for business professionals. More yet to come! 1. Greeting s and Send-offs I never start an email with the contents. An email always begins with a sound introduction or with the recipients name. This will, in the beginning, let them know to whom they are speaking with. When you begin by acknowledging them by name (e.g., Dear, Elie/Jad), you will let them know whom you intend on talking with. When you are done with an email, always finish by saying Thank you or Thanks or Cheers, to practice good etiquette and respect. 2. Know When to Call Not all communication has to occur through email. Once conversation begins to mention specifics, it may be wise to schedule a phone call—this can prevent misunderstandings and can even expedite your correspondence. It is also respectful to pick up the phone when a meeting, scheduled by email, is cancelled. 3. Mind Your Punctuation Professionalism involves knowing how to mind your punctuation. In a standard email correspondence, you should use periods and question marks about 95% of the time. Leave exclamation points to when your conversation is light-hearted, and youre familiar with the recipient. 4. The Clock is Ticking When dealing with business, never keep them waiting. As the saying goes, time is money. You should never let a recipient wait more than two days for your reply. Just like a phone call, waiting on an email can hold up progress on whatever project you are attempting to establish. After all, isnt that why youre emailing and not using snail mail? 5. Write it Right Grammar and spelling should be two considerations when emailing in a professional environment. Even though the content is the star of the email, ensuring that your grammar is in check allows the business acquaintance to know that you are taking the conversation seriously. Most email clients have spelling and grammar checks, so use them! 6. Consider Company Culture Lets be honest—while grammar and tone should be professional, we must still consider the companies that we are contacting. Inner business emails between more relaxed companies will of course be a bit different from, lets say, the White House. While minding your grammar, continue to give off an approachable vibe while emailing. 7. Engineer the Perfect Subject Line The first thing your recipient sees is the subject line. Frankly, they will discern the importance of an email by a subject line before reading its contents. Make sure you leave a great impression by being mindful of capitalization, being concise, and to the point. 8. Reply vs. Reply-All Nothing is more embarrassing than sending a mass email that was intended for only one recipient. This is the result of an email that began with multiple recipients. When replying, you will have the option to Reply—which emails the sender—or Reply-All, which sends your message to everyone the original message was sent to. Double check before sending, or youll be sorry. 9. Consider The Privacy of Others There will be instances when youll have to send business emails to multiple recipients who may not know each other. The recipients email address is added to the To: section in average emails, but in multiple recipient emails, you should add the addresses to the BCC or Blind Carbon Copy section, to prevent others from viewing recipient addresses. 10. Tailor a Signature Unlike a greeting or send-off, an email signature is automatically added to the bottom of a message, where you can add a small biography and contact information. This doesnt replace a quality greeting, but it does allow a new acquaintance to learn more about you and to know where to get in contact with you. 11. Go in Vacation Mode Several times a year, during vacation, I usually find myself separated from my email. As seen in tip #4, time is of the essence, and its rude to leave an email in your inbox unanswered. To alert individuals of my absence, I add an auto-responder (through Gmail, but also available on other clients) mentioning of why Im gone and when I will return. 12. Be Mindful of Links Hackers have found ways to add viruses and malware to attachments and links. When forwarding emails, ensure that the links and attachments are safe. Also, reduce the number of chain messages you forward and never send any from an unknown recipient.
Posted on: Sat, 05 Jul 2014 21:15:26 +0000
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