I have a pet peeve. Call me picky, but when it comes to any type of email etiquette, you need to make an impression that lends to the fact that you are a credible professional. I see too many people - young professionals and seasoned professionals - send emails that would make anyone’s high school English teacher cringe. You only have one chance to make a good first impression which will be invaluable to building trust and confidence. Call it snobbish, call it stuck up...call it what you will, but true professionals act - and write like it.
Don't get me wrong, there is a method behind my madness. When I write emails, I read and re-read and re-read, before I hit send. I always want to make sure what I am sending is factual, considerate, professional, and to the point. It’s my way of saying, "Hey, I value our professional relationship.” I wish more people would adopt this way of thinking. But hey, that’s just me.
Are You Making These Five Email Blunders?
1. The “SUBJECT” field can determine if your email will even be opened. If this is an initial contact with a customer based on their request through your site or otherwise, be sure to have a short SUBJECT: that indicates clearly, the topic of the email. Typos, all caps or all small case letters, can lend to the impression you may be spammer.
2. The“TO:” field, make sure you have your contact’s name formally typed. John B. Doe – not john b doe or JOHN B DOE…
a. …BCc: Stands for "Blind Carbon Copy" and you should use this field when e-mailing a group of contacts who do not personally know each other. By listing an arm’s length list of e-mail addresses in the Cc or TO fields of contacts who do not know each other or who have never met is conducive to publishing their e-mail address to strangers. This is a privacy issue! With those you are forging partnerships with, visibly listing their e-mail address in with a group of strangers will make one wonder what other privacy issues you may not respect or understand.
b. ...Cc: Stands for "Carbon Copy" and you should use this this field when there are a handful of associates involved in a discussion that requires all be on the same page. These business people know each other or have been introduced and have no problem having their e-mail address exposed to the parties involved.If you are not sure if a business associate would mind their address being made public, ask!
3. Formatting: Refain from using any formatting in yout day-to-day business email communications. Unless you would type something in bold crimson letters on business letterhead, don’t do it when emailing. With all the spam filtering going on today; the more formatting or embedded images, the higher the chance that your e-mail will be blocked and considered spam mail. Even something as simple as using a different font makes your email’s display contingent upon the recipient having that specific font on their system or it defaults to their designated default font.
Keep in mind the recipient may not have their e-mail program configured in such a way as to display your formatting the way it appears on your system. You must take into consideration the fact that others may not have the latest version of Microsoft Word that you typed your letter with and/or they may not understand how to acquire it.
Anotherthing to consider when formatting an email is to removeparts of the previous e-mail that no longer applies to your response. This includes email headers and signature files. By doing so, it removes the clutter. By making the effort to reply, point by point, keeps the conversation on track and leads to fewer misunderstandings.
4. CommonCourtesy: “Hello, Hi, Good Day, Thank You, Sincerely, BestRegards,” all those intros and sign offs that are a staple of professional business communications should also be used in your business email communications. Always have a salutation and sign off that includes your name with every email. Here again – think business letterhead.
Courtesy also includes that you make the effort to communicate as an educated adult. You must type in full sentences, with proper sentence structure. Do not type using all caps and do not type using all small letters.
Take the time to proofread and use proper capitalization and punctuation. This is not only a must, but it conveys the fact that you take the time and pride in yourself – that you are an educated person who wants to be taken seriously. Therefore,you need to communicate as such. All caps or all small case letters either leads people to believe you lack education, tech/business savvy — or you are just plain lazy. None of which is positive for instilling confidence or encouraging others to want to do business with you.
5. RespondPromptly: Let’s face it, time is of the essence. You should do your best to respond to your business communications as quickly as possible. You would want people to respond to you in a timely manner, right? This is true, even if it just means typing a one line message, for example, “I do not have an answer right now but as soon as I have more information I will get back to you.” In the least, this is the considerate thingto do. This is a customer service issue that should not be underestimated. By not responding promptly you appear unorganized, uncaring or worse yet, risk being outperformed by your competitors who understand the importance of appearing efficient and on the ball.
I can’t help but think that our society has gotten lazy with the way it communicates. Who can blame me when so many have grown accustomed to texting and finding ways to do things at the speed of light? With that understanding, I am still very traditional when it comes to how business correspondence should be conducted. The bottom line is, when it comes to business, regardless of the mode of communication, professionalism and courtesy never go out of style!
Let me know what you think. I welcome comments and look forward to what you have to say. Thanks and happy job hunting. - Debra Manente
