Do you ever get an email from someone, roll your eyes and think "Oh it's him
again". You know the type who never stops forwarding you crass jokes or life's teachings
you never read. Email is by itself great. It's fast and easy but those very same
qualities also make it easy for us to pass along stuff that simply intrude on other's
routine. Add to it the spam issue that's going to be here for a while, email is
no longer as enjoyable as it used to be. So when you're sending email, it's a good
idea not to add to people's email distress. Here are 7 habits of a good email sender.
1. Do not forward emails without asking first. Just because someone gave you
their email or are friends and family doesn't mean they give you permission to spam
them. That's right. It doesn't matter whether you're getting email from someone
you know or that it's not commercial in nature. Fact is, people consider any unsolicited
mail spam. When someone gives you their email, they want to hear from you, not a
story or a joke. Once or twice is ok, make it a habit and you'll get under their
skin. So what do you do? Ask first.
2. Don't double send email and Instant Message. That's just a waste of everyone's
time and floods the receipient with messages. You'll just come accross as pushy.
3. Becareful with and pay attention to your TO's and CC's. If there are many
people you'd like to share a message with, use BCC instead or everyone on the receiving
end will be able to see everyone else's email address. You don't want to be spreading
other people's email address now do you? There have been times some emails received
contain a whole list of other people's email address because they have been forwarded
and passed outside the realm of friends and family over and over. Who knows where
the email will end up?
4. Use Reply All sparingly or never at all. If you're receiving an email with
many CC's or BCC's. Make sure your reply is only to the sender. You don't want to
send email to people who don't know you.
5. Treat attachments as sacred. If it's the first time you're working with someone
or sending them attachments it's a good idea to ask first. Most people have set
up filters and firewalls to delete messages with attachments. If you give them a
heads up, they can expect it and probably respect you more for it.
6. Get to the point. Most people gloss over their emails. Don't make them read
a novel. Get to the point quickly and say it outright what you expect from them
if you expect any action at all. Also, you know those fancy stationery? The ones
with fancy background and a ton of eye candy? Turn them off. Some people have their
email readers to not read anything but plain text and that's just distracting.
7. Good subject lines and put your name to it. Set up your email so that it'll
show your name not your email address when someone receives it. People recognize
your name but may not recognize your email. Also try to be descriptive in your subject
line. That's one of the first things they see. You want them to read and not think
you're sending them junk.
So there you have it. If you follow these simple principles, people won't be
afraid to receive email from you. More importantly, they'll know you're trustworthy
and respect their privacy.
