You return to your office from an afternoon meeting and decide to check e-mail.
You wonder where your day went after spending hours downloading messages, reading
some, deleting others, crafting replies and filing those that you want to work on
later. Your e-mail box was full when you arrived at work this morning and tomorrow
promises to be no different.
What is this e-mail explosion? Was there a point in time when the entire world
decided to use the Internet as their business communication tool of choice? Are
there rules for managing these messages and being a professional and polite user
of electronic mail? There are, but not everyone has gotten the word.
Your e-mail is as much a part of your professional image as the clothes you wear,
the postal letters you write (assuming you still do), the greeting on your voice
mail and the handshake you offer. If you want to impress on every front and build
positive business relationships, pay attention to your e-mail and steer clear of
these top twelve e-mail mistakes:
1. OMITTING THE SUBJECT LINE. We are way past the time when we didn't realize
the significance of the subject line. It makes no sense to send a message that reads
"no subject" and seems to be about nothing. Given the huge volume of e-mail that
each person receives, the subject header is essential if you want your message read
any time soon. The subject line has become the hook.
2. NOT MAKING YOUR SUBJECT LINE MEANINGFUL. Your header should be pertinent to
your message, not just "Hi" or "Hello." The recipient is going to decide the order
in which he reads e-mail based on who sent it and what it is about. Your e-mail
will have lots of competition.
3. FAILING TO CHANGE THE HEADER TO CORRESPOND WITH THE SUBJECT. For example,
if you are writing your web publisher, your first header may be "Web site content."
However, as your site develops and you send more information, label each message
for what it is, "contact info," "graphics," or "home page." Don't just hit "reply"
every time. Adding more details to the header will allow the recipient to find a
specific document in his/her message folder without having to search every one you
sent. Start a new message if you change the subject all together.
4. NOT PERSONALIZING YOUR MESSAGE TO THE RECIPIENT. E-mail is informal but it
still needs a greeting. Begin with "Dear Mr. Broome," "Dear Jim," "Hello Jim," or
just "Jim." Failure to put in the person's name can make you and your e-mail seem
cold.
5. NOT ACCOUNTING FOR TONE. When you communicate with another person face to
face, 93% of the message is non-verbal. E-mail has no body language. The reader
cannot see your face or hear your tone of voice so chose your words carefully and
thoughtfully. Put yourself in the other person's place and think how your words
may come across in Cyberspace. . 6. FORGETTING TO CHECK FOR SPELLING AND GRAMMAR.
In the early days of e-mail, someone created the notion that this form of communication
did not have to be letter perfect. Wrong. It does. It is a representation of you.
If you don't check to be sure e-mail is correct, people will question the caliber
of other work you do. Use proper capitalization and punctuation, and always check
your spelling. Remember that your spellchecker will catch misspelled words, but
not misused ones. It cannot tell whether you meant to say "from" or "form," "for"
or "fro", "he" or "the."
7. WRITING THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL. E-mail is meant to be brief. Keep your message
short. Use only a few paragraphs and a few sentences per paragraph. People skim
their e-mail so a long missive is wasted. If you find yourself writing an overly
long message, pick up the phone or call a meeting.
8. FORWARDING E-MAIL WITHOUT PERMISSION. Most everyone is guilty of this one,
but think about it. If the message was sent to you and only you, why would you take
responsibility for passing it on? Too often confidential information has gone global
because of someone's lack of judgment. Unless you are asked or request permission,
do not forward anything that was sent just to you.
9. THINKING THAT NO ONE ELSE WILL EVER SEE YOUR E-MAIL. Once it has left your
mailbox, you have no idea where your e-mail will end up. Don't use the Internet
to send anything that you couldn't stand to see on a billboard on your way to work
the next day. Use other means to communicate personal or sensitive information.
10. LEAVING OFF YOUR SIGNATURE. Always close with your name, even though it is
included at the top of the e-mail, and add contact information such as your phone,
fax and street address. The recipient may want to call to talk further or send you
documents that cannot be e-mailed. Creating a formal signature block with all that
data is the most professional approach.
11. EXPECTING AN INSTANT RESPONSE. Not everyone is sitting in front of the computer
with e-mail turned on. The beauty of Internet communication is that it is convenient.
It is not an interruption. People can check their messages when it suits them, not
you. If your communication is so important that you need to hear back right away,
use the phone.
12. COMPLETING THE "TO" LINE FIRST. The name or address of the person to whom
you are writing is actually the last piece of information you should enter. Check
everything else over carefully first. Proof for grammar, punctuation, spelling and
clarity. Did you say what needed to be said? How was your "tone of voice"? If you
were the least bit emotional when you wrote the e-mail, did you let it sit for a
period of time? Did you include the attachment you wanted to send? If you enter
the recipient's name first, a mere slip of the finger can send a message before
its' time. You can never take it back.
E-mail makes everything easier and faster including making a powerful business
impression and establishing positive professional relationships. The businessperson
who uses the technology effectively and appropriately will see the results of that
effort reflected in the bottom line.
