Email Etiquette

[Edward Tinker]

okay, I know this does not pertain to anyone on this forum specifically, but this was sent from my aunt, so I thought it cute enough to pass along.

BTW, I don't agree with about a 1/3rd of what is said here


Ed

10 Every Day E-mail Etiquette Resolutions for 2011

December 28, 2010 by Judith

It’s that time of year — time to make your resolutions. I’ve been online helping folks for over 16 years now (Wow! Time flies when you are having fun!) and there are still some issues that onliners struggle with or, to be honest, refuse to embrace.
So raise your hand and repeat after me…

1. I will configure my e-mail program to reflect my proper name in the From: field. First Name, Last Name; both properly capitalized. Not in all small case; not in all caps. This will help to ensure my e-mails are recognized and look legitimate instead of being misidentified as spam.
2. I will refrain from using bold or red text to reflect emphasis in my e-mail’s tone. Doing so leaves the level of emphasis up to the other side which can cause misunderstandings. Instead, I will choose my words carefully to reflect my intent and meaning.
3. I will not forward e-mails that say “forward to all your friends” because I know by forwarding an e-mail to a bunch of people really is not personal and carries no special meaning at all. If I find a message that truly pertains to any of my real “friends”, I will send a copy to each one individually with a personal note about why I am forwarding them that message. Now that’s thoughtful!
4. I will not list all my contacts in the To: or Cc: field. This will expose their addresses to strangers and is a serious breach of privacy and trust. When e-mailing a group of people that do not know each other, I will always use the BCc: field.
5. I will start every e-mail with a nice greeting and sign off with a closing and my name. One sentence e-mails without these efforts are perceived as demanding, terse and/or rude.
6. I will never send unannounced large attachments without first asking if the person on the other side would be interested in what the attachments contain and when would be the best time to send them so they can keep their inbox clear.
7. I will continually work on my writing and communication skills so that my e-mails are not misunderstood or disregarded. Lack of spell checking, grammar and proper sentence structure reflects a lack of education or concern about being taken seriously.
8. I will always check my junk or trash folder to see if any e-mails were filtered there by mistake before I send off follow-ups or e-mails insinuating lack of response from those I am communicating with.
9. I will ensure the Subject: field of every e-mail is clear and concise about the topic of my communication and will make the effort to change the Subject: field when the conversation changes direction.
10. I will make a point of thanking those who help me via e-mail. Whether it be a Web site, Blog, discussion board or friendly Netizen who answers my questions or offers assistance when I e-mail them, I will thank them and let them know their efforts on my behalf are truly appreciated.

It is your choice how to use technology and whether it will hinder or help your communications. How about makings these 10 Resolutions when it comes to your day to day e-mail activities? You can bet those you communicate with will be grateful!

[Olle]

I'd like to add this:

11. I will try to follow rules 1-10, even if I'm doing it from my cell phone.

I just had an interesting experience with a guy who was selling guns on a local sales site. The e-mails I received were very short, had plenty of bad grammar, some were all caps etc. and they gave me the impression that the guy was an uneducated teenager, a total jerk and had very unrealistic expectations about the value of his guns. After a short exchange of e-mail, I finally wrote him off as a hopeless case.

A couple of months later I decided to give it a shot anyway, and after another few e-mails of the same nature I managed to set up a meeting with him. Come to find out, the guy is super nice and very reasonable, and I ended up buying three of his guns. I might even buy a 4th gun from him later, just didn't bring enough cash to get it.

He's working out of town most of the time and uses his cell phone to send and receive e-mail, so that was the simple reason why the e-mails were like they were and that's why I got such a bad impression of him to begin with. I figure that everybody else had the same impression, as he still had all the guns he had been advertising. The moral of the story is that I almost passed on three nice and reasonably priced guns captured by his Granddad in WWII, just because of my perception of him. So in short, it pays off to put some effort in how you write your e-mail, not only in the gun business.

[lugerholsterrepair]

10, I will make a point of thanking those who help me via e-mail. Whether it be a Web site, Blog, discussion board or friendly Netizen who answers my questions or offers assistance when I e-mail them, I will thank them and let them know their efforts on my behalf are truly appreciated.

What the heck is discussion board or friendly Netizen ?

Jerry Burney

[Edward Tinker]

Originally Posted by lugerholsterrepair

What the heck is discussion board or friendly Netizen ?

A discussion board is..... this

Netizen is the slang term for an internet citizen

[sheepherder]

I have a BlackBerry 9630 'Tour' for my "smartphone" and it is almost impossible to get out a proper gramatically correct email. The keys are too small & close together, and there is no backspace...It only back-deletes, so you can't skip over letters to get to what you want to correct. Capitalizing adds another keystroke to the word.

In a year and a half of owning it, I've only sent emails to myself. Mostly URLs to click with my browser so I don't have to spell it out...

[Lyn Islaub]

Time to update to a Blackberry Curve Rich. My business doesn't allow the I-Phone so I just got a new Curve and it is a significant improvement over the "Tour" or 8800 models. Even has spell check active as you type messages.
Lyn

[Don M]

Way to go, Judith!