10 E-mail Etiquette Resolutions for 2009

It’s that time of year — time to make your resolutions. I’ve been online helping folks for over 14 years now and there are still some issues that onliners struggle with or, to be honest, refuse to embrace. This year’s 10 Resolutions are actually issues I see neglected on a daily basis.

1. 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.
2. 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 the message pertains to my “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!
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. 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 focus.
9. 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.
10. 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.

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 thank you for these additional efforts.

Happy New Year!

Holiday Thank You Cards: A Family Tradition

At this time of the year I see the most serious E-mail faux pas run rampant. Assuming it is O.K. to send “thank you” e-mails for gifts received over the Holidays in lieu of actual thank you cards. Thank uou cards, whose use seems to be on the decline due to overall lack of manners in our culture, are not to be replaced by e-mail.

Faux Pas? Yep!

faux pas /foʊ ˈpɑ/ [foh pah] a slip or blunder in etiquette, manners, or conduct; an embarrassing social blunder or indiscretion.

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Stop, Reread and Think Before You Send

Twice this morning I had onliners send accusatory e-mails because they did not take the time to read my previous correspondence. In both cases, my e-mails were very clear. The accusations were born because the other side obviously did not take the time to read my e-mail (or previous e-mails on the same topic) in their entirety.

Yes, I know… We are all in a hurry. Too busy to get anything done. Not enough time in the day! But when you don’t take the time to read, really read, the e-mails you are responding to, you risk looking unappreciative and down right rude. Then, to add salt to the wound, because you assumed based on a quick overview instead of taking the context in it’s entirety, you risk looking downright lazy.

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Offended When Mistake is Pointed Out

A Site Visitor Writes:

I forwarded a certain photograph to a group of people. One of the people on the e-mail list sent back to the whole list (whom she did not know) that the photo was a fake. She looked it up on www.snopes.com. She also stated that “she always checked on the accuracy of things before she forwarded.” This went out to all the other people on my list.

I was not upset that the photo was not authentic. I was a little miffed that she sent to out to my list of 4 others. But what I felt was really rude was her comment that “she always checked out her e-mails for accuracy before forwarding”. So, one would assume that I did not do a good job at these things or I would have done the same. I felt that her comment was really rude. What do you think? Lack of netiquette?

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