E-mail etiquette
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By Nona Parsons
Marketing Manager
ZyQuest, Inc.
E-mail is one of the most useful benefits of the Internet. It is also the most annoying.
Everyone knows the e-mail comedian who sends you several jokes every day. Sometimes they are amusing, but usually
they aren't even worth the time it takes to delete them. Then there are those people who think that you will immediately
drop everything to respond to their email. These folks also call 10 minutes later to ask if you read their email.
Some of us have jobs to do!
The positive thing is that email has revolutionized communications. We can have virtually instant contact with
anyone in the world. Business moves at the speed of email now. We can do business in our pajamas at 3 o'clock in
the morning. Ain't technology grand?
The downside is that lots of folks don¹t know that there is a right way and a wrong way to use email. I'm
not Emily Post, but here is my short course on business email etiquette.
Email was designed to communicate information. It should be clear and concise. You need to remember that you are
representing your company. Turn on your spell checker and reread your work to be sure it makes sense.
Don't fall into the habit of using cryptic abbreviations. If it is worth writing about, it is worth taking the
time to make it understandable, especially if you are giving someone instructions.
Use the automatic signature feature and include your company information so people can get in touch with you for
more info, or to chat by phone.
Use the automatic "out of office" reply feature when you are on vacation or out for more than a few hours.
Offer the email or phone number of someone they can contact in an emergency.
Remember to attach that important file you referenced before you press the send button. I have to plead guilty
to being the worst offender in this category.
Remember to push the "reply to all" button only when you mean it. It's easy to hit the wrong button and
send it out to everyone on the list. This is especially bad if you are complaining about someone else on the list
(like your boss).
Some email providers cannot handle multiple or large attachments. Be courteous. Ask before you send a large attachment
to someone. It may bomb their computer or take ages to download the files. This is especially true if your addressee
is using a phone line for their Internet access.
Do not forward messages without permission, especially to someone outside your company. Forwarded messages often
contain content that shouldn't be shared with others - and it can come back to haunt you.
Use email when you need a paper trail. Not only can you print the notes as you receive them, but often email provides
important historical perspective after you have exchanged 20 messages in response to the original email.
If an email requires immediate action, mark it as urgent. If it isn't marked, the recipient won't know that you
are having a crisis.
Most people receive some personal emails at work. This is a fact of business life. Remember not to overuse this
privilege. Also remember to delete confidential messages. Most of us leave our systems up during the day and anyone
can sit down when we run to a meeting and snoop through our lives. Don't forget to delete the sent messages, too.
Most of all. If someone is sending you questionable (here I mean explicitly sexual) messages or pictures, tell
them to stop immediately. Most companies have policies prohibiting such usage of company computers. Management
can check your files and you can get fired for such behavior, even if you are just receiving the stuff. You never
know who will be looking over your shoulder when you open your email.
I have horror stories to illustrate most of the above points, but space, and decorum, prevent me from sharing them
here. I will include only one. The first time I emailed this column to the editor, I forgot to attach the file.
Some of us never learn.
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