Email Etiquette
info@drakehs.com

The business world has become very dependent on email correspondence for the exchange of information inside and outside of companies. Unfortunately, the basics of spelling, grammar, and punctuation and the art of writing are falling by the wayside in exchange for the quickest way to get the point across. Unfortunately, the quickest way may not be the clearest way to convey what you're trying to say. While you may not follow the conventional rules of writing a business letter when you're typing an email, there are some basic rules you should follow.

1. Be concise and to the point.
   Do not make an e-mail longer than it needs to be. Remember that reading an e-mail is harder than reading printed communications and a long e-mail can be very discouraging to read. Also keep in mind that many people now read their emails on PDA's, and the longer the email the harder it is to read on that tiny screen.
2. Use BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) and CC(Carbon Copy) Properly
   Spam is a big issue for anyone who has an email account. Never send information to more people than is necessary. Also, when sending information to a group of people who don't necessarily know each other, use BCC(Blind Carbon Copy) instead of CC(Carbon Copy to avoid broadcasting everyone's email address to one another.. People appreciate it when you respect their privacy.
3. Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation.
   This is not only important because improper spelling, grammar and punctuation give a bad impression of your company, it is also important for conveying the message properly. E-mails with no full stops or commas are difficult to read and can sometimes even change the meaning of the text. If your program has a spell checking option, why not use it?
4. Make it personal.
   Not only should the e-mail be personally addressed, it should also include personal i.e. customized content. For this reason auto replies are usually not very effective. However, templates can be used effectively in this way, see next tip.
5. Use templates for frequently used responses.
   Some questions you get over and over again, such as directions to your office or how to subscribe to your newsletter. Save these texts as response templates and paste these into your message when you need them. You can save your templates in a Word document, or use pre-formatted emails.
6. Answer swiftly.
   Customers send an e-mail because they wish to receive a quick response. If they did not want a quick response they would have sent a letter or a fax. Therefore, each e-mail should be replied to within at least 24 hours, and preferably within the same working day. If the email is complicated, just send an email back saying that you have received it and that you will get back to them. This will put the customer's mind at rest and usually customers will then be very patient!
7. Use proper structure & layout.
   Since reading from a screen is more difficult than reading from paper, the structure and layout is very important for e-mail messages. Use short paragraphs and blank lines between each paragraph. When making points, number them or mark each point as separate to keep the overview.
8. Do not write in CAPITALS.
   IF YOU WRITE IN CAPITALS IT SEEMS AS IF YOU ARE SHOUTING. This can be highly annoying and may send your recipient the wrong message. Therefore, try not to send any email text in all capitals.
9. Add disclaimers to your emails.
   It is important to add disclaimers to your internal and external mails, since this can help protect your company from liability. Consider the following scenario: an employee accidentally forwards a virus to a customer by email. The customer decides to sue your company for damages. If you add a disclaimer at the bottom of every external mail, saying that the recipient must check each email for viruses and that it cannot be held liable for any transmitted viruses, this will surely be of help to you in court. Another example: an employee sues the company for allowing a racist email to circulate the office. If your company has an email policy in place and adds an email disclaimer to every message that states that employees are expressly required not to make defamatory statements, you have a good case of proving that the company did everything it could to prevent offensive emails.
10. Read the email before you send it.
    Read, re-read, and read again! While you may be able to type 65 words per minute, this does not mean you have properly conveyed your message or that it is free from errors. Take a few minutes to read through it and check. If it's a longer correspondence, get up and do something else for a few minutes, then come back and look at it. You may avoid confusion or unnecessary questions if you take a few minutes to proof read your emails.
11. Take care with abbreviations & emoticons.
    With the advent of text messaging, shorthand speak has become very popular. Shortening words like really(rly), by the way(btw), and tomorrow(2moro) does quicken the texting process, but this style of writing has no place in a business email. While you should be short and to the point, shorthand words can be confusing and look very unprofessional. Emoticons (such as the smiley :) ) can also be confusing to someone who does not understand it's meaning. Remember, the point of any type of communication is to get your point across as smoothly as possible.
12. Use a meaningful subject.
    Try to use a subject that is meaningful to the recipient as well as yourself. For instance, when you send an email to a company requesting information about a product, it is better to mention the actual name of the product, e.g. 'Product A information' than to just say 'product information' or the company's name in the subject.
13. Don't send or forward emails containing libelous, defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks.
    By sending or even just forwarding one libelous or offensive remark in an email, you and your company can face court cases resulting in multi-million dollar penalties.
14. Keep your language gender-neutral.
    In this day and age, avoid using sexist language such as: 'The user should add a signature by configuring his email program.' Apart from using he/she, you can also use the neutral gender: 'The user should add a signature by configuring the email program.'