what are the 6 basic rules of email etiquette?

Moreover, your tone should typically be courteous and professional throughout your email, meaning contractions such as "don't," "can't," or "won't" are a no-go. It can make the content extremely informal when used inappropriately. Always remember what former CIA chief General David Petraeus apparently forgot, warns Pachter:Everyelectronic message leaves a trail. Refrain from emotionally-charged emails. Protection from liability: Awareness of email stakes will protect you and your organization from costly lawsuits. All jokes aside, Im sure weve all been there. Use a direct subject line 2. For example, if youve written a short paragraph about a task you need done, you might use italics to call out an important step that needs to be taken in the process, or you might use bold fonts to highlight the due date. People in the To field should be your primary intended recipients, while the CC field is meant as a courtesy to keep others in the loop. A single letter out of place, or a mis-clicked auto-filled contact could mean that your important envelope order is sent to your embroidery vendor. This is a BETA experience. So what if you dont have an important action item for your recipient to perform? Patricia Eddy is the lead content writer for Outlook Desktop. Robust, real-time communication assistance, Write, rewrite, get ideas, and quickly reply with GrammarlyGO, Features to polish, grammar, tone, clarity, team consistency, and more, Writing assistance on 500,000+ apps and sites across your devices, For desktop apps and websites like Word and Gmail, For sites like Google Docs, Gmail, and LinkedIn, Check for grammar, spelling, and punctuation mistakes, Format citations in APA, MLA, and Chicago, When to Use Former vs. Latter, With Examples. So write direct words instead of using abbreviations that you only know. Don't share controversial topics 9. For more, see our complete guide to the ideal email length. Always re-read emails before sending them. To avoid this, add the recipient's email address last after you've proofread your email and are confident that it's ready to be sent. A clear and concise subject line will let the recipient know what the email is about and encourage them to open it. 5 Golden Rules of E-mail Etiquette. Your email address can be your first name or a combination of your first and last name. Talk to your employees about your expectations for their email standards, and when you encounter breaches of etiquette within your team, be sure to politely point them out (along with solutions for how to correct them in the future). Neelabja writes about best practices and strategies shes used throughout her 7-year long career to level-set content marketing expectations and produce high ROI content. Email isn't texting. Also, something that you think is funny might not be funny to someone else. When I worked as a video game journalist, there was a public relations rep who became infamous for sending a PR email to a huge list of journalists using CC, which revealed every one of those journalists carefully guarded email addresses. Google Workspace Shared Mailbox: The Ultimate Guide, How to Write a Formal Email (and 3 Examples), How to Apologize Professionally in an Email. A clear and concise subject line will let the recipient know what the email is about and encourage them to open it. Then, decide what your objective iswhat are you hoping will happen as the result of sending this email? Don't let emails sit around in your queue unanswered. That means limiting irony and sarcasm, even if theres a brilliant opportunity to drop one of your witty asides. Theres no real excuse for misspelling someones name in an email. Organize the content of your message from most important to least. Use 'Reply all' only when all people should be aware of the message. These days Im an expert emailer whos sent bulk email campaigns with 55 percent response rates. So the general rule of thumb here is to stick to the original email chain for any given topic so everyone can refer to the same information. Are there spelling errors? 33. Required fields are marked *. So, no matter who you are or what you do, in a world where first impressions matter, it is vital to ensure your emails are well-written and polished. Using the 'Reply all' only when essential can help avoid sending unnecessary emails to people. Compress and/or resize attachments when you can. Have you made any embarrassing email faux pas? Fortunately, there aren't that many rules to remember. If you dont have the information necessary to provide a comprehensive response, an acknowledgment message, like I got your emailIll be able to give you a better answer in a few days is suitable. "Choose one that lets readers know you are addressing their concerns or business issues.". Explore subscription benefits, browse training courses, learn how to secure your device, and more. Eyes forward. "People sometimes get carried awayand put a number of exclamation points at the end of their sentences. ", "People often decide whether to open an email based on the subject line," Pachter says. Use a signature that includes your contact information. Dont send more than three attachments on a single email without warning. I dont know how many times Ive read a rambling email only to wind up thinking, Okay, but what does this person want from me? For the love of all things electronic, dont use email as a means to do a brain dump. A good rule to keep in mind, Pachter says, is that high-context cultures (Japanese, Arab, or Chinese) want to get to know you before doing business with you. As foretold, try using bold and italics to emphasize certain sections of text, or to draw the eyes to one section over another. These days, were all wary about opening email attachments, even from known sources. Respect the difference between "To" and "CC." 5. Email etiquette tip number six: Hyperlink whatever possible. Principle 2 - Use the Queen's English. It is the most common way for professionals and businesses to communicate. Here's an example reply: "I know you're verybusy, but I don't think you meant to send this email to me. Misspelling someones name is a sign that you either dont care about the details of your message, or you were too lazy to double check the spelling. Your subject line should grab the attention of your reader. I KNOW ITS OCCASIONALLY TEMPTING TO WRITE A MESSAGE IN ALL CAPS WHEN YOU WANT TO EMPHASIZE SOMETHING. So, before pressing send, make sure youre using email as an appropriate form of business communication. Just ask my mom, who was talked out of the name she wanted for me. Instead, opt for something like Just checking in, or Lunch this Friday? to add specificity and ensure your recipient will be able to judge the overall content of your message at a glance and appropriately prioritize when to read it. An interactive checklist to send error-free emails. Checking your spam folder is good etiquette; its hard for a sender to know that their message has been sent to spam, and this proactive step can prevent a ton of lost communications. Plus, if you use the correct email signature size, it will make you look more credible and professional. Principle 5 - Use Address Fields Professionally. Email etiquette is the socially appropriate code for greetings, salutations, titles, pronouns, tone of voice when writing an email. If you immediately launch into a request, or a sales pitch, theyre going to delete the email without a second thought. Not to mention, it's also very difficult to read and a classic example of bad office email etiquette. Subject lines such as "Question about your presentation" or "Following up on our conversation" are more likely to be opened than a generic one like "Hello," which doesnt actually say anything. This helps you present a professional and polished image. Again, this is a standard setting you can play around with in all of the email apps. So without further ado, my first step is to have a call to action, when appropriate, in the email subject line. Now lets take a look at some of the most important email etiquette rules to follow, why you should follow them, and of course, how you can follow them without making an ass of yourself: The first rule of email etiquette is to use an appropriate email addresswhich usually means a ([emailprotected]) style address, or something similarly tied to your companys domain. That doesnt mean you need to jump on every email you get with lightning-fast reflexes, but it does mean you should strive to respond to an email within a day or so. Poorly-written emails have the potential to bring damage to your brand. Using email can be an effective business communication tool when used correctly. You may opt-out by. 3. Whether you're writing an email to someone for the first time or sending a follow-up email, the same emailing rules apply, so keep your subject line short, sweet, and to the point. 7. Short replies of only one line were considered rude and abrupt, but it has become acceptable. In general, its best to abstain from negativity over email. Emojis were once considered too casual but are now accepted in many offices. So, if you can reply right away, do so. uniquely devised for each service or software type. For best results, avoid using unequivocally negative words ("failure," "wrong," "neglected"), and always say "please" and "thank you.". Okay, Im willing to admit that email isnt a perfect communication medium, and part of that is because its practically impossible to evoke tone the same way you can in person (or even over the phone). Differentiate your text from the original message. Need further incentive to lay off the caps lock? That said, its rarely a good idea to send more than three follow-ups. Its true that theres a download all button that allows recipients to download all your attachments at once, but sending too many files on a single email can still clutter your message and make things harder to manage. Check for grammar, typos, context errors, and formatting errors. You can reach her at neelabja@mailmodo.com for a chat on the latest innovations in email marketing. The way I think about it, lets say your reply to an email in a rush and you do make a mistake, the damage is contained to that one recipient because your default setting is to reply to one person instead of reply all. Routinely copying others on emails clogs mailboxes and can lead to the main recipient wondering why you're doing so. Even if nobody seems to use it, this displays that youre open to other methods of conversation, and acknowledges that your emails arent perfect. It also reduces the potential that your poorly-worded negativity could be used against you in the future, or be held with resentment, since there wont be a permanent record of it. Some email platforms allow you to use different text colors in the body of your email, or in your email signature. Using emojis or inserting funny GIFs is great for some situations, but not all. Theres no official rulebook or ancient tome for email etiquette, but almost every written or unwritten rule we follow falls into one of a few main categories. 3. 8. If, however, you are sending a mass email, be sure to include a clear call-to-action so that your recipients know what you want them to do. The best rule of thumb here is to pretend that every message you send will one day be public information, or will be read aloud at your funeral; this will force you to filter what you say, and err on the side of caution. This may come across as sneaky behavior on your part.

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