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BUSINESS SCORE CARD
One day
last week, I received 173 emails. I know I am not alone in
having a daily flood in my inbox.
According
to an article in Inc. magazine, the average U.S. employee
spends about a quarter of the work week viewing hundreds of
emails sent and received daily.
As far as
I know, there is no formal rulebook on how to write or
respond to email, and most people are sloppy about writing
and responding to email. Emails are not as long or formal as
letters but they are more formal and longer than texts.
Their subject line, introduction, body and call to action
should be well-thought-out and end with a signature block.
Here are
some basic tips I have discovered over the years that might
help you improve your business communications.
Your
subject line should be clear, concise and descriptive. This
is the single most important factor in determining whether
your email gets opened and read. Marking email urgent or
important is overused; don't do it.
Explain
why you are sending the email. Are you asking the recipients
for an action or are you informing them about something? In
that case, using For Your Information (FYI) may be
appropriate.
When
possible, your business email address should include your
first and last name. There is no reason for someone to guess
who is sending the email. Make sure the recipient's email
address is correct.
Beware of
‘Reply all,’ which is meant to inform all the recipients of
your response. More often than not, you should respond
directly to the sender only. Not everyone in the email chain
wants to receive a dozen responses with information they
don’t need.
Use more
professional salutations to match the level of the
relationship. “Dear Mr. Jones” is okay for a first contact,
while “Hello, Fred” is acceptable for someone you know.
Do not use
exclamations points or all capitals. Using all capitals is
equivalent to shouting. Use bold type sparingly and only if
something is important.
Proof
every email you are about to send. Grammar, spelling and
punctuation are still important. Use Grammarly, a free
software extension, to help you correct grammar, punctuation
errors and spelling.
Do not
send emails if you had too much to drink or you are mad at
someone.
Write the
email before you add recipients. This prevents premature
sending. Double-check the email address if you are sending
to a new contact.
Keep your
email easy to read by selecting a classic typeface like
Times Roman. Additionally, use a font size that is easy to
read (12 to 14 points). Stick with one color, either black
or blue.
Keep your
emails short. The sooner you reply to an email the shorter
your email can be.
While you
should generally avoid using abbreviations and confusing
jargon, I recently learned of an interesting response that
contradicts this suggestion, it is DNR - TL, which stands
for Did Not Read Too Long. Don’t you love it?
Focus on
one subject per email.
Add a
signature block, including your title, company name,
address, phone numbers (business and cell) email address and
your website address. All employees should be consistent
with company branding protocol.
Emails are
like phone calls: Reply to them as soon as possible,
generally within one or two days.
Always
keep in mind that email is evidence mail. Unless you want to
see it blasted in the newspapers, the internet, forwarded or
used in court proceedings, be cautious about what you write.
Watch your tone, avoid sarcasm and be careful using humor.
Keep cc’s
to the minimum number of people in order to accomplish your
objective. Less is more. If someone doesn’t need to know,
then leave them out of this loop. The term “cc,” by the way
is a throwback abbreviation for “carbon copy.” When was the
last time you heard of someone using carbon paper to keep a
copy of their typed correspondence? (Younger readers will
have no idea what the previous sentences mean.) It’s
acceptable to copy an email and send it back to the sender
with comments. I suggest you use a different color for your
response so it stands out.
If an
email contains information that you have requested, a simple
“Thank you” response lets the sender know you received the
email.
If you
desire a response from the recipient, then ask for one. In
Outlook and other email programs, you can request to be
notified when the recipient opens the email.
End your
email with a pleasant closing — thank you, regards,
sincerely or something similar.
Don’t
forward jokes and emails that are in bad taste.
Boomerang,
for Gmail, allows you to send and receive emails at a later
time. You
can schedule automatic delivery times and have emails
returned to your inbox at the time of your choosing.
Some
statistics
According
to Matt Montoya with Constant Contact, 91 percent of people
check their emails in the morning. Because more than half of
the people are checking email on mobile devices, it is
imperative that your email looks good on mobile. Eighty
percent of recipients will delete an email that is not
optimized for mobile. Thirty percent will unsubscribe if
your email is not mobile responsive.
Please
write to me with comments and suggestions, but keep it short
and to the point or I will return your email as DNR - TL.
Dennis Zink is a volunteer, certified mentor and chapter
chairman of Manasota SCORE. He is the creator and host of
Been There, Done That! with Dennis Zink, a nationally
syndicated business podcast series. He facilitates a CEO
roundtable for the Manatee Chamber of Commerce, created a
MeetUp group, Success Strategies for Business Owners and is
a business consultant. Email him at
centreofinfluence@gmail.com.
Keep cc’s
to the minimum number of people in order to accomplish your
objective. Less is more. If someone doesn’t need to know,
then leave them out of this loop. The term “cc,” by the way
is a throwback abbreviation for “carbon copy.” When was the
last time you heard of someone using carbon paper to keep a
copy of their typed correspondence? (Younger readers will
have no idea what the previous sentences mean.) |
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