Email Etiquettes

| Wednesday, October 7, 2009
‘Leadership and communication are inseparable.
You can’t have one without the other.’
lEmail: What is it?
lEmail is a conversation that does not require an immediate response
–Not interactive
lUnlike a telephone or Instant Message
–Receiver can deal with it when they can
lWhat is Email Etiquette?
Etiquette is defined as the rules governing socially acceptable behavior. Socially
acceptable behavior varies greatly depending on who you are with, your
relationship to that person, and the environment that you are in.
Øwriting to coworkers
Øwriting to coworkers supervisor or administrators
lWhy do you need email etiquette?
lProfessionalism
lEfficiency
lProtection from liability
lGeneral email format
lTo, Cc, Bcc
lSubject line
–Short descriptive
–Replying to messages
lBody
–Salutations
–Attachment
–Signature
lGeneral email format
lSalutation:
Ø Hi
Can be used to anyone… any superior or any group of people.
Ø Hello
Good to use when the recipient is at equal level to you
Ø Dear
Generally it is used by any superior to give a comfort level to the junior recipient.
Ø Mail can start directly with name, but not in case if the recipient is at a superior position.
lGeneral email format
lMail Body:
ØThis is the actual thing, you want to convey through this mail…
ØAnything that you write, reflects your personality.
lGeneral email format
lAttachments:
ØKeep in mind your organization policies while sending any file via email.
ØFollow a proper naming convention and proper versioning for attachments.
ØFile names should be clear enough to understand its contents.
lGeneral email format
lSignature:
ØUsually consists of
•Name
•Designation / Department
•Organization
•Contact details
•Official URL, if any
ØSignature format should be constant for every mail
ØSimple and decent
ØAvoid too much animations and graphics in the signature
lWhat are the etiquette rules?
lBe concise and to the point
lAnswer all questions
lUse proper spelling, grammar & punctuation
lUse templates for frequently used responses
lDo not attach unnecessary files
lDo not overuse the high priority option
lDo not write in CAPITALS
l Don't leave out the message thread
lRead the email before you send it
lDo not overuse Reply to All
lTake care with abbreviations and emoticons
lBe careful with formatting
lDo not use email to discuss confidential information
lUse active instead of passive
lAvoid long sentences
lKeep your language gender neutral
lDon't reply to spam
lUse cc: field sparingly
lInteractions with American clients
lDo not write "the same" in an email - it makes little sense to them.
lDo not write or say, "I have some doubts on this issue"
lThe term "regard" is not used much in American English
lThere is no actual word called “prepone”
lInteractions with American clients
lTerms such as "September End", "Month End", "Day End"
lAmericans have weird conventions for time Better to ask them the exact time
lIndians commonly use the terms "Today Evening", "Today Night” , "Yesterday Night" and "Yesterday Evening".
lInteractions with American clients
lThere is no word called "Updation"
lAvoid using the words
–Back
–But
–Yesterday
–Tomorrow

0 comments: