Email Etiquette:

1. Email Etiquette: Keeping Your Foot Out of Your Virtual Mouth

2. Email etiquette is evolving too • E-mail has quickly become a communication standard and the Internet’s most popular application. Both the number of e-mail users and the usage rates are continuing to grow exponentially. Mischelle Davis, V.P. of marketing communications at NewWorldIQ

3. Where are we now? • Right now online writing is pretty muchin its Wild West stage, a free- for-all with everybody shooting from the hip and nosheriff in sight. O’Conner & Kellerman (2002)

4. What makes email different?

5. Difference: Tone • No nonverbal cues • Tone becomes crucial

6. Difference: Tone • No nonverbal cues • Tone becomes crucial • In Germany and Britain, 23 percent and 14 percent respectively [of respondents to a Daily Mail survey] admitted confrontations with colleagues because of e-mail misunderstandings.

7. Criticisms are harsher • Messages meant to express mild displeasure can come across as tirades. • Louise Dobson, Avoiding Email Catastrophes (2006)

8. Tone: Example One To: Female employees From: H. Honcho Re: Dress code Date: 1 July 2006 Clients will be visiting next week. Halter tops and jeans will not make the right impression. It’s time you started dressing for the office instead of the beach. Leave your flip-flops at home!

9. Tone: Example Two To: All staff From: H. Honcho Re: Reminder about what to wear to work Date: 1 July 2006 During the summer, our dress code is business casual. We think “business casual” means clothes that feel comfortable and look professional. Men Women •khaki pants •casual pants and skirts •leather shoes… •leather or fabric shoes…

10. Tips: Tone • Avoid terseness, which can be misinterpreted • Use face-to-face communication if issue is sensitive • Read your emails aloud, looking for ambiguity

11. Humor: Riskier • Nearly a quarter of employees have suffered problems with colleagues or clients because their use of humour in an email has not been understood or appreciated, according to a survey. • Robert Jacques, “Email Jokes Backfire for UK Workers” (2004)

12. Humor: Often misinterpreted • Participants [in recent studies] were able to accurately communicate humor and sarcasm in barely half -- • 56 percent -- of the emails they sent. • Louise Dobson (2006)

13. Tips: Humor • If in doubt, don’t send it.Chevron was forced to pay $2.2 millionto settle a harassment case based in part on emails with such subjects as “Why beer is better than women.” • Reread for ambiguities. • Signal the joke.One emoticon or <grin> per email is plenty.

14. Difference: Levels of formality • Most people view email as • more formal than a phone call • less formal than a letter

15. Tip: Spelling still counts This is an actual email. Purposal I can beat almost anyones price and almost promise you success and if I don’t reach it, we wont charge you after the time we say we can achieve it until we do.

16. Tip: Spelling still counts • Sloppiness is one of “seven deadly e-mail sins” • Bad grammar, misspelling and disconnected arguments gave 81 percent of the survey sample "negative feelings" towards the senders. • 41 percent of senior managers said badly worded e-mails implied laziness and even disrespect. CNN.com

17. Tip: Level of Formality • When in doubt, err on the side of formality.

18. Tip: Level of Formality • Be conversational. An overly formal e-mail messagealienates the reader. Don’t adopt acold, remote, or superior tone in an attempt to sound professional. Angell and Heslop (2002)

19. Difference: Level of Formality Questions to which answers are evolving: • Do I need a subject line? • Should I email a thank-you noteafter a job interview? • Should I communicate bad newsvia email?

20. Difference: Electronic • Hit Send and it’s gone • Hit Reply All and your career may be gone • Deleted emails live on • Messages can be forwardedwithout your knowledge or consent

21. Tip: Email is never private • Pillsbury assured employees that emails were private. • Michael Smyth was fired after sending an email calling his bosses “backstabbing bastards.” • A court held that he had no reasonable expectation of privacy.

22. Tip: Electronic ≠ Instant • Many expect a phone call to alert themto an email labeled Urgent. • Allow a reasonable time (two days – week)for a response. • Respond before senders have to follow upor business is delayed.

23. Three manners mavens: Shea Typing in all capitals in electronic communications means • You are shouting. Typing in all capitals in online communications is the equivalent of SHOUTING! Only type in all capsif you really mean to shout.

24. Anatomy of email: From • E-mail recipients put more weight on who the e-mail is from than any other item when choosing • which e-mails to open • which to delete • which to complain about • Chris Baggot, ExactTarget

25. Anatomy of an email: Subject • Your subject can answer any of readers’ four key questions: • What’s this about? • Why should I read this? • What’s in this for me? • What am I being asked to do?

26. Anatomy of email: Subject To: Girrrl friends From: Ima Ditz Re: Change of plans

27. Anatomy of email: Subject To: Sara Bellum From: Gray Matter Re: Marketing meeting rescheduled for 12/15/06

28. Tips: Subject • Lead with the main idea Browsers may not display more than first 25-35 characters • Create single-subject messages • Keep track of threadsSubject: New Year’s Party Plans (was: New Year-End Bonus Structure)

29. More Tips: Subject • Double-check the address line before sending. • Insulted by a general email from the boss, an employee sent an angry comment to a colleague (she thought): “Does she think we’re stupid?” • The reply (from her boss): “Yes, I do.”

30. Anatomy of an email: Body • Before you type anything into a new message, have explicit answers for two questions: 1. Why am I writing this? 2. What exactly do I want the result of this message to be? 43 Folders (2005)

31. Anatomy of an email: Body • Before you hit Send, review and delete • Negative comments about management • Criticisms of staff or performance issues • Bonuses or salary issues • Product or liability issues • Gossip • Humor or other ambiguities Booher

32. Anatomy of email: Body • Write so emails are easy to read • Make paragraphs 7-8 lines • Insert a blank line between paragraphs • Use headlines, bullets, and numbers • AVOID ALL CAPS; THAT’S SHOUTING • If a message is longer than 3 screens, send an attachment

33. Tip: Avoid brusqueness • Brief is good. Blunt is not. • Question: Should I pursue an advanced degree? • Response 1: No. • Response 2: I don’t think an advanced degree would have any effect on your potential for promotion here. • Diana Booher

34. Question: Do I need a greeting? • Consensus: Yes.Otherwise, you can seem brusque or unfriendly.

35. Question: Which greeting? • Opinion: Divided • Some say “Hi, Steve,” is too informal. • Some say “To whom it may concern” is stilted. • For external communication, use same greeting as in letter • For internal communication, some use Myra:

36. Question: Which closing? • Consensus • Match greeting in tone • Formal: Sincerely, Best regards, Cordially • Informal: Thanks; All the best, Talk to you later • Use a sig line that gives your name, title, and contact information • Omit a P.S. (if the email is longer than a screen,a postscript could be missed)

37. Question: Email thank-you? • 36 percent of employers on Monster prefer thank-you notes sent by email • 29 percent prefer traditional letters