The New Number 1 Question About Email

Consider whether email is the best way to reply. This is the most frequent comment I hear from the CEO level of organizations where I conduct training. Corporate presidents typically tell me to make sure I admonish their staff not to use email as a way of "assigning blame" and "avoiding responsibility," or as "a weapon of mass destruction." They say, "Tell them to get off their butts and develop relationships with people by walking down the hallway or picking up the phone."

While I mentioned this point in an earlier WORDS ON THE LINE post, I reiterate it because it is the most frequently asked question in my many webinars on email. Using alternatives to email at key times is not only the more considerate choice, it is also the more time efficient one.

Email Tips from the E-Universe, Part 2

The Inc. website generally offers useful tips on productivity. Since time management is critical component on productivity, you can find some practical email time management suggestions in Inc's "12 Email Tips to Increase Your Productivity" by David Finkel. 

Two of Finkel's gems you've got to like: 

1. Understand that every time you do that one "quick" email, that interruption radically diminishes your concentration and flow on the other, higher value work you were doing.
2. To get less email, send less. 

The other standard suggestions are also good reminders: 

• Turn off your auto send-and-receive function.
• If you're involved in a frustrating back-and-forth conversation by email due to hazy understanding on either side, just pick up the phone or speak in person.
• In replying to a long conversation thread, pull up the key information to the top of the email.

If we took such advice, Inc. wouldn't be giving it.

Email Tips from the E-Universe, Part 1

A lot of email advice is readily available on the internet just by typing "email tips" in your favorite search engine. Brittney Helmrich's "15 Ways to Make Your Emails More Professional" offers such tidbits, some of them obvious (be clear and thorough, don't forget to proofread, use the right email address), some helpful reminders (remember that anyone can read it once it's sent, put the recipient's email in last, know when to avoid email altogether), and some smart novelties (take it one point at a time, create templates for frequently used responses, timing is everything). What make her counsel so valuable are her sources: career consultants. Worth a read ...

Cool Off, Will Ya?: Using Email to Express, Not to Depress

A conversation I had today with a high-ranking executive of a major New York corporation reminded me of a tip that I wrote in my book The Art of E-Mail Writing:

Consider whether e-mail is the best way to reply. ... Think about whether a phone call or a walk down the hall to your targeted audience would be more practical.

The executive said, "I try to get my staff not to hide behind email. It's easy for them to fire off at people when they don't have to face them. But when they do see them face to face, they're forced to find a more respectful way to communicate."

Several executives have expressed to me the same concern: too often their employees inappropriately use email as a means of attack or retaliation. Remember that email is a tool for communicating information, no different from a memo, letter, or report. It is also a powerful means of building or destroying relationships, so use it for its positive ends. 

Should I Call or E-mail?

After a recent e-mail webinar, I received a question from Tom Mello of Liberty Mutual Insurance Co in Boston, Massachusetts, about striking a balance between using e-mail and the phone. My response, in part, appears below.

The question of phone vs. e-mail will always come down to the relationship between the sender and receiver. For instance, most of my clients return my phone calls with e-mails. I infer from their choice that I should reply in kind. Some clients have not spoken on the phone with me in years. Our only means of communication, except for face to face, is by e-mail. My attitude about this situation is simple: They’re the boss, so they dictate the rules of engagement.

Here are three points I keep in mind when selecting the means of communication:

1. Respond to my audience in the mode they initiated.
2. Initiate by e-mail when I need a record.
3. Initiate by phone when dealing with a complex or urgent issue that could be resolved quicker by phone.

Thanks, Mr. Mello, for having the wisdom and confidence to ask a question that occurs at work to most people without their resolving it. I welcome all questions on writing at WORDS ON THE LINE.

Text Me Your Best Offer!

Even multimillion-dollar real estate deals are settled by e-mails and text messages these days, according to “The E-Mail Handshake” by Vivian S. Toy (The New York Times, Real Estate, page 1, April 26, 2009). While not all real estate agents, homebuyers, and sellers may agree on the virtues of e-mail negotiation, trying to stop the trend is like using an umbrella to block a tsunami. So the best we can do is to review the benefits and drawbacks of e-mail negotiation, and to counter the negatives without diminishing the positives.

In summary, the article says the plusses include the permanency of recording “conversations” and the convenience of informing everyone simultaneously. On the minus side are the difficulty in communicating nuance and emotion as well as the confusion that can result from missing, incomplete, or ambiguous information.

To resolve potential conflicts, pick up the phone or have a face-to-face meeting with the parties involved—even though another e-mail is sure to follow.

Dear? Hi? Hello? Greetings? Good morning? Ugh! Sincerely? Regards? Best wishes? All the best? Cheers? OMG!

Everybody wants to get it right. Right? How do you open and close an email? Would any of the ones above work all the time? Since I hear that question more than once a week, I know that people really want a definitive response to their question about the perfect salutation and complimentary closing. Their problems are compounded when they have multiple readers: Should they write “All? Team? Good day? To the Acting Members of the Stanislaus Sangerhausen Boulevard Flowering Pear Tree Lining Ad Hoc Committee?”

Fuggedaboutit. Here’s how I generally answer this question when it pops up: Address people in an email the way you would if you were addressing them as they stand before you and as the occasion dictates. If you tend to say, “Hi Folks,” then write that; if you just start with your message without a greeting, then do that. Whatever—just make sure that the corporate culture calls for your chosen approach. You can also look around to see what others whose communication style you respect are doing, and then follow suit.

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 20: Read THE ART OF E-MAIL WRITING!

I conclude this 20-part series of e-mail tips with a recommended book that covers all the points mentioned on this blog and much more: The Art of E-Mail Writing. It makes for a good companion to The Art of On-the-Job Writing because it provides an abbreviate approach to the writing product and writing process. However, it can also stand alone as a readable, entertaining book with plenty of useful tips that you can put to use right away.

The Art of E-Mail Writing will be available from First Books (http://www.firstbooks.com/) late this summer. Happy reading—and e-mailing!


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Coming Soon! The Art of E-Mail Writing by Philip Vassallo, also through First Books: http://www.firstbooks.com/.

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 19: Always Be Updating

I've adapted the apropos sales maxim "Always be closing" for this tip: Always be updating:

1. Update your computer. Scheduling computer maintenance tasks at regular, frequent intervals keeps you moving quickly. Consider the following tasks no different from maintaining your teeth or car—with regular checkups:

• disk cleanup, and defragmenting
• file compacting
• virus and spyware updating and scanning

2. Update your lists. Doing so adds value to the impact of your communication. Check your distribution lists for irrelevancies, repetitions, and inconsistencies.

3. Update your entire management system. Just as your computer gets outmoded over time, so does your e-communications management method. If you’re feeling inundated by the barrage of communication you’re sending and receiving, think about what you can do to improve your system.


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Coming Soon! The Art of E-Mail Writing by Philip Vassallo, also through First Books: http://www.firstbooks.com/.

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 18: Break That Chain!

Do not forward junk mail such as chain messages, advertisements, and other group solicitations. Doing so harms your credibility and wastes your readers’ time. Discard anything that does not promote business purposes.


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Coming Soon! The Art of E-Mail Writing by Philip Vassallo, also through First Books: http://www.firstbooks.com/

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 17: Keep It Organized

Refrain from long, single-paragraph e-mails. This undisciplined approach to writing engenders confusion and annoyance. More importantly, your readers will miss your point if it is buried in a mess of words and sentences.

Solution:

1. Get to the point in the first paragraph—even the first few words.
2. Limit one idea per paragraph.
3. Hit the most important point in the first sentence of each paragraph.
4. Close with useful next steps—the transition from the document.

To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Coming Soon! The Art of E-Mail Writing by Philip Vassallo, also through First Books: http://www.firstbooks.com/.

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 16: Keep It Strictly Business

Personal e-mails during business hours provide evidence of not doing your job. The fact is, your company owns everything in its computers. Act wisely about e-mailing family and friends.


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Coming Soon! The Art of E-Mail Writing by Philip Vassallo, also through First Books: http://www.firstbooks.com/.

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 15: Be Nice!

Do not demean, harass, or threaten readers or subjects of your message. Readers of business communication assume that the sender took the time to write thoughtfully. Use e-mail as a tool for clear communication—not a weapon for demoralizing.


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Coming Soon! The Art of E-Mail Writing by Philip Vassallo, also through First Books: http://www.firstbooks.com/.

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 14: Forward Helpfully

Help your reader understand forwarded e-mail. A reference to the part of a forwarded message to relate it to your purpose and your readers’ needs will quicken the communication process. Mention why you have forwarded the message.


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Coming Soon! The Art of E-Mail Writing by Philip Vassallo, also through First Books: http://www.firstbooks.com/.

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 13: Copy Prudently

Many people do not always need updates about every business issue. Keep them in the loop only if your message serves their business purposes. Transmit group messages sensibly. For instance, use the blind copy feature when transmitting group messages to spare your readers the wasted time of scrolling past the entire list of recipients. And don’t copy everyone!


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 12: Attach with Care

Attaching lengthy unsolicited documents can frustrate your readers by requiring them to print numerous pages—many of which they might not need. Use non-electronic means of transmitting lengthy documents when the situation calls for it. Attach documents thoughtfully.


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 11: Act Maturely

In case you haven’t already heard …

WRITING IN ALL UPPER-CASE LETTERS LIKE THIS IS UNIVERSALLY UNDERSTOOD AS SHOUTING.

writing in all lower-case letters, as in, "i will see ricardo ramirez next july in philadelphia at the american suppliers conference," implies that the writer is rushed or sloppy.

Prove your reader awareness by applying the standards of capitalization when writing e-mails that you think might be read across or outside your organization.


To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 10: Do It Now

Reading e-mail and saving it for a later response is not a bad thing—unless you find yourself doing it constantly. Handle whatever e-mail you can only once. Each time you return to an e-mail doubles your time on it. Read, reply, file, done.

To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 9: Update Those Files

If you find yourself searching endlessly for e-mails, chances are your filing system needs updating. Create a filing system with specific folder names. The longer you create a history, the larger those email folders become. So plan for the growth. Examples:

• Instead of Security, use Security-IT, Security-Building, etc.
• Instead of Security-IT, use Security-IT-Policy, Security-IT-Compliance, Security-IT-Passwords, etc.
• Instead of Security-IT-Passwords, use Security-IT-Passwords-Auditing, Security-IT-Passwords-Staff, Security-IT-Passwords-Training, etc.

To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144

Tips for Better E-Mail, Part 8: Put First Things First

Take the lead from Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, which advises the reader to put first things first. In this vein, prioritize your inbox and outbox. Being vigilant about what goes first and what goes last will increase your efficiency. Devise a “rating system” for handling all e-mail. Example:

• 1 = essential
• 2 = important
• 3 = optional
• 4 = useless

To purchase your copy of The Art of On-the-Job Writing by Philip Vassallo, click here: https://www.firstbooks.com/product_info.php?cPath=14&products_id=144