Is Poor Email Etiquette Eroding Your Credibility?

People judge your character by the level of civility that you exhibit in your dealings with them. This includes face-to-face communication, telephone communication, letters and email.

People may have impeccable etiquette in some areas yet harm their reputation by failing in others. Jana Christian, president of The Etiquette School of Oklahoma, says a common “blind spot” for businesspeople is email and cell phone etiquette. The casualness of email and cell phones tricks people into thinking that anything goes, that they don’t need to pay attention to etiquette.

So here are Ms. Christian’s tips:

Tips for Better Email Communications:

• Always begin your emails with a greeting (e.g., “Hello, John” or “Dear Ms. Smith”) and end them with a salutation (e.g., “Regards, David” or “Sincerely, John Smith”).
• Avoid indiscriminately forwarding emails, and don’t overuse the cc capability.
• Avoid sending or forwarding inappropriate and/or unprofessional information.
• Don’t over-rely on email for communication. Email is not good for discussion, working out problems, developing solutions, negotiating, building relationships, establishing and maintaining rapport, and communicating deeply and clearly.
• When sending mass emails, always provide easy opt-out options and adhere to them.
• Respectfully help others understand what your needs and preferences are regarding communications with you (e.g., send me the funny emails or please do not).
• Emails are NOT private. They are too easily forwarded, found, queried, etc. Do NOT write or send anything that you would not want to be posted on your home or office door.
• Use spell-check; always proofread before sending!
• Never write or send an email while emotional, angry, hurt, etc. Let time pass.
• Reply to emails within 24 hours. If you are unable to do so, set an auto-response that alerts all senders of your inability to respond in a timely manner.

Tips for Cell Phone Use:

• During business hours and at events and meetings, place your phone on vibrate-only. A ringing phone interrupts and breaks rapport.
• Set your ring tone to a basic ring sound. Trendy tones and music are unprofessional and distracting.
• Don’t answer your phone when you are talking to someone else or in a meeting. Doing so subtly says “the person calling is more important than you.”
• If you MUST take a call during a meeting, let the other person know in advance that you are awaiting a call and that, if it comes, you must take it. Apologize, ask for permission, and explain that your meeting with him or her is very important to you, but you must take this one call.
• When you must talk on your cell phone around other people, move at least 10 feet away. It’s not appropriate to talk on the phone right next to people.
• When you begin a cell phone conversation, be sure the other party is aware that you are on a call, or that the reception could be poor, and warn that the connection could be dropped. If this happens, agree on who will re-initiate the call (it should always be the one who initiated the original call).
• Return all voice mail messages in a timely manner. If you are unable to do so, record a voice mail message that alerts the caller of your inability to respond in a timely manner.

Never forget – the way others perceive you will be what they think of you. In other words, perception is reality (in the eyes of the beholder).

You can reach Jana Christian at www.oketiquette.com.