E-Mail Etiquette

It is important that whether for business or personal use that one follows the basics of
email etiquette. Email etiquette refers to the principles of behaviour that one should use when
writing or answering email messages. Because email is less personal than a phone or in-person
conversation but quicker to send than a letter, it is possible for serious breaches of manners to
take place. Therefore, the rules below are the most common principles of email behaviour that
must be followed.

Why do you need email etiquette?

A company needs to implement etiquette rules for the following three reasons:

➢ Professionalism: by using proper email language your company will convey a

professional image.
➢ Efficiency: emails that get to the point are much more effective than poorly worded
emails.
➢ Protection from liability: employee awareness of email risks will protect your company
from costly law suits.

What are the rules for e-mail etiquette?

There are many yardsticks to consider what appropriate etiquette is and so some rules may
differ according to the nature of one’s business and the corporate culture.

1. Be concise and to the point.

Do not make an e-mail longer than it needs to be. Remember that reading an e-mail is harder
than reading printed communications and a long e-mail can be very discouraging to read.

2. Answer all questions, and predict further questions.

An email reply must answer all questions, and predict further questions – If you do not
answer all the questions in the original email, you will receive further e-mails regarding the
unanswered questions, which will not only waste your time and the receiver’s time but also
cause considerable frustration. Moreover, if you are able to predict relevant questions, the
person will be grateful and impressed with your efficiency and thoughtfulness.

3. Use proper spelling, grammar and punctuation.

This is not only important because improper spelling, grammar and punctuation give a bad
impression but it is also important for conveying the message properly. E-mails with no full
stops or commas are difficult to read and can sometimes even change the meaning of the text.

4. Make it personal.

Not only should the e-mail be personally addressed, it should also include personal i.e.
customized content. For this reason auto replies are usually not very effective. However,
templates can be used effectively in this way.
5. Use templates for frequently used responses.

Some questions you get over and over again, such as directions to your office or how to
subscribe to your newsletter. Save these texts as response templates and paste these into your
message when you need them.

6. Answer swiftly.

If you are in business then a customer send an e-mail because they wish to receive a quick
response. If they did not want a quick response they would send a letter or a fax. Therefore,
each e-mail should be replied to within at least 24 hours and preferably within the same
working day. If the email is complicated, just send an email back saying that you have
received it and that you will get back to them. This will put the customer's mind at rest and
usually customers will then be very patient.

7. Do not attach unnecessary files.

By sending large attachments you can annoy customers and even bring down their e-mail
system. Wherever possible try to compress attachments and only send attachments when they
are productive. Moreover, you need to have a good virus scanner in place since your
customers will not be very happy if you send them documents full of viruses!

8. Use proper structure & layout.

Since reading from a screen is more difficult than reading from paper, the structure and lay
out is very important for e-mail messages. Use short paragraphs and blank lines between each
paragraph. When making points, number them or mark each point as separate to keep the
overview.

9. Do not write in CAPITALS.

IF YOU WRITE IN CAPITALS IT SEEMS AS IF YOU ARE SHOUTING. This can be

highly annoying and might trigger an unwanted response in the form of a flame mail.
Therefore, try not to send any email text in capitals.

10. Read the email before you send it.

A lot of people don't bother to read an email before they send it out, as can be seen from the
many spelling and grammar mistakes contained in emails. Apart from this, reading your
email through the eyes of the recipient will help you send a more effective message and avoid
misunderstandings and inappropriate comments.

11. Do not overuse Reply to All.

Only use Reply to All if you really need your message to be seen by each person who
received the original message.

12. Take care with abbreviations and emoticons.

In business emails, try not to use abbreviations such as BTW (by the way) and LOL (laugh
out loud). The recipient might not be aware of the meanings of the abbreviations and in
business emails these are generally not appropriate. The same goes for emoticons, such as the
smiley :-). If you are not sure whether your recipient knows what it means, it is better not to
use it.

13. Be careful with formatting.

Remember that when you use formatting in your emails, the sender might not be able to view
formatting, or might see different fonts than you had intended. When using colours, use a
colour that is easy to read on the background.

14. Do not forward chain letters.

Do not forward chain letters. We can safely say that all of them are hoaxes. Just delete the
letters as soon as you receive them.

15. Do not copy a message or attachment without permission.

Do not copy a message or attachment belonging to another user without permission of the
originator. If you do not ask permission first, you might be infringing on copyright laws.

16. Do not use email to discuss confidential information.

Sending an email is like sending a postcard. If you don't want your email to be displayed on a
bulletin board, don't send it. Moreover, never make any libellous, sexist or racially
discriminating comments in emails, even if they are meant to be a joke.

17. Use a meaningful subject line.

Try to use a subject that is meaningful to the recipient as well as yourself. For instance, when
you send an email to a company requesting information about a product, it is better to
mention the actual name of the product, e.g. 'Product A information' than to just say 'product
information' or the company's name in the subject.

18. Use active instead of passive.

Try to use the active voice of a verb wherever possible. For instance, 'We will process your
order today', sounds better than 'Your order will be processed today'. The first sounds more
personal, whereas the latter, especially when used frequently, sounds unnecessarily formal.

19. Avoid long sentences.

Try to keep your sentences to a maximum of 15-20 words. Email is meant to be a quick
medium and requires a different kind of writing than letters. Also take care not to send emails
that are too long. If a person receives an email that looks like a dissertation, chances are that
they will not even attempt to read it!

20. Don't send or forward emails containing libellous, defamatory, offensive, racist or
obscene remarks.
By sending or even just forwarding one libellous, or offensive remark in an email, you and
your company can face court cases resulting in multi-million dollar penalties.

21. Don't forward virus hoaxes and chain letters.

If you receive an email message warning you of a new unstoppable virus that will
immediately delete everything from your computer, this is most probably a hoax. By
forwarding hoaxes you use valuable bandwidth and sometimes virus hoaxes contain viruses
themselves, by attaching a so-called file that will stop the dangerous virus. The same goes for
chain letters that promise incredible riches or ask your help for a charitable cause. Even if the
content seems to be bona fide, the senders are usually not. Since it is impossible to find out
whether a chain letter is real or not, the best place for it is the recycle bin.

22. Keep your language gender neutral.

In this day and age, avoid using sexist language such as: 'The user should add a signature by
configuring his email program'. Apart from using he/she, you can also use the neutral gender:
''The user should add a signature by configuring the email program'.

23. For your personal accounts, use a user ID that comes across as professional.

A potential employer who is trying to contact you regarding a position will not be impressed
if they are sending their email to [email protected] or [email protected]. Choose
a user name that would not be offensive or childish to a potential employer.

24. Remember that email is a public document.

With some e-mail systems, the e-mail administrator has the ability to read any and all e-mail
messages. If this is the case where you are located, you better hope that there is an honest and
respectable person in that position.

Some companies monitor employee e-mail (as well as internet usage). The reasons for this
obtrusive behaviour range from company management wanting to make sure users are not
wasting time on frivolous messages to making sure that company secrets are not being leaked
to unauthorized sources.

E-mail software is like all software in that occasionally things go wrong. If this happens, you
may end up receiving e-mail meant for another person or your e-mail may get sent to the
wrong person. Either way, what you thought was private is not private anymore.