Etiquettes and Ethics for E-Mail Communication

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Before you hit send, take a moment, many poorly written communications have the possibility of
causing confusion, misunderstand and severe heart burns. The keyboard is the biggest weapon in the
arsenal of a professional and yet the punching of keys requires the adherence to basic standards of
communications. Loosely written emails have the potential of brewing trouble where there may not have
been any. The email though a formal means of communication is a double edged sword that can bite back
if used poorly. This form of communication carries with it strict liability as it is digitally recorded and has
the ability to last forever in the digital space.
A poorly-worded email can easily "result in liability for a company, and of course, damage a company's
reputation. - Anonymous

How to Improve Your Email Communication

Just about everyone knows how to write a letter, and we generally take great care to make sure that snail
mail letters are well written. Emails, however, have a tendency to be another matter entirely. Opening up
your in-box can be like opening Pandoras Box of inadequate grammar, poor spelling, and bad taste.
Consider what impressions your emails make on others. It's always the right time to set your emails apart
from the pack. Follow these steps and improve your email etiquette.
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Use the recipient fields correctly.

If youre just sending an email to one person, place their email address in the to field. If you want to send
the same email to others, add these addresses in the CC: field. Note that all the recipients will be able to
see all the other recipients email addresses; if this is undesirable (for example, if youre sending an email
to people who dont know each other), protect their privacy by entering each address in the BCC: field.
This sends everyone a blind carbon copy. Note that for company email, use of "BCC:" may be considered
impolite; addressees in the "to" field are expected to take action, and those on "CC:" are for keeping
colleagues or superiors informed.

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Make the subject line useful:

A good subject line provides a useful summary of the email's content, preparing the reader quickly. Email
inboxes are frequently swamped, so a good subject line helps the recipient determine the priority of your
email. It also helps to prevent your email from being deleted before it has even been read. Since the
subject is the first thing your recipient sees, keep it error free, concise, and avoid generic lines such as "Hi,"
"What's up," or the recipient's name (the latter may be blocked by anti-spam filters).

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Be consistent:
Some formats use skipped lines rather than indents for new paragraphs. Some use double space between
sentences. Choose either to spell out your numbers or use digitsdo not alternate between them in the
same email. If a word or notation is capitalized in one case, it should be so in all cases.

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Avoid prioritizing your messages:

It is irritating and presumptuous to assume your e-mail request is higher in the queue than anybody else's,
especially in a work context. Be gracious enough to give the receiver credit for working out for them how
to prioritize your message. Also take care with seeking receipts; while there are certain instances when
receipt required might be needed for record keeping purposes or proof of receipt, the majority of times
this is just irritating and forces the reader to perform additional actions to deal with your email. If
something is really urgent, or you really need to make sure the recipient has your message, pick up the
telephone and use it instead! Get out of the habit of marking every email as "Urgent! Receipt required!!" or
"High Priority" or your emails will end up being treated like the boy who cried wolf and they'll all get
ignored.
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Greet your recipient:

Letters, of course, generally begin with the salutation "Dear (recipient's name)". On the other hand, emails
are generally less formal, and "Hi" or "Hello" usually suffices. Depending on the purpose of the email, for
example, if it's a cover letter for a job application, you may want to use the traditional format instead.
Politeness cannot be overdone.
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Keep your email concise, conversational, and focused:

It is harder to read letters on a computer screen than on a sheet of paper, so keep emails short and to the
point. While there is no ideal email length, keep sentences short, about 8-12 words and leave a space
between paragraphs.

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Use proper grammar and spelling:

An email reflects on its author, and an email with spelling or grammar errors reflects poorly. Use Standard
English, and proofread and spell-check emails as you would any written communication. Error-free email
is easier for the recipient to read.
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Avoid fancy formatting:

Changing fonts and colors, inserting bullet lists, or using HTML can make an email look bizarre or render it
unreadable for the recipient, even if the formatting looks fine on your computer. Keep it simple.

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Schedule reply to emails:

Unlike snail mail, emails arrive instantly, and the sender knows this. People typically expect a quick
response, and while it's polite to try to meet these expectations, doing so chews up an enormous amount
of your time. It is a sensible idea to schedule times to read and respond to emails, making you more
productive. Alert your colleagues, through an email signature or response, that urgent items should be
done by telephone or face-to-face meet-ups, and that otherwise, you will get back to the person within a
specified time frame. People will learn soon enough how your method operates.
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Determine to whom you should reply:

Emails sent to you solely generally require that you reply only to the sender, but for emails sent to several
people, you may need to choose the "Reply to All" option to send your response to everyone. Be judicious:
Using "Reply All" all the time creates returns in abundance and leaves messages languishing in the inboxes of many people. Consider the consequences of receiving an email, hitting reply all and it goes out
to twenty people and then those twenty people hit reply to all; it can compound very quickly into
hundreds of thousands of emails and everyone feels compelled to hit "reply all" as a means of keeping
everyone in the loop because nobody knows who is meant to read it and who is not! Which invariably
means that nobody ends up actioning the item?
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Think twice before replying to just say thank you:

Some people don't want an email that says "thanks". This takes additional energy to open the email and
read it just to read what you already know. A new trend is to include a line that says NTN - No Thanks
Needed.
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Edit long emails when replying to them:

Generally your reply to an email will include the original email, as well. If the original email is short, you
can just reply to it as is, but if it's longer, delete irrelevant parts (especially headers and signatures).
Organize the reply so that you quote parts of the original email and place your responses to each part
directly below so that the recipient will know exactly what questions or statements from his or her email
you are responding to.
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Be sure to include info that you are responding to:

Many people, and companies, write and respond to hundreds of emails every day. Avoid sending an
indistinct email that says only 'Yes. Include the question that the recipient asked so they know what you
are responding to.
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Send your email politely:

Closing with a statement such as "Best wishes," "Good luck," or "Thanks in advance for your help," can
soften even a harsh email and can elicit a more favourable reply.
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Sign your name:

Doing this is polite and personal. Use email application to create a default signature with your name, title,
and contact information, as per Companys policy and use the same.
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Limit attachments:
Don't add an attachment unless really necessary. Keep attachments as small as possible. Most email
applications can send and receive attachments up to 1 MB, but anything over that can be a hassle for you
or the recipient, and even smaller files can take a long time to open if the recipient's email connection is
slow. If you need to send a larger file, compress or zip it or use online services that will help you send large
files such as YouSendIt.com. If you need to send multiple pages, such as meeting plans or large text
corrections, send a fax or a typed set of pages in a letter.
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Don't ignore valid emails:

If someone asks you a valid question in an email, reply to it, even if the answer is not what they want to
hear. If you need to pass it to someone else, then CC: the sender so they know what is going on. It's
frustrating to be ignored. If the person was on the phone or in front of you, chances are you would not
ignore them if they asked a question, so don't do it in an email.
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Be careful of who you copy on replies:

If you reply to a message and then CC: a third-party that the original sender did not includeis certain in
your mind that the original sender will not be upset about it. This information may have been "for your
eyes only". This is especially important if the original sender is your work supervisor. Be cautious about
using BCC: This can backfire if the person being BCC:'replies back, not having seen that their copy was a
blind one.
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Think before you send:

Don't send e-mails when you are emotional. Feel free to write the subject and text of the email, then save
it. Only add the recipients and send it after you have had time to think about what you are sending; you
might change your mind and be better off for it. Better yet, pick up the phone or even go to see the
person face-to-face. It is hard enough to judge the tone of an email, even with the prevalent use of
emoticons. A person's voice should tell you more about his or her intent than the written word will.
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Do not use all caps:

This is an unnecessary practice and it can annoy your recipient, earning you a flame letter in return. All
capitals are considered to be the equivalent of "shouting".
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Be careful using abbreviations and emoticons:

This may be acceptable in an informal e-mail such as with a friend. However, in a formal letter you
wouldn't have to tell someone that you're "laughing out loud," people may find it inappropriate, and
could feel you are being frivolous.
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Be careful using abbreviations and emotions!

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Legal Status:
The Information Technology Act 2000 treats all email communications at par with written
communications and thus, these carry with them the same standards of documentary evidence as do
letters. The author is bound by the contents of his email and thus, strict adherence to and compliance
with the privacy and confidentiality agreements which are part of the organizations corporate policy
become all the more important. Email can be produced in a court of competent jurisdiction (both
criminal and civil) as documentary evidence which is why reviewing the contents and makings sure
that all compliances aforementioned have been carried out is essential.
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