Email Etiquette II

Be thoughtful when copying others to an e-mail. E-mailers love to overuse the CC field. In a business e-mail, you should only copy others when the information being shared is truly relevant for them to see. The business people involved in a CC e-mail should know each other or have at least been introduced and do not have a problem with their e-mail address being shown to the parties involved. If you are not sure if a business associate would mind her or his address being made public, ask. If you are listed in the CC field, you are being copied on a "for your information" basis and a reply is not mandatory. Unless you have something relevant to add to the conversation, you need not respond.

Never forward chain e-mails or spam. When you are on company time and using a company e-mail account, you should never be forwarding any type of nonbusiness-related e-mails. Forwarding an e-mail chain letter or a "top ten list" is not appropriate, no matter how funny you may think it is. Sending out something personal may leave others thinking you are not working hard enough and that you are spending company time surfing the Web or reading personal e-mails.

Only e-mail requested or approved attachments. All e-mail accounts have capacity limits. Sending a potential new client a large file that was not requested will not only fill up the person's inbox and possibly shut down the e-mail, it will certainly tarnish your relationship with him or her. Sending an attachment that is unnecessary and unexpected reflects a lack of consideration toward the recipient. Before e-mailing an attachment to any business associate, you should always ask if it is okay and be sure the associate has the program that is needed to open your attachment (Photoshop, Excel, etc.).

Use automatic response messages when away. An auto-response message alerts anyone that sends you an e-mail that you will be away from the office. That way, an associate will not be offended when you do not reply to an e-mail right away.

Example: I am currently out of the office and have limited access to e-mail. I will be back in the office on Monday, May 17. In case of any urgent work, you may contact Mr. James Daniels at Jdaniels@mycompany.com during my absence.

Only use the "Priority" setting when time is truly of the essence. If you send every e-mail branded as important, you stand to minimize all future e-mails and possibly offend your recipient by misleading the person with a statement of urgency. This feature should be reserved for those occasions in which your e-mail is in fact timely, so use the "Priority" setting sparingly and with discretion.

End with a closing signature. Your e-mail should end similarly to a business letter, with a closing such as Thank you, Sincerely, Yours truly, Best regards, etc., along with your name, title, company, phone, fax, and Web site link. Do not get carried away with slogans, awards, associations, quotes, etc. A signature line should be at most four to six lines long. Anything longer may well be received as a bit egocentric or in some cases unprofessional.

Example:	Amy Green
	Systems Engineer
	Denault Associates, Inc.
	Ph: 770-987-0987
	Fax: 770-987-0988
	Web: DenaultAssociatesInc.com

Proofread: Because business e-mails are composed so quickly and sent so frequently, writers tend to let their grammar and spelling slip. Keep in mind that anyone can read an e-mail you write, from the chief executive officer on down. So being sloppy with grammar and spelling may mean putting forward a less-than-desirable impression. Plus, if you are writing to a customer, your bad grammar will reflect poorly on your company as well. Be sure to proofread each and every e-mail you send out. Once you hit that send key, you will not have another chance to!