Email 101

To eliminate the "information obfuscation" that results from ineffective use of email, follow these guidelines:

• Keep it short! Like looking at Web sites, when you're reading email on-screen, you're reading light, and that can be tiring to the eyes. Email is supposed to be quick, easy and breezy to read. Use short sentences. Put spaces between sentences. Use bulletpoints wherever you can. Don't be afraid to abbreviate terms or words. If you have a longer, more comprehensive document you want to send someone, send it as an attachment so they can print it out and read it separately.
• Use clear subject lines. Never send an email without a subject line. You may even want to add a heading within the body of the email if you're sending an announcement of some kind. Make sure subject lines are not too general. They should be fairly clear about what your message is about. This helps users sort through their mail and decide what to read (like reading newspaper headlines). Similarly, if you want your email to be read, use effective and catchy subject lines (but don't be misleading and don't use ALL CAPITALIZED LETTERS). Also, if you're having an email conversation and the “thread” of the conversation changes from the original subject to a different subject, change the subject line accordingly.
• Use active voice writing. Active voice means being clear about the subject of each sentence and writing with verbs (action words). For example, don't say “It was the decision of the committee that…”, say “We decided that…” or “The Committee decided that…”
• Email isn't a substitute for real life. While email is a good way to save time as an alternative to meeting face to face or using the telephone, don't make email substitute for all personal business contact. Sometimes it is more effective to use the telephone or meet face to face.
• Email creates a paper trail. Use email to document certain steps in your business processes (e.g. send an email after a face to face meeting to confirm what you agreed upon in the meeting) but do not try to document everything with email. It creates email overload for the recipients and leaves you with the challenge of carefully archiving all emails you receive over months and even years.
• Avoid “smoke puff” email response. To avoid overloading your colleagues with emails that do not contain worthwhile information (“smoke puffs”), do not send short or one word replies such as “Right”, “Okay” or even “Thanks” unless necessary. In some cases, you will receive emails asking you to confirm in some way, but in most cases people will assume that you will read the message and do not require a confirmation response.
• Use effective communication skills. Emails that are not written carefully can lead to misunderstandings and confusion, not only in what you're communicating, but also in how you communicate it. Use plain language. Follow up by phone or in person when necessary. Email is just one channel of communication, not the only one.
• Never CAPITALIZE ALL WORDS. This can be taken as “shouting” your message. Avoid using colored text or unusual fonts that are difficult to read. Remember: People receive so many emails that they prefer emails that can be read quickly.
• Be careful of the tone of your email. Curt, abrupt responses, inappropriate language or sarcastic, critical comments can be taken as offensive by the reader. If you are writing an email when you are feeling emotional or agitated, don't send it right away. Save a draft copy, and re-read it later (or have someone you trust read it and offer their opinion) to ensure it won't be taken the wrong way.
• Caution: Don't shoot yourself in the foot. Be careful of what you write, how you write, whom you write about, and whom you write to. Remember that email can either intentionally or accidentally be forwarded to recipients you may not have intended to receive the message. Consider that anything you write in an email could potentially be read by anyone, either inside or outside the organization .
• Likewise, do not forward or copy someone's email to someone else without their permission if you think their email contained personal information for your eyes only or for the group of recipients the writer sent it to originally. Personal emails can be especially problematic for the writer and the employer. What if your email expressing personal views to a friend is forwarded or copied to someone else? Your personal views inside a company email address may be embarrassing, at best, and at worst they can even be a legal liability to your employer.
• Be wary of “spoofing.” Email messages can sometimes be “spoofed”, which means that the person who appears to be the sender may not have sent the email at all. If something you receive from someone you know or work with sounds unusual or out of character, verify it with the actual person by telephone. Some email viruses use a person's email address list to automatically send out messages containing viruses to the recipients while appearing to be from a friend, family member or colleague.
• Clean up your email periodically. Delete old mail that is no longer useful or relevant. Archive email that is important for your record keeping. Create new folders to organize your “electronic filing cabinet” more effectively so that you can retrieve valuable email information when required.