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E-TTITUDE
GUIDELINES
SEVEN E-MAIL SINS & SOLUTIONS
A poll of 750 office workers across Europe, commissioned by palmOne,
has identified seven deadly sins of e-mail, including blitzing, tactlessness,
sloppiness, ignoring e-mails and lying about them. Communications expert
Dr. Peter Collett blames a lack of e-mail etiquette for the problems
created by electronic communication – which lacks the established
niceties of letter-writing, chatting on the phone or a personal meeting.
Working with palmOne, Collett has developed seven techniques for combating
e-mail sins.
| SIN | SOLUTION |
| Ignoring Seventy-nine percent of survey respondents said they resented having to chase up e-mail responses. A quarter said they did so for more than half the e-mails they send. Nearly two-thirds felt business decisions were delayed due to a lack of e-mail response. |
Respond Always acknowledge receipt. Respond within 24 hours, even if only with a "holding statement." Use the "out of office" function religiously when away. |
| Lying This is most marked in Britain, where up to 11 percent of survey respondents said they lie about getting e-mails, more than twice the figure in the other surveyed countries. Denying e-mails breeds distrust because, unlike phone calls and letters, it's relatively easy to confirm whether or not a message has been delivered. |
Don't lie Don't embarrass yourself by denying receipt because you ignored an e-mail for too long. Confront the issue immediately. |
| Presuming Twenty-seven percent of survey respondents said they were annoyed when urgent e-mails were sent without an accompanying phone call to draw attention to it. |
Phone Don't assume your urgent e-mail to someone else has been seen and dealt with. Make a phone call to back up your e-mail. |
| Waffling Being sent pages of e-mail text when a few lines will do irritates one-fifth of office staff, particularly senior management, the survey showed. |
Don't e-waffle Get to the point. The more you say, the less likely it is that your e-mail will be read. |
| Blitzing This is when the same e-mail is sent to "all and sundry" in a company. More than a quarter of the survey sample expressed frustration at being unnecessarily copied irrelevant e-mails. They said it was "like being spammed by your colleagues." |
Don't e-blitz If you need to "cc" an e-mail, include only those with an active interest in the subject. You'll get a more immediate response from all concerned if you write directly to each individual involved. |
| Sloppiness Bad grammar, misspelling and disconnected arguments gave 81 percent of the survey sample "negative feelings" towards the senders, while 41 percent of senior managers said badly worded e-mails implied laziness and even disrespect. |
Be formal Err on the side of formality. An e-mail should be properly spelled and should be grammatical, just like a letter – otherwise mutual respect is at risk. Check for mistakes before pressing the "send" button. |
| Tactlessness Getting the tone wrong is easy in e-mails. People can't read body language, voice intonation and numerous other cues. Casual comments or humor can easily be misconstrued. Ten percent of respondents said they thought short, sharp e-mails unintentionally damaged relationships. In Germany and Britain, 23 percent and 14 percent respectively admitted confrontations with colleagues because of e-mail misunderstandings. |
Cool off Avoid snap judgments. An e-mail may look offensive, but was probably just hastily or badly composed. Never reply when feeling angry or emotional – embarrassing or bad-tempered e-mails can come back to haunt you. |
Source: palmOne Inc., September 22, 2004
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