Friends,
This is an article that appeared in the Business Line on April 20, 2009. If you haven't read it, please go through it.
Regards,
Shijit.
Dos and Don'ts of Official E-mails
2009-04-20 12:14:38
By Ranjini Manian
The other day, I received the following e-mail from a client's office in response to a request I had made for some information:
WE WILL SEND THE INFO BY 2MRW EVE
FYI
NXT MEET PREPONED ON 12
HOPE U R FREE 2 ATTND
RGDS
XYZ
Looking at it, I realized that our young and "with it" population, one of our greatest assets, needs to polish their e-mail etiquette.
My guess is that several readers of this e-mail will find nothing wrong with it. There probably would not be anything very wrong had it been sent as a casual communication between friends. But in a business scenario, it is all wrong.
Capital Mistakes
First things first. Look at the font. The entire message is typed in capital letters. In the world of e-mails, that amounts to shouting. A Westerner receiving such a mail would jump to the conclusion that the sender is very angry or irritated with him/her and is not bothering to hide the fact.
James, one of my newer clients, took offense when my colleague, Sharada, wrote in the subject line "RESENDING" in caps. He politely told her that she needed to stay cool! Needless to say, the Indian correspondent was not being rude but was merely using the All Caps option for ease of typing.
So please take care to press the Shift key when you want to put in capital letters where grammar requires you to, but otherwise stick to the lowercase.
No Short Forms Please
To get back to our sample e-mail: You will notice several abbreviations. So what, you might ask. I don't even recommend this for SMS communication. In an e-mail, abbreviations such as 2mrw and U R are totally unprofessional and unacceptable. Treat e-mails just as you would any other business correspondence.
Remember you are making a lasting impression on people you may never meet in today's virtual world. This attention to detail is as important as a live meeting where women business managers would not want to appear with lipstick smudges on their teeth, or men with spinach stuck in them!
Punctuation Points
There are also no punctuation marks in the e-mail I have quoted. Perhaps the sender thought they were not necessary, considering it was "only" an e-mail. There are others who simply strew their e-mails with exclamation marks, question marks, and even emoticons. Take this one, for example:
Hello!!
We have received the communication yesterday!!!!!!! Thanks!!!!!! Boss was happy. But one of the rods was bent in transit. What to do????
Both extremes are unprofessional and create a bad impression not only about you but also about the company you represent.
Grammar matters too. In the first e-mail that I quoted, there are a couple of grammatical and semantic mistakes. See if you can spot them.
Whether you are dealing with expats or Indian colleagues, ensure that your communication is framed in correct, official language. A well-written e-mail earns you plus points in your readers' minds. Here are some general tips to follow while sending e-mails:
- If you are unsure of how to address a person, stick to being formal. Dear Mr./Ms. X can't be wrong. If you don't know the gender, address the person by the full name, e.g., Dear Yasoshui Hanegawa or Dear Jeanne Ranay.
- Be crisp, concise, and clear in your communication. Aside from an occasional friendly inquiry once you have established a level of comfort, keep to the point.
- Format your e-mail so that the lines are well-spaced, and if you have to set down points, use bullets or even numbers.
- Do not put read or delivery receipts giving the reader the task of pressing the button; instead, you could request them to acknowledge receipt of the e-mail.
- Limit attachments. They clog the inbox and generally only serve to irritate recipients. Avoid them where possible.
- Where relevant, preserve the e-mail thread so that the readers can follow the sequence of developments.
- Don't hit the Reply All button as a matter of course. Think whether your reply to an e-mail merits being sent to everyone who has been copied on it.
- Use the CC button judiciously. The other day, a colleague had to tell a co-worker that I need not be copied on every e-mail communication between them, as it would only clutter up my inbox and add unnecessarily to my load.
- Read your e-mail carefully for mistakes, check that you have put what you want to convey in the clearest possible way, and only then press the Send button.
And finally, be prompt with your correspondence. The e-mail is sent in the expectation of a quick response. Make sure that the expectation is met. Even if you cannot sort out the problem, acknowledge the e-mail and let the sender know roughly when he or she should expect a response.
The drive and enthusiasm of the brave new generation is something the West envies. We also have the trump card of English knowledge, which even China doesn't possess. With a little polishing in e-etiquette, we could make the most of these advantages.
PS: "Preponed" is not accepted English usage. The correct word is "Advanced". Also, the e-mail should have read "advanced to 12th" instead of "preponed on 12th".
Have a good day,
Shijit.
From India, Kochi
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125This is an article that appeared in the Business Line on April 20, 2009. If you haven't read it, please go through it.
Regards,
Shijit.
Dos and Don'ts of Official E-mails
2009-04-20 12:14:38
By Ranjini Manian
The other day, I received the following e-mail from a client's office in response to a request I had made for some information:
WE WILL SEND THE INFO BY 2MRW EVE
FYI
NXT MEET PREPONED ON 12
HOPE U R FREE 2 ATTND
RGDS
XYZ
Looking at it, I realized that our young and "with it" population, one of our greatest assets, needs to polish their e-mail etiquette.
My guess is that several readers of this e-mail will find nothing wrong with it. There probably would not be anything very wrong had it been sent as a casual communication between friends. But in a business scenario, it is all wrong.
Capital Mistakes
First things first. Look at the font. The entire message is typed in capital letters. In the world of e-mails, that amounts to shouting. A Westerner receiving such a mail would jump to the conclusion that the sender is very angry or irritated with him/her and is not bothering to hide the fact.
James, one of my newer clients, took offense when my colleague, Sharada, wrote in the subject line "RESENDING" in caps. He politely told her that she needed to stay cool! Needless to say, the Indian correspondent was not being rude but was merely using the All Caps option for ease of typing.
So please take care to press the Shift key when you want to put in capital letters where grammar requires you to, but otherwise stick to the lowercase.
No Short Forms Please
To get back to our sample e-mail: You will notice several abbreviations. So what, you might ask. I don't even recommend this for SMS communication. In an e-mail, abbreviations such as 2mrw and U R are totally unprofessional and unacceptable. Treat e-mails just as you would any other business correspondence.
Remember you are making a lasting impression on people you may never meet in today's virtual world. This attention to detail is as important as a live meeting where women business managers would not want to appear with lipstick smudges on their teeth, or men with spinach stuck in them!
Punctuation Points
There are also no punctuation marks in the e-mail I have quoted. Perhaps the sender thought they were not necessary, considering it was "only" an e-mail. There are others who simply strew their e-mails with exclamation marks, question marks, and even emoticons. Take this one, for example:
Hello!!
We have received the communication yesterday!!!!!!! Thanks!!!!!! Boss was happy. But one of the rods was bent in transit. What to do????
Both extremes are unprofessional and create a bad impression not only about you but also about the company you represent.
Grammar matters too. In the first e-mail that I quoted, there are a couple of grammatical and semantic mistakes. See if you can spot them.
Whether you are dealing with expats or Indian colleagues, ensure that your communication is framed in correct, official language. A well-written e-mail earns you plus points in your readers' minds. Here are some general tips to follow while sending e-mails:
- If you are unsure of how to address a person, stick to being formal. Dear Mr./Ms. X can't be wrong. If you don't know the gender, address the person by the full name, e.g., Dear Yasoshui Hanegawa or Dear Jeanne Ranay.
- Be crisp, concise, and clear in your communication. Aside from an occasional friendly inquiry once you have established a level of comfort, keep to the point.
- Format your e-mail so that the lines are well-spaced, and if you have to set down points, use bullets or even numbers.
- Do not put read or delivery receipts giving the reader the task of pressing the button; instead, you could request them to acknowledge receipt of the e-mail.
- Limit attachments. They clog the inbox and generally only serve to irritate recipients. Avoid them where possible.
- Where relevant, preserve the e-mail thread so that the readers can follow the sequence of developments.
- Don't hit the Reply All button as a matter of course. Think whether your reply to an e-mail merits being sent to everyone who has been copied on it.
- Use the CC button judiciously. The other day, a colleague had to tell a co-worker that I need not be copied on every e-mail communication between them, as it would only clutter up my inbox and add unnecessarily to my load.
- Read your e-mail carefully for mistakes, check that you have put what you want to convey in the clearest possible way, and only then press the Send button.
And finally, be prompt with your correspondence. The e-mail is sent in the expectation of a quick response. Make sure that the expectation is met. Even if you cannot sort out the problem, acknowledge the e-mail and let the sender know roughly when he or she should expect a response.
The drive and enthusiasm of the brave new generation is something the West envies. We also have the trump card of English knowledge, which even China doesn't possess. With a little polishing in e-etiquette, we could make the most of these advantages.
PS: "Preponed" is not accepted English usage. The correct word is "Advanced". Also, the e-mail should have read "advanced to 12th" instead of "preponed on 12th".
Have a good day,
Shijit.
From India, Kochi
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For reference, I suggest reading the books of Shirley Taylor. You can log onto her website ST Training Solutions.
From India, Mumbai
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From India, Mumbai
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It is indeed heartening to see that in this day and age of the 'instant generation', you have given thought to and taken the pains to bring to our notice the impropriety of absurd and inappropriate email etiquette (or the lack of it, as pointed out by you).
Trust that this will go on to reduce some of the improperly written emails that we all have been sent at some point in time.
In appreciation,
Urvi Verma
From India, Gurgaon
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Trust that this will go on to reduce some of the improperly written emails that we all have been sent at some point in time.
In appreciation,
Urvi Verma
From India, Gurgaon
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Good one, dear.
Dos and Don'ts of Official E-mails
2009-04-20 12:14:38
By Ranjini Manian
The other day, I received the following e-mail from a client's office in response to a request I had made for some information:
WE WILL SEND THE INFO BY 2MRW EVE
FYI
NXT MEET PREPONED ON 12
HOPE U R FREE 2 ATTND
RGDS
XYZ
Looking at it, I realized that our young and "with it" population, one of our greatest assets, needs to polish their e-mail etiquette.
My guess is that several readers of this e-mail will find nothing wrong with it. There probably would not be anything very wrong had it been sent as a casual communication between friends. But in a business scenario, it is all wrong.
Capital Mistakes
First things first. Look at the font. The entire message is typed in capital letters. In the world of e-mails, that amounts to shouting. A Westerner receiving such a mail would jump to the conclusion that the sender is very angry or irritated with him/her, and is not bothering to hide the fact.
James, one of my newer clients, took offense when my colleague, Sharada, wrote in the subject line "RESENDING" in caps. He told her politely that she needed to stay cool! Needless to say, the Indian correspondent was not being rude but was merely using the All Caps option for ease of typing.
So please take care to press the Shift key when you want to put in capital letters where grammar requires you to, but otherwise stick to the lower case.
No Short Forms Please
To get back to our sample e-mail: You will notice several abbreviations. So what, you might ask. I don't even recommend this for SMS communication. In an e-mail, abbreviations such as 2mrw and U R are totally unprofessional and unacceptable. Treat e-mails just as you would any other business correspondence.
Remember you are making a lasting impression on people you may never meet in today's virtual world. This attention to detail is as important as a live meeting where women business managers would not want to appear with lipstick smudges on their teeth, or men with spinach stuck in them!
Punctuation Points
There are also no punctuation marks in the e-mail I have quoted. Perhaps the sender thought they were not necessary, considering it was "only" an e-mail. There are others who simply strew their e-mails with exclamation marks, question marks, and even emoticons. Take this one, for example:
Hello!!
We have received the communication yesterday!!!!!!! Thanks!!!!!! Boss was happy. But one of the rods was bent in transit. What to do????
Both extremes are unprofessional and create a bad impression not only about you but also about the company you represent.
Grammar matters too. In the first e-mail that I quoted, there are a couple of grammatical and semantic mistakes. See if you can spot them.
Whether you are dealing with expats or Indian colleagues, ensure that your communication is framed in correct, official language. A well-written e-mail earns you plus points in your readers' minds. Here are some general tips to follow while sending e-mails:
If you are unsure of how to address a person, stick to being formal. Dear Mr/Ms X can't be wrong. If you don't know the gender, address the person by the full name, E.g., Dear Yasoshui Hanegawa or Dear Jeanne Ranay.
Be crisp, concise, and clear in your communication. Aside from an occasional friendly enquiry once you have established a level of comfort, keep to the point.
Format your e-mail so that the lines are well-spaced and if you have to set down points, use bullets or even numbers.
Do not put read or delivery receipts giving the reader the task of pressing the button; instead, you could request them to acknowledge receipt of the e-mail.
Limit attachments. They clog the in-box and generally only serve to irritate recipients. Avoid them where possible.
Where relevant, preserve the e-mail thread so that the readers can follow the sequence of developments.
Don't hit the Reply All button as a matter of course. Think whether your reply to an e-mail merits being sent to everyone who has been copied on it.
Use the CC button judiciously. The other day, a colleague had to tell a co-worker that I need not be copied on every e-mail communication between them, as it would only clutter up my in-box and add unnecessarily to my load.
Read your e-mail carefully for mistakes, check that you have put what you want to convey in the clearest possible way, and only then press the Send button.
And finally, be prompt with your correspondence. The e-mail is sent in the expectation of a quick response. Make sure that the expectation is met. Even if you cannot sort out the problem, acknowledge the e-mail and let the sender know roughly when he or she should expect a response.
The drive and enthusiasm of the brave new generation is something the West envies. We also have the trump card of English knowledge, which even China doesn't possess. With a little polishing in e-etiquette, we could make the most of these advantages.
PS: "Preponed" is not accepted English usage. The correct word is "Advanced". Also, the e-mail should have read "advanced to 12th" instead of "preponed on 12th".
Have a good day,
Shijit.
From India, New Delhi
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Dos and Don'ts of Official E-mails
2009-04-20 12:14:38
By Ranjini Manian
The other day, I received the following e-mail from a client's office in response to a request I had made for some information:
WE WILL SEND THE INFO BY 2MRW EVE
FYI
NXT MEET PREPONED ON 12
HOPE U R FREE 2 ATTND
RGDS
XYZ
Looking at it, I realized that our young and "with it" population, one of our greatest assets, needs to polish their e-mail etiquette.
My guess is that several readers of this e-mail will find nothing wrong with it. There probably would not be anything very wrong had it been sent as a casual communication between friends. But in a business scenario, it is all wrong.
Capital Mistakes
First things first. Look at the font. The entire message is typed in capital letters. In the world of e-mails, that amounts to shouting. A Westerner receiving such a mail would jump to the conclusion that the sender is very angry or irritated with him/her, and is not bothering to hide the fact.
James, one of my newer clients, took offense when my colleague, Sharada, wrote in the subject line "RESENDING" in caps. He told her politely that she needed to stay cool! Needless to say, the Indian correspondent was not being rude but was merely using the All Caps option for ease of typing.
So please take care to press the Shift key when you want to put in capital letters where grammar requires you to, but otherwise stick to the lower case.
No Short Forms Please
To get back to our sample e-mail: You will notice several abbreviations. So what, you might ask. I don't even recommend this for SMS communication. In an e-mail, abbreviations such as 2mrw and U R are totally unprofessional and unacceptable. Treat e-mails just as you would any other business correspondence.
Remember you are making a lasting impression on people you may never meet in today's virtual world. This attention to detail is as important as a live meeting where women business managers would not want to appear with lipstick smudges on their teeth, or men with spinach stuck in them!
Punctuation Points
There are also no punctuation marks in the e-mail I have quoted. Perhaps the sender thought they were not necessary, considering it was "only" an e-mail. There are others who simply strew their e-mails with exclamation marks, question marks, and even emoticons. Take this one, for example:
Hello!!
We have received the communication yesterday!!!!!!! Thanks!!!!!! Boss was happy. But one of the rods was bent in transit. What to do????
Both extremes are unprofessional and create a bad impression not only about you but also about the company you represent.
Grammar matters too. In the first e-mail that I quoted, there are a couple of grammatical and semantic mistakes. See if you can spot them.
Whether you are dealing with expats or Indian colleagues, ensure that your communication is framed in correct, official language. A well-written e-mail earns you plus points in your readers' minds. Here are some general tips to follow while sending e-mails:
If you are unsure of how to address a person, stick to being formal. Dear Mr/Ms X can't be wrong. If you don't know the gender, address the person by the full name, E.g., Dear Yasoshui Hanegawa or Dear Jeanne Ranay.
Be crisp, concise, and clear in your communication. Aside from an occasional friendly enquiry once you have established a level of comfort, keep to the point.
Format your e-mail so that the lines are well-spaced and if you have to set down points, use bullets or even numbers.
Do not put read or delivery receipts giving the reader the task of pressing the button; instead, you could request them to acknowledge receipt of the e-mail.
Limit attachments. They clog the in-box and generally only serve to irritate recipients. Avoid them where possible.
Where relevant, preserve the e-mail thread so that the readers can follow the sequence of developments.
Don't hit the Reply All button as a matter of course. Think whether your reply to an e-mail merits being sent to everyone who has been copied on it.
Use the CC button judiciously. The other day, a colleague had to tell a co-worker that I need not be copied on every e-mail communication between them, as it would only clutter up my in-box and add unnecessarily to my load.
Read your e-mail carefully for mistakes, check that you have put what you want to convey in the clearest possible way, and only then press the Send button.
And finally, be prompt with your correspondence. The e-mail is sent in the expectation of a quick response. Make sure that the expectation is met. Even if you cannot sort out the problem, acknowledge the e-mail and let the sender know roughly when he or she should expect a response.
The drive and enthusiasm of the brave new generation is something the West envies. We also have the trump card of English knowledge, which even China doesn't possess. With a little polishing in e-etiquette, we could make the most of these advantages.
PS: "Preponed" is not accepted English usage. The correct word is "Advanced". Also, the e-mail should have read "advanced to 12th" instead of "preponed on 12th".
Have a good day,
Shijit.
From India, New Delhi
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Dear Shijith,
Thank you very much. I wish the corporate trainers include this e-etiquette syllabus in their trainings to reach out to a larger group of people for the betterment.
Good Day to you.
Regards,
Sheethal
From India, Bangalore
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Thank you very much. I wish the corporate trainers include this e-etiquette syllabus in their trainings to reach out to a larger group of people for the betterment.
Good Day to you.
Regards,
Sheethal
From India, Bangalore
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Thanks Shijit. This certainly is an important piece of updation for all the people who communicate through emails in the professional world. Keep posting ..
From India, Pune
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From India, Pune
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It was so refreshing to know that someone actually knows that the word preponed is not actually used in English language!!
From India, Pune
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From India, Pune
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Absolutely one hundred percent correct.
Email communication continues to evolve with the changing landscape of the business scenario, influenced by norms of culture and technology.
Email communication is compounded by the fact that it is important to be aware of how email messaging applications are used. For instance, application features vary from one email provider to another. Setting appointments and conference timings on Microsoft Email and Lotus Notes is slightly different.
Improper setting of conference times/zones or incorrect evaluation of the audience can lead to disaster, as it can impact the time and productivity of the organization.
There are many aspects to email communication that go beyond merely being correct in the message content.
Shijit is right in emphasizing the importance of communicating through the medium of email across various cultures in the changing dynamics of a business environment.
Email communication is a passive form of communication that requires effort to be credible when compared to verbal communication on a one-to-one basis.
From India, Bangalore
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Email communication continues to evolve with the changing landscape of the business scenario, influenced by norms of culture and technology.
Email communication is compounded by the fact that it is important to be aware of how email messaging applications are used. For instance, application features vary from one email provider to another. Setting appointments and conference timings on Microsoft Email and Lotus Notes is slightly different.
Improper setting of conference times/zones or incorrect evaluation of the audience can lead to disaster, as it can impact the time and productivity of the organization.
There are many aspects to email communication that go beyond merely being correct in the message content.
Shijit is right in emphasizing the importance of communicating through the medium of email across various cultures in the changing dynamics of a business environment.
Email communication is a passive form of communication that requires effort to be credible when compared to verbal communication on a one-to-one basis.
From India, Bangalore
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Thank you for sharing the same friends. I totally agree with the potential consequences that such informal emails may cause when dealing with a client or supplier. I would like to inquire whether the use of language such as FYI, NA, PLZ, PFA is acceptable for internal communication within an organization.
Shraddha
From India, Pune
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Shraddha
From India, Pune
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