1.03D. Write professional s

 Why do you need etiquette? A company needs to implement etiquette rules for the following three reasons: Professionalism: by using proper language your company will convey a professional image. Efficiency: s that get to the point are much more effective than poorly worded s. Protection from liability: employee awareness of risks will protect your company from costly law suits.

What are the etiquette rules? There are many etiquette guides and many different etiquette rules. Some rules will differ according to the nature of your business and the corporate culture. Below we list what we consider as the 32 most important etiquette rules that apply to nearly all companies. (Use the following link for additional information on each tip) 32 most important etiquette tips: 1. Be concise and to the point 2. Answer all questions, and pre-empt further questions 3. Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation 4. Make it personal 5. Use templates for frequently used responses 6. Answer swiftly 7. Do not attach unnecessary files 8. Use proper structure & layout 9. Do not overuse the high priority option 10. Do not write in CAPITALS 11. Don't leave out the message thread 12. Add disclaimers to your s 13. Read the before you send it 14. Do not overuse Reply to All 15. Mailings > use the bcc: field or do a mail merge

16. Take care with abbreviations and emoticons 17. Be careful with formatting 18. Take care with rich text and HTML messages 19. Do not forward chain letters 20. Do not request delivery and read receipts 21. Do not ask to recall a message. 22. Do not copy a message or attachment without permission 23. Do not use to discuss confidential information 24. Use a meaningful subject 25. Use active instead of passive 26. Avoid using URGENT and IMPORTANT 27. Avoid long sentences 28. Don't send or forward s containing libelous, defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks 29. Don't forward virus hoaxes 30. Keep your language gender neutral 31. Don't reply to spam 32. Use cc: field sparingly

Consider the following etiquette rules before writing a professional Be Professional. Just because you are writing an electronic message rather than a typewritten letter doesn't mean that your communication shouldn't be just as professional. Resist the urge to be overly casual. If you don't know your correspondent, address them as Mr. or Ms. (or Dr.). Use the same language that you would use in a standard business letter. Use a proper business format. It can be similar to those used in business letters. Avoid slang or casually constructed sentences.

Be Concise. Remember that your reader likely has dozens of how to write a business other messages to read and other tasks competing for his attention. Don't go on and on. Most points can be covered in three to five paragraphs. If your reader groans at the length of your message when he opens it, he's more likely to delete it unread. Always Use the Subject Line. The proliferation of spam and computer viruses sent via has made businesses cautious about opening s from people they don't know. Tell your reader why you are writing in the subject line of the . That way he's less likely to mistake your message for spam. This is part of professional etiquette. A suitable subject line need only be a few words; too many words will get truncated when the line appears in your recipient's box. Examples of good subject lines include: Subject: Interview Request Subject: Query: "Name of Prospective Article" Subject: Response to ad in "Writers World"

Don't Send Attachments unless they are Requested. Attachments may be carriers of computer-disabling viruses. Some companies even block employees from opening attachments on company computers. In addition, uploading attachments -- especially image files -- from an older computer or using a dial-up connection can take a long time. If you'd like to send a text document (such as one created using Microsoft Word), paste it at the bottom of your instead of attaching it. Proofread your Message. This should go without saying, but it's very easy to hit the "send" button before you're truly ready to send your message. Again, treat your correspondence the same as you would a typed letter. Make sure that it's free of spelling, typing and grammatical errors before launching it into cyberspace. Remember: In many cases, your is the first impression a business associate has of you. Make it a positive one.

In terminology, Cc stands for "carbon copy" and Bcc stands for "Blind carbon copy". The difference between Cc and Bcc is that carbon copy (CC) recipients are visible to all other recipients whereas those who are BCCed are not visible to anyone. To specify the recipients, an message can contain addresses in any of the 3 following fields: To: field recipients are the audience of the message CC: field recipients are others whom the author wishes to publicly inform of the message (carbon copy) BCC: field recipients are those being discreetly or surreptitiously informed of the communication and cannot be seen by any of the other addressees. It is common practice to use the BCC: field when addressing a very long list of recipients, or a list of recipients that should not (necessarily) know each other, e.g. in mailing lists.

Comparison chart BCC Cc Sight-Receiver cannot see BccReceiver can see Cc Replying-Bcc's cannot see the receiver's reply-Cc's cannot see the receiver's reply Example of CC vs BCC From: Frank Sinatra To: Kurt Cobain Cc: Bob Dylan; Jim Morrison Bcc: Mark Knopfler; Paul McCartney In the above example, all recipients of the (including Mark Knopfler and Paul McCartney) will see the following header information when they receive the From: Frank Sinatra To: Kurt Cobain Cc: Bob Dylan; Jim Morrison This means that none of the recipients will know who the Bcc recipients are. Each of the BCCed recipients will, of course, realize that they were on BCC but they will not know who else was on BCC.