The Art of E-Communication Preventing Unprofessional Correspondence in an Informal Medium Presentation by Jason C. Garza

Why worry about “E”-tiquette? On average, 90% of internet users use email on a daily basis. (Standford, 2008) To curb costs, organizations use email or instant messaging systems in order to eliminate phone usage. Email is a form of documentation…and like all documentation it should be professional.

Email Think of writing an email as writing a business letter. Know your audience: is this correspondence to a supervisor? A colleague? A friend? A manager? Know what idea(s) you want to communicate.

(In)Formal E-Communication Informal: Not used in business; will be a friendly, casual correspondence about non-business issues. Slang (IE “what’s up,” “yo,” “huh,” “i”) Formal: Used in business; will be a to-the-point correspondence addressing one or more pressing issues.

Informal E-Communication Errors Using acronyms that may have multiple meanings (IE O/S; POA) Using technical “jargon” that the recipient may not understand Not using a spell or grammar check.

(In)Formal Address First name Title, last name Hey… How’s it going? Well, you won’t believe… Greetings, Mr… To whom it may concern…

Security Emails and Instant Messaging systems may not have “secured” servers Never send: User names Passwords Account numbers Social security numbers Other sensitive data

GRAMMAR TIME

Spelling Activate spell check on: Know When To Capitalize Words Outlook, Thunderbird, etc. Web browsers (Firefox, Explorer) Desktop Know When To Capitalize Words

HOW (not) TO SAY IT AVOID TYPING IN ALL CAPS Emails typed in all caps are often ignored Conveys amateurism, not professionalism Spam filters may catch emails in all caps Is just like shouting at the person across from you

How, not; to: say—it.?! Use punctuation; avoid: Lack of stops (periods, question marks) Lack of separators (commas, semicolons) Run-on sentences May change the meaning of a sentence: Giant moving, sale Friday. Giant moving sale Friday.

Emoticons; E-bbreviations Never use BRB, LOL, BTW Never use “emoticons” (smiley faces) These do not belong in a professional business setting; they can be disabled at the user level

Tips Keep the message short and to the point; use short sentences. Proofread before sending Avoid the read/delivery receipt option Can be deactivated on recipient’s Outlook Avoid using URGENT or IMPORTANT Creates the “boy who cried wolf” problem

Replying Avoid using the “reply all” feature unless the original email was sent to create an open forum Clogging the “CC” line; if you have a question for the sender, then only reply to the sender

Good-bye Sincerely Regards Have a great day Toodles, See ya Until next time Awaiting your reply

Signing off Use a signature block when sending or receiving Outlook will allow you to save your preferred signature. Jason C. Garza Human Resources/Training Manager The Family Credit Union jgarza@familycu.com (563) 388-8328

E-Communication should be… …short and to the point …respectful and professional …replied to promptly …free of big attachments …addressed and signed off properly …used as an alternative to telephones …something to embrace

“E”-tiquette