Dear Scumbag...

It’s all too easy: you’ve received an email which has cheesed you off, so you hit Reply, fire back a scorching retort, hit Send and mutter “Take that!”. The feeling of satisfaction can sometimes last for several minutes – and then common sense starts to nibble away at it.

Was the original communication really that offensive? Were you perhaps a little hasty in your response? And above all: will the recipient in turn take offence and complain to others about you?

When using email, the only real control you can exercise is control over yourself. A good rule of thumb is never to send an email if you’re angry or impatient. If you’re having a bad day, communicate face to face or by phone. As many of us have learned the hard way, words said in haste can look far worse in cold, hard print.

There are programs which offer an ‘Are you sure?’ prompt when you hit Send, just to give you a moment for second thoughts. One such program is ToneCheck, a free plugin described as “an emotional spellcheck for email”.  It flags words in an email which may be upsetting or misinterpreted, and gives you the chance to change them before sending.

It’s also not a good idea to be writing and sending emails if you’re tired or distracted. Your business communications should always be succinct and unequivocal. If you’re sending to multiple recipients, always be sure you’ve entered the right addresses (don’t rely on the autofill function), and don’t neglect the BCC function, for informing people whose interest in a subject need not be known to others. If you’re forwarding an email, delete any information the recipient doesn’t need to know or shouldn’t see – including the addresses of previous recipients. If emails contain confidential information, they should be marked as such, and even sent to special inboxes, to ensure they’re read only both those entitled to see them.

BEST EMAIL PRACTICE

For businesses, any email sent by an employee on the company’s behalf reflects on the company as a whole. Tardiness, sarcasm and unauthorised sharing of information can indicate that a business is careless in its communications – and therefore careless in other areas as well.

“Within five seconds of opening your email, the recipient has formed an impression of you and your organisation - and made a judgement about your level of professionalism,” says UK email expert Monica Seeley. “Your email etiquette is your electronic dress code.”

A company policy on email etiquette should include such things as guidelines on opening and closing emails, using the address bars, and spellchecking. Seeley has provided an etiquette checklist here.

Think before you send – and make sure your staff are doing the same.

Got some email tips or horror stories? Please share them with us!

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