Email Etiquette: Rules to Email By...

I use email a lot.  My inbox is constantly open on my desktop and I check my smartphone several times a day looking for new messages.  As a result of this I thought it would be fun to peruse  the web to find  the top "tips and tricks" to making email a successful form of communication.  Some of these "tips" I live by while others were new to me but they are all pretty interesting.  Everything below is a mashup of a bunch of different sites that talked about email etiquette, the use of email in the workplace, etc.  Since this is no where near a complete list of email tips please feel free to leave more in the comments.

Appropriate Use

Email may not always be the best way to communicate information to someone or a group. You're going to want to match the message with the best medium so don't forget about phone calls, face-to-

Be Concise

No one likes to get long email messages.  There is a good chance that if it is more than a paragraph (five or so sentences) the recipient will give up before they are done (I know I do). A good rule of thumb is to strive to keep emails to one line or less.  If they can’t be that short, challenge yourself to keep them as concise as humanly possible.  Keep in mind that mobile browsing is taking over desktop browsing, so the odds of someone reading your message on a smartphone or tablet are pretty high and it it much easier to read and respond to a short message than a long one.  Above all get to the point quickly.

Communicate “action items” first, not last.

It’s natural to start an email explaining, outlining, prefacing, or telling a story, however, put “action items” first so they are not lost in the text of the message.  Like stated above, if your message is long there is a chance your reader will not make it to the end of the email.

Response Times

Set a personal goal for response time and stick with it.  This will make you appear more reliable and it will avoid people asking “did you get my email?”

Number your questions

Much like putting "action items" first, numbering questions can increase the chance of them getting answered.  If questions are buried in text you run the risk of having your reader only answer the first question they see or understand.  

Make the way forward clear

Emailing someone to ask "What do you think about...?" are oftentimes a waste of time. Leaving questions open ended can cause enough ambiguity to result in a non-response.  A better idea is to give a bulleted outline if you are proposing a deal or give express how you feel about a topic and ask if they agree.  This will give the recipient a starting point, do they agree or disagree, and will result in a higher chance for response.

Include deadlines

I never included deadlines prior to starting research for this class because I thought it came off as being dictatorial.  Then I noticed that successful busy people welcome a deadline (and some even ask for them).  It helps integrate tasks into a persons schedule.  Because I work on so many projects I welcome deadlines, especially since I can now click on the date in Gmail and it will automatically add it to my calendar.

Use “FYI” for emails that have no actionable information

Some email is meant to keep people in the loop without actually giving them something to do. Use “FYI” in the subject line or at the top of the email to indicate that the contents of the message if for their information.

Tell them that you’ll get to it later

If you can’t get to something right away let them know with a quick "I will get to this within the next week" email.  This will help with their anxiety if they are awaiting your response.  If it takes you a week to complete the task and you wait until then to respond they may move on without you.  Keep in mind that if you do say you will get to it later you need to remember to follow up (I have a bad habit of forgetting to follow up occasionally).

Use expressive and compelling subject lines

Use subject lines that convey a message.  For this you could use a:

Actionable Subject Line:  A subject line that conveys an action such as, "Email Ron to confirm you are attending his class on May 29 at 6:30pm."

Clear Subject Line:  A subject like that states exactly what is in the email like, "July Computer Class Notification & Registration."

Coded Subject Line:  A subject line that contains an abbreviations to convey a message like, "Thanks, got it.  EOM" (EOM=End of Message) or "FYI:  I'll be in at 1:00pm today."

Never “reply all” (unless you absolutely must)

"Reply all" has a tendency to fill an inbox with a lot of junk that does not necessarily pertain to everyone the email was originally sent to.  If you receive an email that was sent to several people think about what you are writing and who it should go to.  If you message is only appropriate for the sender of the original message you should simply "reply" rather than "reply all."

Other quick tips:

Don't waste the recipients time.

If your email does not contain useful information don’t send it.

Don't ask for information that can easily be assessed via Google-ing.

Don't ask for long form answers via text.

Skip time-wasting emails and texts that just say “k” or “thanks.

-rk