Greetings!
Before we start, I need to say: "It's not
your fault." Most people have never been
taught how to use e-mail. Most of us learned
about letters and memos in school, but e-mail
has only been around for 15 years or less.
Before e-mail, our communication used to be
easier. Letters were external communication
(outside the company); memos were internal.
Along comes e-mail, a relatively infant
communication channel that hasn't "jelled"
yet. Some suggest that e-mail is a hybrid
between the paper letter and the paper memo,
traveling both internally and externally.
In this article,we'll look at a few "e-mail
uh-ohs" (e-mailing outside your organization;
whom you should put in the "To," "CC," and
"BCC" fields; what you should say in the
subject line). Watch for my next article
explaining how to structure and format your
content and how to proofread your e-mail most
effectively to avoid embarrassment.
1. E-mailing outside your organization:
Always clarify abbreviations and acronyms.
For example, if you are a customer service
representative and you write, "I'll send you
an RMA," you should define the term: "I'll
send you an RMA (Return Merchandise
Authorization)."
Likewise, explain your
jargon (specialized terms). Instead of
"Reseat the cable," write "Unplug the cable
and plug it back in." There's nothing
inherently wrong
with jargon--it's a great form of shorthand
between experts who know what it means.
However, if your audience doesn't understand
the abbreviated term, you have failed to
communicate your message. To these confused
people, your jargon is a CWOT (complete waste
of time).
2. Put the right people in the "to" line:
Here's what we understand about e-mail
headings:
- TO: Have action items in the e-mail
and/or expected to respond
- CC: Do not have action items and not
expected to respond but need to know
content
- BCC: Blind "carbon" copy (TO: and CC:
recipients don't see who is in the BCC
field)
Let's say you are writing about an upcoming
meeting. You want to be sure someone brings a
certain document. If you put six people in
the "TO" line and tell them all to bring the
document, chances are they'll look at that
list and figure, "Joe will probably bring the
document," and forget about it.
Instead, be
very explicit and put Joe in the "TO" field
and the other five in the "CC" field. Then
Joe will know he's definitely
responsible.
A word about BCC: If you are using the BCC
field for sneaky reasons (to keep the
recipient(s) from knowing you are copying
someone else), you need to know that the
recipient can "Reply All" and the "secret"
BCC field will show up.
3. What to say in your subject line:
Be brief in your subject line, but not too
brief. Consider these subject lines:
Shelves
Need shelves
Need new lab shelves
Need new lab shelves by June
Need new lab shelves by June or auditors will
mark us down for efficiency
The first example is too short; it doesn't
provide enough information about the shelves
to understand what is in your e-mail. The
last example is too long.
The fourth
example is probably your best communicative
effort: just enough information to indicate
the subject.
Put your most important point in the first
half of your subject line (the first 25-35
characters) because e-mail programs may cut
off the subject line. This is especially true
of handhelds like a Palm® or Blackberry®. And
phrase that subject line so that it tells the
reader what to do (Send budget
figures; Call
right away).
Remember, you are the only person who
can improve your communication behavior. Use
the tips above to communicate most
effectively via e-mail.
Book review of the month:
Send: The Essential Guide to Email for
Office and Home by David Shipley and Will
Schwalbe. New York: Alfred A. Knopf,
2007.
Although the authors totally disparage people
with Ph.D degrees., I totally endorse this
book as a
great explanation and exploration of
communication issues in email. It's a quick,
humorous read and a helpful reminder of
communication principles.
Take, for example, the psychological
principle of mirroring. Shipley and Schwalbe
describe the principle (mirror or copy the
behavior of the person you are communicating
with) and suggest that if someone e-mails
casually with "Hi, Jim!" as their breezy
salutation, you'd be safe mirroring them with
"Hi, Fred!"
This book promotes good, common-sense
e-mailing behavior; not everyone, however,
has common sense.
What I learn about communication from my
grandchildren
On Fridays, I take my grandson Axel (28
months old) on "adventures" to local
playgrounds, airports, and museums. Last
week, we were at the Longmont airport
watching planes take off and land. One plane
pulled over near us, and the pilot deplaned
and started to gas the plane.
"Oh, look, Axel, that pilot is putting gas in
his plane," I said.
"Yeaaaaah..." he said, tentatively. (I
imagine he was saying to himself: "What on
earth is she
talking about?")
"See how the gas tank is in the wing?"
"Yeaaaaaaaaaaah..." he said, politely. By
now, it was clear he had no idea what I meant
but was just cooperating in the
conversation.
And how many times do we do that ourselves?
How many times do I say, "Yeaaaaaaaaah..."
and hope I'll "get it" soon? Why are we so
reluctant to ask questions like: "I have no
idea what you just said. Could you start over
and explain it to me?" Perhaps we are
unwilling to risk appearing slow at learning.
Whatever the reason, I hereby commit myself to
ask more questions when I don't understand
someone else's communication. I also will be
sensitive when others say "Yeaaaaaah..." and
might not really understand what I'm saying.
