by Bruno Somerset

Created on: February 06, 2007   Last Updated: April 30, 2010

Email has made business communication faster and more efficient than we could have dreamed of twenty years ago. At the same time, the flood of email has also become one of the biggest time drains on both managers and employees in business today. Proper etiquette in business E-mail can go a long way towards increasing productivity and reducing inefficiency if a few simple rules are observed.

First, and most importantly, know your audience. Nothing is more frustrating than receiving a "blast" e-mail that has absolutely nothing to do with you. The problem is compounded by the fact that invariably half of the recipients respond with an e-mail saying that the message does not pertain to them, and they do so using "Reply To All". For the next thirty minutes your Inbox becomes overwhelmed by a back and forth exchange that basically says nothing at all. Even though it takes very little time to simply delete an email, deleting two hundred of these is still a waste of your time.

Especially when sending inner-office communication, do not send an e-mail when a phone call is an option. I have seen instances when fifteen e-mails go back and forth on a subject that could have been resolved by a two minute conversation. I have also had people who have an office next door to me send an email asking that I come to their office. It would have taken less time to get up, walk next door, and ask me than it took to compose the email.

Keep your correspondence short and to the point, this saves you time typing and saves the recipient time reading. Often anything longer than a page gets deleted without the whole message being read. If you want to write a novel, do it at home.

Do not, under any circumstances, use abbreviations as you would when using an instant messenger or text message (i.e., lol, u, thx, etc). Business e-mail is professional communication and should be treated as such. Furthermore, managers and others above you in the company will evaluate your communication skills by your use, or misuse, of e-mail.

Following these and other common sense rules when using e-mail at work will save everyone time, as well as making e-mail a useful tool rather than a constant burden.

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