The Top Twelve E-Mail Mistakes That Can Sabotage Your Career

Your e-mail is as much a part of your professional image as the clothes you wear, the postal letters you write (assuming you still do), the greeting on your voice mail and the handshake you offer. If you want to impress on every front and build positive business relationships, pay attention to your e-mail and steer clear of these top twelve e-mail mistakes:

1. Omitting the Subject Line. We are way past the time when we didn’t realize the significance of the subject line. It makes no sense to send a message that reads “no subject” and seems to be about nothing. Given the huge volume of e-mail that each person receives, the subject header is essential if you want your message read any time soon. The subject line has become the hook

2.Not Making Your Subject Line Meaningful. Your header should be pertinent to your message, not just “Hi” or “Hello.” The recipient is going to decide the order in which he reads e-mail based on who sent it and what it is about. Your e-mail will have lots of competition.

3. Failing to Change the Header to Correspond with the Subject. For example, if you are writing your web publisher, your first header may be “Web site content.” However, as your site develops and you send more information, label each message for what it is, “contact info,” “graphics,” or “home page.” Don’t just hit “reply” every time. Changing the header will allow your publisher to find a specific document in his message folder without having to search every one you sent. If you change the subject all together, start a new message.

4. Not Personalizing Your Message to the Recipient. E-mail is informal but it still needs a greeting. Begin with “Dear Mr. Broome,” “Dear Jim,” “Hello Jim,” or just “Jim.” Failure to put in the person’s name can make you and your e-mail seem cold.

5. Not Accounting for Tone. When you communicate with another person face to face, 93% of the message is non-verbal. E-mail has no body language. The reader cannot see your face or hear your tone of voice so chose your words carefully and thoughtfully. Put yourself in the other person’s place and think how your words may come across in Cyberspace.

6. Forgetting to Check for Spelling and Grammar. In the early days of e-mail, someone created the notion that this form of communication did not have to be letter perfect. Wrong. It does. It is a representation of you. If you don’t check to be sure e-mail is correct, people will question the caliber of other work you do. Use proper capitalization and punctuation, and always check your spelling. Remember that your spellchecker will catch misspelled words, but not misused ones. It cannot tell whether you meant to say “from” or “form,” “for” or “fro”, “he” or “the.”

7. Writing the Great American Novel. E-mail is meant to be brief. Keep your message short. Use only a few paragraphs and a few sentences per paragraph. People skim their e-mail so a long missive is wasted. If you find yourself writing an overly long message, pick up the phone or call a meeting.

8.Forwarding E-Mail Without Permission Most everyone is guilty of this one, but think about it. If the message was sent to you and only you, why would you take responsibility for passing it on? Too often confidential information has gone global because of someone’s lack of judgment. Unless you are asked or request permission, do not forward anything that was sent just to you.

9. Thinking that No One Else Will Ever See Your Email Once it has left your mailbox, you have no idea where your e-mail will end up. Don’t use the Internet to send anything that you couldn’t stand to see on a billboard on your way to work the next day. Use other means to communicate personal or sensitive information.

10. Leaving Off Your Signature Always close with your name, even though it is included at the top of the e-mail, and add contact information such as your phone, fax and street address. The recipient may want to call you to talk further or send you documents that cannot be e-mailed. Creating a formal signature block with all that data is the most professional approach.

11. Expecting an Instant Response Not everyone is sitting in front of the computer with e-mail turned on. The beauty of Internet communication is that it is convenient. It is not an interruption. People can check their messages when it suits them, not you. If your communication is so important that you need to hear back right away, use the phone.

12. Completing the "TO" Line First The name or address of the person to whom you are writing is actually the last piece of information you should enter. Check everything else over carefully first. Proof for grammar, punctuation, spelling and clarity. Did you say what needed to be said? How was your “tone of voice”? If you were the least bit emotional when you wrote the e-mail, did you let it sit for a period of time? Did you include the attachment you wanted to send? If you enter the recipient’s name first, a mere slip of the finger can send a message before its’ time. You can never take it back.

E-mail makes everything easier and faster including making a powerful business impression and establishing positive professional relationships. The business person who uses the technology effectively and appropriately will see the results of that effort reflected in the bottom line.

Special Thanks to Lydia Ramsey and business know-how®

It comes to my attention that general standards of decent behaviour in this world are at an all time low, especially when it comes to how people behave around customer service personnel.

I've been reading some historical novels lately, and I've been realizing that the slaves in these novels get more respect than some service staff does.

Most of the time, customers/clients/guests/whatever you call them are just fine. Some of them are even wonderful. But some people seem to have the need, to be rude to staff. Some people are demanding and spoiled. Some others simply don't respect people. They look at the people who are trying to serve them as a set of dolls lined up in a row, without emotions or desires of their own. For these people, the person behind the counter is a tool to be used and then to be thrown away. They always think that the best way to get a good service is to be extremely rude.

It bothers me to see hard working men and women are treated as lesser beings merely because they are on the wrong side of the counter. Customer service representatives are people too. They work hard, long hours, and most of them really want to make you happy. Some of them want you to have a wonderful, positive experience in your establishment, and most of them will go above and beyond their limits to ensure that you are pleased. Please don't make it any harder on them. It is not very pleasant to see an administrator or a manager behaves like an ass, when his or her boss is also not very impressed either.

If you, as a customer, are not happy with a service, then by all means say so. But try saying it in a courteous and polite way, say for example: "Excuse me miss, this not the exact colour I wanted." Then she will probably say "oh, I'm sorry sir, let me take this back to the stores and bring what you want". Never use "Are you blind??" sort of a response instead. We must always try to remember that the problem we are having is probably not due to a fault of the person we are dealing with. Did the poor girl at the Help Desk manufacture that defective wireless phone? Did the helpless counterperson at the bank set the bank's loan policy? ; Probably not. So why take it out on them? A rational and polite complaint will be met with a cheerful service; there's no need to be rude.

We appreciate feedback about our services, and most customer service personnel do. Business owners and managers, likewise, are always interested to know how their staff behaves, especially when they are not around. Always demand for a better service, but be fair enough. Criticise service staff to correct them; and say "Thanks" when they do an excellent job. Some business owners fear to appreciate a service provider thinking that they will then bring down the quality of the service. Trust my 10 years service experience, it never happens!
Kindness goes a long way, and is remembered.

I don't think being polite requires an effort. I think being rude requires a concentrated, focused effort that could be better spent on other things.

A little respect in your daily life can make a vast difference in how you interact with the rest of the world.

If you can take a moment to remember that the people serving you are people with homes, needs, and experiences of their own, you might find them more receptive and helpful.