Business email best practices the Good, the Bad, & the Ugly Jeff Doubek Content Consultant Doubek Worldwide Media, Inc.
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Business email best practices
the Good, the Bad, & the Ugly
Jeff DoubekContent Consultant
Doubek Worldwide Media, Inc.
110 msgsThe average person
receives per day.
*The Radicati Group - 2010 “Email Statistics Report”
Quick story...In the days I ran a non-profit, I remember my
non-profit community reacting angrily to an email, causing a day’s worth of email volleys. Back and forth.
In the end, it was discovered the whole deal was taken out of context, something a quick
phone call could have easily prevented.
The moral here...
“Email is a good and bad thing.”
So be responsible.
<Habit 1>
Be clear and concise
Examples:
Specific subject lines
“Inverted pyramid” body
Call to action
Subject examples:
Original
“Social Media Mastery”
Better
“Please read: Tips for social media mastery”
Best
“Useful tips for increasing our social media ROI”
Message body
Cut to the chase
The inverted pyramid:
Put the importantinformation
at thetop
State your purpose!
“I am requesting feedback today on the attached doc in order to
meet tomorrow’s deadline.”
Support that statement
“This is the XYZ product presentation, based on comments
from yesterday’s meeting.”
Two more tips...
Give me a bullet... • please!
Close with call to action:
“Please respond and provide specific feedback – thank you.”
NRN
No reply necessary.
Don’t thank me
Request acknowledgement of receipt
Do you need to be thanked?
Never copy all on a thank you
When responding...
Answer all questions
Pre-empt further questions
More great tips...
cc with care
Reply all rarely
Avoid email “ping-pong”
<Habit 2>
Limit email time
Schedule inbox checks:
(e.g. 8:30, 1:30, 4:30)
Make few exceptions
Do yourself a favor...
Turn off the alerts!
<Habit 3>
Process your inbox
• 3-Rs: read, respond, remove
• 2-minute rule: if you can respond in 2 minutes, then do it!
• (the key is to make decisions)
Create follow-up tasks
In Outlook:
Use inbox folders
They are decision enablers, make labels such as:
“Save for reference”
“To read (later)”
Project titles
Make flag rules
The flag routine
Blue = unprocessed
Red = needs follow-up
Check = done
“Right click” to change
Remember though...
“Don’t let the process replace the action.”
Also...
*** The 24-hour Rule ***
Wait a day before replying to messages that anger you.
Avoid emotional responses.
Final Story...I once worked for an employer who made a point ofdressing down his charges via email, and did it
while bcc-ing half the company.
It created a horrible culture of mistrust.You never knew if your next note from him was
Being broadcast to the entire company.
The moral here...
Be Responsible.
Takeaways
1. Be clear and be concise
2. Check 3 times only
3. Process your inbox
Thank you!
More tips at: www.doubekworldwide.com
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