Hi People,
This is Chandana, representing an executive search firm based out of Bangalore. Thought of sharing this info. Here are some points on email etiquette:
1) The font of the mail should be Verdana, and the font size should be 9.5 or 10.
2) The mail should have a Pyramid Structure, i.e., it should contain:
- Situation: What the current situation is
- Action items: What you expect from the reader of the mail to do
- Information: The information you want to give to the reader
- Conclusion: Conclude with a Thank You.
3) For writing, use only Black or Blue color. For highlighting purposes, make the word bold. Avoid using Red color as Red signifies danger, so use it when urgent.
4) For greetings in the mail:
- For Americans: use Hi
- For Europeans: use Hello
- For Asians: use Dear
To be more formal, we could use Dear Mr./Ms. followed by the Last name or Full name. We should not use Dear Mr./Ms. followed by the First name alone.
5) We should not put '/' in greetings like Hi X/Y. Instead, we should say Hi X and Y.
6) We should not use 'Thanks and Regards'. Instead, we should say:
Thank you
Regards
<Your name>
7) For requesting something, we should not use can; instead, we should use could.
8) We should not write 'Please find the attached file' because the reader does not have to find or search for the file in the mail; it's already there. So instead, we should write 'The file has been attached for your reference'.
9) We should not use sentences like 'As per your mail' because 'per' is used only with units like per Kg, etc. Instead, we should write 'According to your mail'.
10) We should use parallel structure. Parallelism enables readers to read documents more efficiently. For example, The analysis will include planning, organizing, dividing, and assessment. Instead of assessment, we should write Assessing of turnaround functions.
11) In our mails, we often write 'Please revert back'. Instead, we should only write 'Please revert'.
12) For the Signature in the mail, if we are sending to people in our company only, then we should not write our company name in the signature because they already know that we are part of the same company. However, if we are sending mail to an external party like a client, we should write our company name in the signature to brand our company name in front of others.
From India, Kochi
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This is Chandana, representing an executive search firm based out of Bangalore. Thought of sharing this info. Here are some points on email etiquette:
1) The font of the mail should be Verdana, and the font size should be 9.5 or 10.
2) The mail should have a Pyramid Structure, i.e., it should contain:
- Situation: What the current situation is
- Action items: What you expect from the reader of the mail to do
- Information: The information you want to give to the reader
- Conclusion: Conclude with a Thank You.
3) For writing, use only Black or Blue color. For highlighting purposes, make the word bold. Avoid using Red color as Red signifies danger, so use it when urgent.
4) For greetings in the mail:
- For Americans: use Hi
- For Europeans: use Hello
- For Asians: use Dear
To be more formal, we could use Dear Mr./Ms. followed by the Last name or Full name. We should not use Dear Mr./Ms. followed by the First name alone.
5) We should not put '/' in greetings like Hi X/Y. Instead, we should say Hi X and Y.
6) We should not use 'Thanks and Regards'. Instead, we should say:
Thank you
Regards
<Your name>
7) For requesting something, we should not use can; instead, we should use could.
8) We should not write 'Please find the attached file' because the reader does not have to find or search for the file in the mail; it's already there. So instead, we should write 'The file has been attached for your reference'.
9) We should not use sentences like 'As per your mail' because 'per' is used only with units like per Kg, etc. Instead, we should write 'According to your mail'.
10) We should use parallel structure. Parallelism enables readers to read documents more efficiently. For example, The analysis will include planning, organizing, dividing, and assessment. Instead of assessment, we should write Assessing of turnaround functions.
11) In our mails, we often write 'Please revert back'. Instead, we should only write 'Please revert'.
12) For the Signature in the mail, if we are sending to people in our company only, then we should not write our company name in the signature because they already know that we are part of the same company. However, if we are sending mail to an external party like a client, we should write our company name in the signature to brand our company name in front of others.
From India, Kochi
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Dear Chandana,
Thank you for sending the email on etiquettes. However, I have some reservations regarding a few points.
Point No. 1: There is no universal rule on font and its size. Sometimes, a font size of 9.5 or 10 can be very difficult to read. There is nothing wrong with using a font size of 12. Also, it is not wrong to use Times New Roman as the font since it is a universal font for formal and business communication. For formal communication, we should avoid using funny fonts like Monotype Corsiva, etc.
Point No. 2: In some cases, the sequence of the email could be as follows:
- Background of the case
- Consequences that arose out of the incident
- Your expectations
- Conclusion
Point No. 4: The rules vary from one company to another. I have experience working in an MNC that operated in 220 countries. The standard practice was to use "Dear..."
Point No. 6: Again, let me give an example of an MNC. Across the board, we always used "Thanks & regards,". If we did not use this expression, it was considered rude behavior.
Point No. 7: Suppose you want some information from your colleague. Which sounds better?
"Can you please forward the file to me?" OR
"Could you please forward the file to me?"
It depends on the situation. While asking for permission, "could" is used in more formal situations or when we are not sure if the permission will be granted. Also, we use "can you/could you" to make requests. "Can" is informal while "could" is more formal and polite.
Above all, when writing the email, first ask yourself - why am I writing this email? Is it to inform, clarify, instruct, inspire, appreciate, or rebuke? The purpose brings clarity to your communication.
Thank you,
Dinesh V Divekar
Soft Skill & Behavioural Trainer
From India, Bangalore
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8072Thank you for sending the email on etiquettes. However, I have some reservations regarding a few points.
Point No. 1: There is no universal rule on font and its size. Sometimes, a font size of 9.5 or 10 can be very difficult to read. There is nothing wrong with using a font size of 12. Also, it is not wrong to use Times New Roman as the font since it is a universal font for formal and business communication. For formal communication, we should avoid using funny fonts like Monotype Corsiva, etc.
Point No. 2: In some cases, the sequence of the email could be as follows:
- Background of the case
- Consequences that arose out of the incident
- Your expectations
- Conclusion
Point No. 4: The rules vary from one company to another. I have experience working in an MNC that operated in 220 countries. The standard practice was to use "Dear..."
Point No. 6: Again, let me give an example of an MNC. Across the board, we always used "Thanks & regards,". If we did not use this expression, it was considered rude behavior.
Point No. 7: Suppose you want some information from your colleague. Which sounds better?
"Can you please forward the file to me?" OR
"Could you please forward the file to me?"
It depends on the situation. While asking for permission, "could" is used in more formal situations or when we are not sure if the permission will be granted. Also, we use "can you/could you" to make requests. "Can" is informal while "could" is more formal and polite.
Above all, when writing the email, first ask yourself - why am I writing this email? Is it to inform, clarify, instruct, inspire, appreciate, or rebuke? The purpose brings clarity to your communication.
Thank you,
Dinesh V Divekar
Soft Skill & Behavioural Trainer
From India, Bangalore
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Dear Dinesh,
Thank you for sharing that information. I totally agree with your statement that 'the purpose brings clarity in our communication'. In fact, I was going through a lot of articles regarding etiquettes, and of course, as you said, it will vary from issue to issue.
But nowadays, I feel business communication is not taken very seriously by most professionals. Most of the time, we see the use of SMS language.
Anyways, it's great that you have shared your thoughts here. I was hoping an experienced person would shed some light on this topic so that I too can learn the best practices.
Thanks & Regards,
Chandana
Bangalore
From India, Kochi
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Thank you for sharing that information. I totally agree with your statement that 'the purpose brings clarity in our communication'. In fact, I was going through a lot of articles regarding etiquettes, and of course, as you said, it will vary from issue to issue.
But nowadays, I feel business communication is not taken very seriously by most professionals. Most of the time, we see the use of SMS language.
Anyways, it's great that you have shared your thoughts here. I was hoping an experienced person would shed some light on this topic so that I too can learn the best practices.
Thanks & Regards,
Chandana
Bangalore
From India, Kochi
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10 Commandments - for effective eMail Communication.p ps