Email Etiquette
For many of us here at Tufts University email is a tool that we use to perform our
jobs more efficiently. It is a tool that has made communication easier when used properly.
However, when misused email can cause more problems than it solves. After researching
several mistakes that are made by the majority of email writers, myself not excluded,
I have found a few tips that I believe can help to make email a more useful tool for us all.
- Wait until the email is completed before writing the To: addresses.
This will reduce the chances of prematurely sending out an incomplete email.
- Do not write in all capital letters.
It is generally interpreted as SHOUTING.
- Be concise.
Most people don't enjoy reading off of a computer screen. State your point a quickly as possible. Be sure to include all the important facts, but be brief.
- Use spell check.
No one wants to guess what is being said, they want it spelled out for them (correctly).
- Do not send mail to a group when it is not necessary.
We all hate spam and being involved in a conversation that does not pertain to us feels like spam. Send messages to people who need to hear what you are saying.
- Write the subject of the email in the subject line.
Writing
"Hey", "Hi", or "Important info" in a subject line will often times cause the recipient to pass it off as spam.
- Never send an email when angry.
Remember, email that you send can be forwarded and there are no
"take backs".
- Do not assume that email you send to someone is private.
People forward messages and read over each others shoulders all the time.
- It is rude to forward messages with personal content in them without the author's permission.
Even if you don't mind having your messages sent around, other people usually do. Be kind and keep the workplace friendly.
- Be sure to include a signature.
Signatures that have a full name, title, department, phone number, and email address are most useful.
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