Business Writing

Starting Off on the Wrong Foot

In a recent business writing class, a participant said she wanted to learn to do this better in her writing:

"To succinctly communicate historical information or the why behind an email, and transition into the purpose or request I am making."

I could not help her reach her learning goal. No, that's not true--I would not help her. Here's why:

She had the wrong goal. Email readers do not want to read the "historical information or the why behind an email" before they learn the purpose or request. They want the purpose or the request first. Then they may want the why. They rarely want the historical information.

Here is an example:

You are writing to ask someone to recommend software or a web site you can go to for templates to create forms. Do not begin by explaining that you are making new forms. Do not describe how out of date your forms are. Do not admit that you feel as though this is something you really ought to know without asking. Instead, start like this:
Hi, Grace. Can you recommend software or any web sites that would help us create some new forms in our training department?
If there is any other information that would narrow your request and help her answer better, provide it.

Here is another:

You are writing to ask someone to give a presentation to your team about the new accounting rules. Do not begin by stating that there are a lot of new employees in your area. Do not explain that one of your goals for the year is to provide six hours of training for each employee. Do not write about how important accurate accounting is to everyone at your company. Start like this:
Hi, Rob. I heard from Stewart that your presentation on the new accounting rules is really helpful, and I am hoping you can offer it to our team.
Or this:
Hi, Rob. Our team would benefit from a presentation on the new accounting rules, and I am hoping that you will agree to talk to us as our resident expert.
Then continue with how you will make it easy for Rob to give the presentation.

Starting off with background information and explanations does not work in email. It's like starting on the wrong foot when dancing with a partner. The partner wonders, "Hmmm. This is awkward. Where are we going? I'll try to follow."

In fact, starting with background works in very few documents. If you think such information belongs at the beginning of a message, ask yourself "Does my reader have to have this information first? Without it, will my purpose or request make no sense?" If your answer is yes, explain. Otherwise, start off on the right foot. Get right to your purpose or request.

Lynn
Syntax Training

Early for April Fool's Day

Last night I sent a brief message to my husband, asking him to review a draft web page. As usual in a message to him, I did not include his name at the top, and I added xxoo above my signature. (Translation of xxoo: kiss, kiss, hug, hug.)

Well, I thought I sent it to my husband. I actually sent it to our new web designer.

She replied with this message: I'm thinking you didn't mean to send this to me :-)

Ha! No, I meant to write to Michael, not Margery. Usually when I type "M" for an outgoing message in Outlook, Michael's address comes up. Not this time.

Later I got another nice message from Margery:

I know we're getting along famously, but I thought that was especially friendly! Cracked me right up.

Did you crack up  anyone with an April Fool's Day email? I did--just a day early.

Lynn
Syntax Training

Right-Click Here to Download--or Delete?

If you created a sophisticated, elaborate weekly or monthly ezine, would you want your clients and customers to delete it without reading a word? Of course not. 

But most of the ezines I receive get deleted within a few seconds. Usually the reason is that graphics (or text formatted as graphics) fill them. When I open the ezine, I am faced with multiple Outlook instructions that say "Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet." Sometimes the entire ezine is little red x's in boxes next to that Outlook instruction. My instant response? Delete.

As someone who is not an expert in HTML, I can't speak on how to avoid having so many "Right-click here" messages. But I can suggest that you test your ezine. If it contains nothing but "Right-click here" messages, your readers must have a powerful reason to "Right-click here." Maybe that powerful reason is a great relationship with you or the knowledge that the information awaiting them will be worthwhile. Without that reason, most busy readers will click Delete.

An intriguing or persuasive title is one way to get people to open the ezine. But be sure the information promised in that title is readily apparent once your readers right-click. Otherwise, their next step will be--again--to click Delete. And who can blame them?

Lynn
Syntax Training

How to Read Email: Backwards

Lena wrote asking for an email tip to share with her boss. Here is her concern:

My boss, who travels frequently, responds to his emails in chronological order (earliest to most recent). Therefore, he often provides advice and gives orders on matters that have been resolved long before he enters the email conversation. This can be awkward at best, if his advice or instructions (copied to any number of clients and coworkers) contradict how we, his employees, handled time-sensitive issues that could not wait for his input.

I believe the solution is to group all emails in the string and read the most recent one to get an overview before entering the discussion. Do you agree?

Yes! I agree with Lena's suggestion. Grouping the emails and reading the most recent first makes sense. Kathy Frederick, who writes The Junk Drawer blog, shared a tip about sorting by thread here recently.

Instead of sorting his email by date and time, Lena's boss should sort by thread. To sort this way in Outlook, click View, Arrange By, and Conversation.

The boss's email reading habit frustrates his staff. But it must also annoy him when he has taken the time to respond to an issue, only to read minutes later that his staff has already handled it.

If you are Lena (not her real name) or anyone else whose boss's email habits are getting in the way of his, her, or your efficiency, share this post. Then talk about how you can get your jobs done more effectively by changing some of your communication and delegation habits.

Good luck!

Lynn
Syntax Training 

 

Write for David Allen's 2-Minute Rule

Among his many tips and strategies, time management guru David Allen offers a "two-minute rule." He says that if you can get a new task done within two minutes, do it. If you cannot get it done that fast, either delegate it or defer it. In his words, deferring it means putting it "into your organization system as an option for work to do later."

Allen's books are bestsellers. People pay attention to him, and we writers should too. If your reader cannot handle your message or document easily within two minutes, it is going to be put somewhere "as an option for work to do later." Or ignored. Or deleted.

When it comes to email, people follow a 30-second rule before the two-minute rule. If they cannot understand what you want within 30 seconds, they go on to the next message. They tell themselves they will get back to your long or confusing message later, but often they don't get back--and you don't get action or a response.

Test your message. Can readers recognize in just a few seconds what you want? Can they complete the action within two minutes? If not, your message must be important enough to your readers to put on their to-do list to accomplish later.

I hope you were able to read this post within 30 seconds. That was my intention.

Lynn
Syntax Training

Re: Are You Around This Morning?

I was reviewing a company's email when I came across a wonderful email thread. It started with one employee wanting to know if another was in that day. Here is their email subject:

Are You Around This Morning?

The person who received the message responded that yes, he was indeed around the office. Then the two continued an email thread over the course of two weeks. They exchanged many emails with a lot of important business information. Two weeks later, what do you think their email subject was? 

Re: Are You Around This Morning?

Yep! It hadn't changed.

When they are looking for the essential information they shared, I hope they can remember the subject, especially if they aren't around this morning to talk! They should have heeded my Email Tip Number 11:

Use a current subject. Avoid clicking Reply before updating the subject, if necessary. Readers overlook and misfile messages with old, outdated subjects.

Learn more about my 110 Tips.

Lynn
Syntax Training

Ants in the Classroom, Reply to All

I was teaching a seminar in a ground-floor classroom for a favorite client, and I was charged with making coffee for the group. Setting up the coffee, sugar, cream, etc., I noticed quite a few tiny ants on the table. I swept them into the trash with a wet paper towel, but later there were more tiny ants, and more. There seemed to be an endless supply of ants.

When the seminar ended, I emailed my client to let him know about the ants. He emailed the maintenance department, requesting that the room be sprayed to eliminate the ant infestation. On this message he copied (Cc'd) me, his manager, and someone else I didn't know.

From that moment on, I got emails (Reply to All) about every single step of the process: I was copied on the discussion of ants in other parts of the building. I was informed of when the room had most recently been sprayed. I got the confirmation of the work order to spray the room. I was notified when the room spraying was completed. I was copied on the thank you my contact sent to the maintenance department, and I believe I received a copy of the "You're welcome, anytime" message the maintenance department sent back.

I taught business writing in that room twice a year. Do you think I needed to be Cc'd on all those messages? No, I don't think so either.

My "ants in the classroom" experience took place several years ago, but it came to mind last week in a seminar discussion about email. One man admitted that whenever he received an email that required a response, he would Reply to All if other people had been Cc'd on the email. It did not matter whether he knew the people or knew why they were Cc'd. He would still Reply to All.

Other people in the seminar called this CYA (cover your _ss) behavior. The man agreed, but he felt Replying to All was required.

I understand his viewpoint, but I disagree with the requirement. When I reply in email, I reply to the person who emailed me--not to all the people who were cc'd. However, if I know them or who they are and I know that they would benefit from my reply, I will Reply to All.

Unless the person who sends the original message writes "Please Reply to All," I believe we can--and should--take the opportunity to reduce unnecessary email. Otherwise we will all drown in Cc'd CYA email. Even after the innocent ants have been eliminated, people will still be getting copies about their demise--people who don't need or want to know about it.

Reply? Reply to All? What is your view?

Lynn   

   

Email Conversations--Pro and Con

Last week I led a Writing Tune-Up for a world-class investment company. When we talked about new rules for email, one woman suggested this rule:

Don't have business discussions in email. It's not efficient. If you want to talk with a group of people, schedule a meeting and send out an agenda.

Another woman countered that suggestion. Her view was:

Have discussions in email. That way, you will have a written record of everyone's contribution. At too many live meetings, no one takes notes, so there is no record of everyone's ideas. Also, in email you can have a conversation with people in Seattle, London, and Tokyo without worrying about what time it is on the other side of the world.

I agree with both. Email discussions can be messy, but they are a great alternative for international communication. And live meetings are much more productive when someone takes notes and distributes them than when no one does.

Do you have suggestions about how to make email discussions more efficient? Please share them.

Lynn

Your Untethered Reader

Earlier this week I got a good email tip from a participant in the Writing Tune-Up. When I asked for additional rules for email etiquette and efficiency, Tom offered this one:

If you have a deadline within a few days, don't just communicate it in email. Pick up the phone to be sure the person gets your message.

Tom had a specific reason for his suggestion. Unlike much of the business world, he is not tethered to a computer or a BlackBerry. He works out of doors, and he may check his email only once a week. Not once an hour, not even once a day--once a week!

Do you write to someone like Tom? If so, adjust your expectations and your behavior. If you have a deadline on Friday, don't even think of emailing him or her your request on Friday morning or Thursday afternoon. Pick up the phone to be sure you get through, and try that a few days earlier. (Of course, this is always good advice when you have a deadline looming.)

It all gets back to understanding your audience, including those untethered readers.

For 110 more email suggestions, get my tips booklet.

Lynn

What's Up With Email Slogans and Sayings?

Yesterday in a writing seminar I asked the group of 10 participants how many of them liked philosophical sayings or quotations at the end of an email. Here is the result:

• Percentage who like sayings and quotations in email: 0%

It was a friendly group at a progressive company, and I could tell they were not completely comfortable admitting they didn't like such quotations and sayings. But one person was able to explain her view in words something like these:

I don't like them because I get caught up in reading them. I read the quotation, think about the person and why they included that quote, and compare it to what I know about them. All this is going on when I'm trying to get my job done. I would prefer that people leave them off.

The rest of the group agreed, and so do I. I have been distracted plenty of times by quotations at the end of email. Here are a few that have appeared in email I have received:   

Success is not a matter of mastering subtle, sophisticated theory, but rather of embracing common sense with uncommon levels of discipline and persistence.
Patrick Lencioni, from The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning.
George Baker (1877-1965)

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.
Abraham Lincoln

Only passions, great passions, can elevate a soul to great things.
Diderot, 1746

It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.
Ursula K. LeGuin

We may prop quotations on our desk or bulletin board for inspiration throughout the day. And we may use quotations in a presentation or article to crystallize our message for the audience.   

But what is the purpose of pasting a quotation in at the end of an email, particularly when that quotation has no connection with the message? Sure, the words may inspire the reader, but is the reader actually looking for inspiration at the end of the dozens or hundreds of messages that flood the inbox each day?

• Percentage of people who are likely to answer the previous question yes: <5%

I generally agree with the quotations I listed above, but I don't need them at the end of an email. 

What is your view of philosophical or religious quotations beneath the sender's signature? Do you find them inspiring or distracting? A gemlike gift or a theft of your time? If you include them, why?

Please share your opinion.

Lynn

P.S. For more tips on effective email, consider this tool.

Make It Easy for Customers to Behave

I am taking a cross-country plane trip tonight, and this morning two companies helped me do that more easily: Alaska Airlines and National Car rental. When I checked my email this morning, both of them had sent messages to make my travel easier.

Alaska wrote with lots of good information:

Welcome Aboard. For your convenience, here is your flight information for your upcoming trip to Orlando on Alaska Airlines or Horizon Air starting 9/25/2007. We've also listed useful information and services to help make your trip easy.

Along with the weather in Orlando, Florida, Alaska informed me of my check-in time, reservation number, flight number, seat number, and tips on carry-on luggage. I appreciated all of these. More than that, I appreciated the fact that I did not have to sort through my email to find information about my flight, whose reservation I made a couple of weeks ago. This reminder came at exactly the right time.

National Car rental provided the same good service. Their email said:

Friendly Email Reminder from NationalCar.com.
Thank you for using National to make your reservation. Below is your confirmation number. You will need it when you get to the rental facility.

Along with my confirmation number, National gave me a link to my reservation. As with Alaska, I appreciated having this information available at the exact moment I wanted it.

Both companies made it easy for me to take the action they want. When I get to the airport, I will not drive the agents crazy because I am missing the information I need to check in. When I arrive in Orlando, I won't create work for the car rental agents because I don't know the details of my reservation. I have everything I need to be a well-behaved customer.

As a business writer, think about how you can serve your customers--and therefore your own interests--through your written communication with them. Would an email reminder help your customers be more efficient? Would a checklist increase their consumer awareness and help them use your service more effectively?

The right communication at the right time--it's impressive. I don't believe I have ever flown on Alaska Airlines before, but if the rest of their service is as helpful as their email, I will be a repeat customer.

Happy trails to me,

Lynn

Hey, Reader!

Hey, Everybody! Today Kirk wrote with a question many people wonder about:

I have a senior employee who begins every email with "Hey," and it bothers me. Every email starts with "Hey Everyone" or "Hey guys" or "Hey Kirk." It seems friendly but slightly unprofessional, especially when the emails are sent to top management.

It seems to me that using "Hey" is okay in some cases such as "Hey guys--let's go to lunch Friday." But it's not okay when you write professional or technical business emails, especially to your superiors or those who don't know you personally.

Hey, what do you think?

I agree with Kirk. "Hey" is okay as a very informal greeting. When someone writes, "Hey, Lynn," I expect it to be a close friend.

But "Hey" is not a greeting for anything but the most informal exchange.

The question then is this: What is an appropriate greeting?

I recommend these:

Hi, Kirk. Hi, Team. (friendly, slightly informal)
Hello, Kirk. Hello, HR Group. (professional)
Dear Kirk, Dear Team Members, (professional, formal)
Dear Kirk: Dear Team Members: (professional, more formal)
Greetings, Kirk. Greetings, Finance Team. (professional)
Kirk, I am writing to . . . . Team members, I am writing to . . . . (professional)

Some people also like "Good morning" and "Good afternoon." But since we can't know when someone will read our message, I usually avoid a greeting that refers to the time of day.

The other day someone told me she hates it when employees at her bank say "I'll go grab so-and-so for you." She hates the word grab used for people. Similarly, some people will dislike "Hey," which may seem like being yelled at.

I have written more about greetings in letters and email. Try here.

Hey, Kirk. Thanks for your question.

Lynn

More Email Pointers

In a business writing seminar I led last week, I heard two good suggestions for email efficiency, along with one tale of caution:

Suggestion 1: When you have a thread of email and add a new person to it, explain to the others why you have added the new person. For example, if you add your manager to keep him or her informed, write:
I have copied Gail Phillips, my manager, on this email because she would like to be aware of our progress. Please copy her on your responses.

Suggestion 2: When you write to a large group, list people's names on the Bcc (blind copy) line. That way, the list of names won't take up the entire screen (or most of the page if readers print your message).

Tale of caution: Think twice, then think again about sending a blind copy to someone who should probably not receive the information. (If you feel a touch of guilt or doubt about the blind copy, don't send it.) An attendee at last week's writing class (I will call him Joel) reported that a friend used to copy him regularly on information he should not be reading. Then one day the friend forgot it was a blind copy and wrote, "Mary, please handle this action item. . . . Kaj, please take care of this. . . . Joel, this is FYI, as usual." That is how everyone found out Joel was receiving the information. According to Joel, both he and his friend learned  a risky, embarrassing lesson.    

If you would like to share these good ideas with people in your company, you can do so by forwarding them the permalink below. For 110 more tips, look here.

Lynn

Email Etiquette: Called by Name

Yesterday I got a question from Penelope, who would like to reply properly to the email she receives. Here is her inquiry:

I recently replied to an email sent to me from a Jeffrey. This person did not type his name at the bottom of his email. However, he did have an email signature block at the bottom with his full name, including the given name Jeffrey.

What is the correct way to respond to him? Should I use Jeff or Jeffrey?

Also, what if he did not have an email signature? What is the correct way to reply?

Penelope, life would be easier if people signed their email, but Jeffrey has given you the next best thing--a signature block. Since his name is Jeffrey, call him by that name--not Jeff. My husband is Michael, and he will never be a Mike, except to strangers and his mother. It is not a good idea to change people's names.

Without a name or signature block, do not call the writer by name. As awkward as it may seem not to address the person, you can't if he or she has not given you a name. Sometimes strangers write to me and do not include their names. I normally delete their messages or reply asking simply "Who are you?"

Using names goes both ways. This week I received two unsolicited emails from people looking for jobs. Neither one used my name or the name of my company in their message, although one wrote, "I am very interested in a position with your company," and the other said, "I feel that my strengths and talents will be of value to your company." Too bad neither one took the time to personalize the message in any way.

What's in a name? To me, a lot. I am glad when people use my name, and I am delighted when they tell me theirs. I am disappointed when people subscribe to my e-newsletter and are afraid to use more than initials. It is just no fun to write to L. or S.

Penelope, thanks for your question, your name, and for wanting to get it right.

Lynn

 

Email Subjects: Think Forward

After a Writing Tune-Up I led yesterday, Gordon, an attendee, sent this suggestion, which I edited slightly for your understanding:

I have one thought I believe worth passing along having to do with subject lines. A test for a subject line is "Will readers be able to find an email when they need it, even if it's weeks or months after they receive it?" Emailing out a policy is a good example. No one is going to commit the policy to memory when they receive the email. But people may remember receiving the policy and would like to find it quickly when they need it.

With Gordon's excellent suggestion in mind, think long term when you create email subjects.

Here are four subject lines in my email inbox. Which would work for the long term?

1. A Little Help Please
2. Bid Request: Better Business Writing
3. Don't Ignore Your Hometown Media
4. From Marshall Management

If I were to keep these messages for several months, I believe 2 and 3 would still be easy to identify. (Number 3 is an ezine from publicity expert Nancy Juetten.) Number 1 could be any request for help. Number 4 identifies only its sender.

Before sending out your next email, think of the future. Especially if you are forwarding a policy, procedure, presentation, list of resources, or other documents you want readers to keep, choose an email subject that will make sense in a week, a month, or a year.

Gordon, thanks for the smart suggestion!

Lynn

P.S. For 110 email tips, look here.

Emailing a Group: What Not to Do

Yesterday I received two email messages sent to large adhoc groups of people. One was from an individual in a medical center, letting her professional contacts know about a job opening. Another was from a parent who wanted to know whether anyone had videotaped a concert in which his child had performed. His camera had failed him, and he hoped to hear that rousing "Pirates of the Caribbean" medley again.

Both people broke a rule of email etiquette: they exposed all their contacts' email addresses. They put recipients' addresses in the CC (courtesy copy) line rather than the BCC (Blind courtesy copy) line.

So now, if I wanted to use email to solicit business at Microsoft, AAA, Pemco, Boeing, Codesic, Medtronic, Corbis, and dozens of other companies, I would have email addresses to use.

Both writers should have followed my Email Tip Number 82: Use BCCs to keep addresses confidential.

If you would like 109 other tips (or if you know someone who needs them), please get my booklet "110 Tips for Sending Email That Gets Read--and Gets Results." It's available here in both printed and PDF format for just US$7. Review a 16-tip sampler of the PDF here.

Lynn

Stealing Is Stealing

I have been asked twice recently about the email etiquette of editing someone else's message, then sending it out as one's own.

The question is the same to me whether the medium is a memo, a letter, a report, an email message, or any kind of writing. Sometimes writers produce documents for other people, who present the work as their own. Sometimes writers contribute to a team, and the team's written output is not linked to any particular individuals. In both those situations, the writers do not get recognition for their writing, and they don't expect to.

But stealing is stealing. When a writer sends a message to a coworker, who then sends that message out--edited or not--as his or her own, without prior agreement, that is stealing another's work.

Such is my view. What do you think?

Note: I will be traveling the entire week of June 4, and I do not expect to post an entry or respond to comments until June 11.

Enjoy!

Lynn

Can't Be Done in Email

The other day my web designer, Diane Varner, uploaded new information about upcoming classes to my website; then she emailed me to tell me she had finished. But when I looked at the page, I saw that the classes and dates she had posted were from 2006. Yikes!

I phoned Diane right away to ask her to fix the problem. Here is part of our telephone conversation:

Lynn: Diane, somehow the wrong information got uploaded, something from last year. Please check it out. [I pause for Diane to look at the web page on her computer in California; then I continue.] Do you see? The classes listed are all from last year!

Diane: Is that a problem?

Lynn, then Diane burst into laughter.

This brief exchange illustrates what cannot be done successfully in email. What created a lovely, humorous moment were our warm relationship, the slightly whimsical tone in Diane's voice, and perfect timing. 

If I had emailed Diane about the 2006 classes uploaded in error and she had replied in email "Is that a problem?" I would have wondered:

• Why doesn't she understand what I am talking about?
• Am I misunderstanding her?
• Is she joking or being sarcastic?

Some email writers try to succeed with remarks like "Is that a problem?" using smiley faces and other emoticons. But emoticons are themselves subject to misinterpretation.

The safest way to proceed in email is straightforwardly--without humor, sarcasm, or irony. You can still enjoy a good laugh in a spoken exchange.

For more on email misinterpretation, read this entry: "Email and Your Ego."

Now that I have publicly discussed Diane's mistake, let me refer you to her stunning photo blog and to a gorgeous website she is designing as a volunteer for the Global Aids Interfaith Alliance.

Diane is one admirable human being--with a fine sense of humor.

Lynn

 

[Norton AntiSpam] Help!

One of the keys to being an efficient business writer is having tools that work for you. I need help with one of my tools, and I am asking for your advice.

Here is the problem: When I get email from clients and others, my Norton anti-virus program often puts this phrase in brackets in front of the subject line: Norton AntiSpam. When I reply, my response is preceded by that useless notice, so my reply subject looks like this:

RE: [Norton AntiSpam] Writing Assessment

My goal is to communicate--not to advertise Norton, signal to readers that their message looked like spam, or make my own message seem less than professional. So to eliminate [Norton AntiSpam], I delete it from each reply. This step wastes my time.

This Norton thing can also lead to my looking foolish. Using my grammar and spelling checker, I once accidentally corrected it to read [Norton Antis Pam]. I don't know whether my reader noticed that flawed subject, but I know how I felt when I saw it in my Sent Items.

If that is not enough, all messages that begin [Norton AntiSpam] get alphabetized by the bracket--[--not by the actual subject! This inefficiency slows me down even more.

Can you help me please with tips or guidance? If you know a good way to banish these pointless messages, please share it. Or if you have a suggestion on how to seamlessly delete them from all my replies, that would be lovely. Please comment.

Lynn

Great Tips for Email

In classes I taught yesterday and today, attendees shared their excellent suggestions for more efficient email. Try these:

1. Be selective about Reply to All. Recognize that it is not all or nothing. You can delete some people's names from Reply to All--those who don't need to be continually updated or included.
2. If you provide someone's name as a  contact, copy (Cc) or blindcopy (Bcc) the individual to be sure he or she is prepared--not blindsided by the contact. 
3. Avoid having to have the last word. It is enough for one person to say "I look forward to meeting you." Restrain yourself from adding a "Me too" or an "I look forward to meeting you too."
   
4. If something is complex or sensitive, discuss it face to face or over the phone. Then follow up with a written summary of the discussion if you need one.
5. When you assign work to people through email, write to them as "To" recipients. Do not assign work in a Cc. Cc means "for your information"--not "for your action."
6. Avoid large (1MB or more) attachments, especially to large groups. They waste bandwidth.
7. Engage readers from the beginning by using you in the first sentence of the message.

If you like these email guidelines, you may be interested in my 110 Tips for Sending Email That Gets Read--and Gets Results, available here as a 30-page booklet or a searchable PDF.

Write on!

Lynn

Tip 34: Include Contact Info

I have gotten two emails from Melinda at Wright State University, who wants to interview me as a business writer. I would love to be interviewed, and I have responded to her email. But based on her second email in which she asks me once again to agree to an interview, I can tell she did not get my first response. With another day having passed, it is clear that she hasn't gotten my second response either. 

I should just phone Melinda and let her know my replies must be caught in her spam filter. Unfortunately, she has not provided a phone number in her emails. All I can do is respond by email and hope a message gets through.

Email Tip 34: Include contact information in your message and on attachments. Include phone numbers, physical locations, mailing addresses--whatever your reader may need to contact you or others.

Why Tip 34?  I am pleased to announce that I have published 110 Tips for Sending Email That Gets Read--and Gets Results. These are practical tips I gathered in classes from employees and managers at companies such as Weyerhaeuser, REI, Microsoft, and Russell Investment Group. Check out the printed 30-page booklet here and try a sampler of the searchable PDF version here. Both are available for purchase.

I hope Melinda will read this entry and send me her phone number. I would like to talk with her about business writing.

Lynn

 

Grab Readers in Your Email Subject

Here are the email subjects of a few representative messages in my inbox:

1. Good Afternoon
2. ASTD April 2007 Newsletter
3. Contact Info
4. Directions to 2007 Support Staff Conference
5. An Experiment
6. Writing
7. 4 Steps to a Client-Attracting Web Presence
8. Pet Sitting Rate Increase
9. Your Crowne Plaza Hotel Reservation Confirmation
10. If You Use WebI, Read This and Sign Up for Training

The vague ones (1, 3, 5, 6) give me no real idea what the message is about. I must open the message, and I won't unless I have the time and interest to do so--especially if I do not know the writer.

The other subjects give me all the information I need to know how to handle the message (2, 4, 7-10). Even number 8, the bad news message about the pet sitter's rate increase, is instantly clear about its purpose.

But 7 and 10 grab my attention. If I want to attract clients, I will open "4 Steps to a Client-Attracting Web Presence" (a message from marketer Steven Van Yoder) as soon as I can. The phrase "4 Steps" suggests I will get useful information to act on.

My favorite subject is number 10, "If You Use WebI, Read This and Sign Up for Training." The email came from my friend Margaret, who sent it to me to share her success. She had labored over the message to 200 people at her company. Its purpose was to get people to sign up for a training program without phoning or emailing Margaret with questions.

Success! Within 75 minutes, 53 people had signed up for training, and only one person had stopped her in the hallway to ask a casual question about it.

Margaret grabbed the right people with her subject (users of WebI), and she told them what to do: Read and Sign Up.

Although it is efficient to tell people what to do in your subject, it is not always necessary. In some cases--for example, the message whose subject is "Directions to 2007 Support Staff Conference"--what readers should do is clear without telling them to do it.

Your subject can make a big difference in your reader's responses. I still haven't opened the emails whose subjects are "Good Afternoon" and "An Experiment."

Lynn

Read "Stop the Email Madness"

There's a great article in today's Wall Street Journal Online, and it's available to nonsubscribers--at least for now. Writer Jason Fry warns that the biggest threat to email is not spam. It is the internal junk we send to our coworkers and managers. He offers five whimsical suggestions for how to reduce the dreck. Read "Stop the Email Madness!" now. 

I do take issue with one of Jason Fry's statements. He says it is legitimate to use an organization-wide email to tell people that flushing one of the toilets will cause it to overflow. Not so! Rather than sending an email, just put a sign on the door to that toilet. Better yet, lock the door of that stall. (Some people won't read even a giant red-lettered sign!) That way, you can keep both the floor and email inboxes clean and neat.

I appreciate Fry's link to this blog and his efforts to improve the business world's email.

Thanks, Jason!

Lynn

Remove Me from Your List (Politely)

In writing seminars, people frequently say they need a polite way to ask coworkers not to email them jokes, inspirational quotes, and other messages they don't want or need. Here are a few templates of that polite message to add to your email etiquette toolbox. I hope they give you ideas for your own version.

Example 1: The Brief Request
Natasha, I am working hard to manage my email better. That is why I am asking everyone to take me off lists for jokes, word of the day, and all other email that is not must-have information. Would you please remove me from your lists? Thanks.

Example 2: The Very Polite Request
Marsha, thank you for thinking of me with the quotations of the day. Some of them have had powerful messages, and I have been glad to read them. Right now, though, it is important to me to get a handle on my email, and I am asking people to remove me from their distribution lists unless it is a work-related message.

Would you please remove me from those who receive the quotation of the day?

Thank you very much.

Example 3: The Straightforward Request
Don, thanks for forwarding the board meeting minutes to me. I am actually getting my own copy of them from the board secretary, so it is not necessary to include me in your forwarded email. You may remove me from your list. Thanks!

Example 4: Another Straightforward Request
Chandra, I am no longer working on the Repro project. Therefore, please remove my name and email address from the list of those who are included in project updates. Thank you.

Example 5: The Unsubscribe Explanation
Colin, you may have received a notice that I unsubscribed from your e-newsletter. I believe it has very useful content, but I am receiving far more email than I can read and manage. I have decided to subscribe to only those ezines and mailings that relate to my current goals. Thanks for understanding.

Example 6: Please Do Not Reply to All--Individual
Sylvia, I would like to ask you not to use Reply to All when you respond to Bart's requests for feedback. Bart typically reviews everyone's suggestions and then sends all of us a summary. When some of us Reply to All, everyone is tempted to respond that way, which means everyone will be buried in email we don't have to have.

I hope my request is reasonable to you. Please email me if you have any questions or comments about it.

Example 7: Please Do Not Reply to All--Team
Dear Team,

I have noticed that many of us are using Reply to All in response to one person's question or message, and I want to suggest that we use Reply to All only when everyone actually needs our response. Example: Recently I received eight messages from people who were responding to Mackenzie about the agenda, but I did not need the information in any of them. I believe only Mackenzie needed those replies.

As a first step, in response to my suggestion, would you please reply to me only? I will then summarize people's responses in a message to the team.

Thanks for considering my suggestion.

Do you have other methods for reducing unwanted email? Please share them.

Lynn

Bcc: Use With Caution

People have recently shared some cautionary tales about using Bccs in email. But first, a definition:

Bcc stands for "blind courtesy copy." It used to stand for "blind carbon copy." Although carbon paper is rarely used these days to make copies of letters and memos, the second c in Bcc has remained, and Bccs are now a standard email delivery option.

When someone's address is shown on the Bcc line of an email, other people cannot see that the person is receiving a copy of the message.

In a recent business writing seminar, an attendee shared a tale of how a Bcc had caused trouble. She herself had received a blind copy of an email, but--not realizing it was a Bcc--she responded "Reply to All." That is how the man to whom the original email had been sent now recognized that she had received a copy of his email without his knowledge. Although she did not share details in the seminar, she said the Bcc caused bad feelings.

Another seminar participant told a story of a colleague who contacted him to express her sympathy about a difficulty he was having. The only problem was that the colleague should not have known about his situation. How did she know? She had received a blind copy of an email his manager had sent him. This was unwelcome news to him, and he felt betrayed.

Question: Given these hurtful situations, should we use Bccs?

Answer: No, as a rule we should not use them. But they can be helpful in certain cases.

For example, I send a blind copy to Michael, my partner in work and life, when I reply to an email from a potential new client. Michael needs to be aware of the communication so he can be knowledgeable if the client phones our office. But since the client does not know him and may not know anything about him, a Bcc makes sense. His name on the Cc line might raise questions rather than be helpful.

I also use Bccs to keep confidential the email addresses of recipients who do not know one another. The individuals can guess that I am writing to a group, but they don't know who the others are and cannot contact them themselves. This approach often does not work well when it is used within a company. When recipients do not know who else has received an email, they may forward it to others who have already received it. Individuals have told me about receiving the same email five times or more from people around the company who wanted to be sure they received it.   

Guidelines for Blind Email Copies

1. You may use a blind copy to your manager when (a) he or she has asked to be kept closely in the loop about a situation and (b) having his or name on the Cc line might intimidate or undermine the person receiving the email. You may also use this approach if a Human Resources or Personnel representative has asked you to do so.
2. Use a blind copy to your coworkers when you want them to have the details of a communication to a client or customer--when the client or customer might be distracted or confused by their names on the Cc line.
3. Avoid using blind copies for any "guilty" communication. A guilty communication is one in which you would feel guilty or embarrassed if the primary recipient of the email were to find out that you had sent it to others. Any time a little voice tells you that you may regret sending blind copies, don't do it!
4. When you need other people to know about a situation but you know that the primary recipient would be upset about those people receiving a Cc or Bcc, instead email a summary of the information to others. Then if the primary recipient asks, "Did you copy anyone on this message?" you can honestly say no. But you can add, "However, I did need to summarize what happened for Ms. X and Mr. Y, so they would be aware of the situation."
5. Never use blind copies to damage another person's reputation.

Those are my best practices for Bccs. What are your ideas? Please share your comments, suggestions, and experiences.

Lynn

How to Assign a Task in Email

Based on what I have heard in business writing classes over the past couple of days, I am inspired to share tips on how to assign a task in email--and how not to. Listen in on what people told me (with details disguised):

I got an email from my manager that said, "Please arrange for a 20th anniversary tea. Thanks." That's all it said.

My manager sent me an email that said "Let's have a meeting with Gabriel, Renato, and Sylvia. Please schedule." The message didn't say how soon, for how long, for what purpose, or whether the meeting should be by phone, in person, or by WebEx.

My manager forwards me email all the time, with just this note: "Please handle this." The only problem is that the email threads are a mile long, and I have no idea what they are about.

To assign a task by email, do what the managers above did not do: provide enough information for the person to complete the task efficiently.

To know what to include, imagine you are talking with the other person. What would he or she ask? Consider these questions: Who? What? Where? How? How soon? When? Why? How many?

In the opening scenario above, the employee needed to know, at a minimum, whom the 20th anniversary tea would honor--one person or many people? And how soon should it be? Later the employee would need to confirm the guest list, the budget for the event, and other details.

Of course, different people need different amounts of information. An experienced employee may need very little. But someone new to the task may have many questions, even "What's a 20th anniversary tea?"

Since it may not be easy to recognize all the questions the employee may need answered--especially when you are in a hurry--it makes sense to include something like this:

Let me know if you have questions. You can reach me by phone tomorrow [include the number], or email me.

But how about that long forwarded message, the one that says only "Please handle this"? If you are doing the forwarding, tell the other person what needs to be handled. Taking just a minute to describe the situation (assuming you are aware of it) could save the employee an hour of piecing together what is required. Here is an example of a brief explanation:

Please handle Marty's request below. As you will see, he wants an exception to the records management policy, and he hasn't been able to get an answer from the research group. Run it by Dr. Katz, then get back to Marty. Thanks.

As with so many communications, the best practice for assigning a task involves imagining yourself in your reader's place. How much does your reader know? What does he or she need in order to accomplish the task? Yes, it takes time to think about these questions, but doing so is likely to lead to much better responses and much happier employees--both of which will save us time in the future.

Lynn

One Way to Spot Spam

Everyone I know is getting hit hard by spam. If you are a small business person without an IT department to help you deflect spam, here is a tip that may help you--if you use Microsoft Outlook.

If you use Outlook and you are unsure whether an email is spam, you can use Options to learn more about the message without opening it. Here are the steps:

1. Left click once on the message. Clicking just once will not open it; it will highlight it.
2. Right click.
3. On the menu, click Options.

The Options screen will show you the Internet headers. You will find this information:

• The return path--that is, the email address of the person to whom you would reply. If this differs from who is shown as the sender, that is a sign of spam. For example, if the sender is shown in your normal email view as Sandy Smith, but the return path is xissys@someaddress.com, that is suspicious.
• Delivered to. You received the mail, but "Delivered to" tells you whether it was actually sent to you. For example, if I receive a message intended for akjhlajd (gibberish) rather than Lynn or Michael, it is spam.

The Internet headers will provide a lot of other information, for example, whether the message includes the word lottery or the phrases "credit consolidation" and "million dollars."

I curse the spammer every time I open what looks like a legitimate message but is actually a sneak attack about a sexual enhancement drug or mortgage refinancing. Just think what a wonderful world we might have if spammers gave up their malicious tasks and actually did meaningful work.

If you have ideas to help us avoid opening sneaky spam that gets through our filters, please share them. And read my Silly Spam Story.

Note: If you ever receive something from our company, Syntax Training, it will come from lynng or michaelj (plus our company name and .com)--not from ejlsuzlpz or any other weird collection of letters.

Lynn

Email: Dealing With Questions

I constantly hear this complaint about email:

People don't answer my questions!

And this complaint echoes the first:

If I ask people three questions, they only answer two of them!

Part I: Asking the Questions. When I talk with people about these complaints in business writing seminars, sometimes we find that the problem is how the questions were formatted. For example, questions should not be laid out like this:

I need to know when the shipment will arrive and how many cartons of pens it will include. Who is my contact? I hope I also have a backup contact and I am wondering who it is and how to reach them.

It is too hard to find the questions in a paragraph, and it is difficult to see them when they are phrased as statements rather than questions. Beyond that, it is a real challenge to recognize questions when they are implied as "hopes" and "wondering."

This approach makes it much easier to see the questions and respond:

1. When will the shipment arrive?
2. How many cartons of pens will it include?
3. Who is my contact?
4. Do I have a backup contact?
5. If I have a backup contact, who is it and how can I reach the person?

To be sure you get an answer to your questions, include this statement at the beginning of your message:

Please answer my questions listed below.

That way, your reader will know immediately that you need action.

Part II: Answering the Questions. Another part of the complaints I hear is this:

I answer their questions, but they keep asking me the same thing. Don't they read my responses?

No, they probably don't read their email. They probably skim it. So we have to write for skimmers.

When responding to questions, answer them in a numbered list that skimmers will easily see, even if you haven't received them that way. For example, if you had received the questions in the paragraph format above, you could answer them this way:

Here is the information you requested:
1. The shipment will arrive on February 28.
2. It will include 100 cartons of pens.
3. Your primary contact is Kalu Ossa at this number (or email):
4. Your backup contact is Mark Fitzsimmons at this number (or email):

If you receive them in a list, it is efficient to answer them in line, like this:

1. When will the shipment arrive? February 28
2. How many cartons of pens will it include? 100
3. Who is my contact? Kalu Ossa at . . . .

But don't do this: If you receive a list of questions, do not simply answer them in the lines and click Reply. Put a note at the top of your email, like this one:

See the answers to your questions below.

This week I received what I thought was a blank email sent from a new client. All I saw in her message was empty space and her signature block, and I guessed that she had sent it in error. But before pressing Delete, I noticed that I could scroll down--and there were the answers to my questions--written within my lines. Whew! I was glad I had not deleted her message.

A final thought about questions: Don't expect answers immediately. Because people are busy, try to anticipate your need for information. Ask questions early, and you are more likely to get answers by the time you need them. If you email me with a question, it may take me a week or more to respond. Please be patient, and feel free to ask again.

Lynn

Reply to All: Do They Need It?

In business writing seminars, I often ask people about their pet peeves (dislikes, complaints) in the writing they receive. Yesterday I heard an unusual pet peeve. An attendee said he disliked it when people did not Reply to All in email. I assumed I had misheard him, since people nearly always complain that they get far too many Reply to All messages.

It turns out that he did not like being left out of an email conversation. He said something like this: "I want to know when a project is finished. If I don't get that reply, I keep my files open, not knowing the project has been completed."

It makes sense. He wants the writer to use Reply to All when he needs the information.

That's the key: Use Reply to All when everyone who received the original message needs your reply.

Let's look at typical situations. Join me in thinking about whether each of these merits a Reply or a Reply to All.

Situation 1. In an internal email, Laszlo writes to 30 managers to ask whether they have anyone to send to a training program in business writing that his department may schedule. When the 30 people respond, should they Reply to Laszlo or Reply to All?

Situation 2. In an internal email, Pamela writes to six people in the office, asking who can cover the front desk while the receptionist leaves for an appointment this afternoon. Should the six Reply to Pamela or Reply to All?

Situation 3. In an internal email, Jon writes to eight people on the team, asking them for their feedback on a presentation a vendor just made to them. Should the eight Reply to Jon or Reply to All?

Situation 4. In an external email, Lisa writes to her four contacts at a new client company. She asks whether she should copy the other three of them whenever she communicates with one of them about the project. Should the four Reply or Reply to All?

Have you decided? Here are my views:

Situation 1:
Reply! Only Laszlo needs the responses. Once he hears from most people, he can decide whether to schedule the training and then let people know about it. A Reply to All in this situation would be a waste of everyone's time.

Situation 2:
I say Reply to All. People need to know whether the front desk has been covered. As soon as one person replies that he or she can sit in for the receptionist, the others need not respond.

Situation 3:
Reply. Jon should instruct people to write to him only since he is the only person who needs the information now. That way, people won't be influenced by the opinions of others before they express their own opinion. Jon can collect the responses and report a summary to the team.   

Situation 4:
Reply to All. Everyone needs this information. It would be best if the project lead would Reply to All first, outlining his or her views and asking others for their input.

What do you think? Please reply to me!

Lynn

My Writing Resolution

In an effort to make it stick, I am announcing my New Year's resolution for my own business writing:

Before I click Send, I resolve to reread or scan the email I am replying to.

I am motivated by yesterday's embarrassment. A woman from a huge company emailed me asking for information about my services--specifically about "brown bags." (Note to readers around the globe: A brown bag is a short presentation or seminar at which participants may eat their lunch--thus the brown [lunch] bags.) To give her the right information, I needed to ask her a few questions, and I needed to do this in email since she did not include her phone number.

Among the four questions I included in my reply was one asking for her location. Only after I clicked Send did I notice that she had mentioned her location in her message--and in her subject line. 

My excuse is the head cold I have had this week. But I must admit that all I had to do was glance once more at her message before I sent mine. I would have realized she had already told me her location--twice.

So that's my resolution. I'm going to reread or scan each original message before I reply.

What are your resolutions for good business writing in 2007? I would love to read them.

Lynn

SOS! Save Melissa from Drowning!

At the end of Better Business Writing class on Monday, Melissa checked her email. While she was a participant in the class, she had received about 100 messages--not as many as usual, she said, since a lot of people had skipped work because of the ice and snow in Seattle.

Now let's just imagine: It is 4:30 p.m. on Monday, and Melissa decides to handle her email before she leaves to go home. How long does it take?

Responding carefully to 8 important messages, then putting the messages in the right folders: 40 minutes.

Responding quickly to 25 simple messages, then filing or deleting them: 32 minutes.

Reading, rereading, and then filing 9 messages that might be important (but it is impossible to figure out what they are about): 20 minutes.

Deleting 19 messages after reading them and seeing that they need no action: 14 minutes.

Reading and forwarding 4 messages when she realizes they should be handled by someone else: 4 minutes.

Deleting 7 duplicate messages people have forwarded to her: 2 minutes.

Deleting 17 messages that she decides are pointless after a quick glance: 2 minutes.

Reading and deleting 1 joke after she decides she doesn't understand it: 1 minute.

Staring glassy-eyed at the last 10 messages, then doing nothing with them: 5 minutes.

TOTAL: 120 minutes--2 hours

I don't actually know whether Melissa stayed in the conference room for two hours handling her email. I left her there focused on her laptop, tapping out message after message.

Melissa and millions like her are drowning in email. Please help. Here are three easy steps you can take:

1. Don't copy or forward email to Melissa and anyone else unless they have to have it. No one has time for "would be nice to read" messages. (Don't copy your manager either unless the message is a must-have. Just keep a copy to show him or her if it becomes necessary.)
2. Write concise, clear messages that quickly state what Melissa and others should do.
3. If you know Melissa is away from her job for the day, go easy on her. Don't add to the flood. Try to handle matters yourself or with the help of someone else.

Now imagine it's 6:30 p.m. Do you know where your reader is? Pounding out another email in an empty conference room? Or enjoying the evening? You can help make the difference.

Subject: INV5006687.pdf

This week I received an email with the subject "INV5006687.pdf." It came from someone I do not know at a company whose name I didn't recognize, and it included an attachment. It stood out as junk, a message to delete. But as my right pinkie stretched to the Delete key, something told me to take a peek. I did.

To my surprise, INV5006687.pdf was not spam. The message had been sent by a company I know by another name. Attached was a PDF of an invoice for a classroom I had recently rented.

On business letters, it is acceptable to include a purchase order number or invoice number as a subject, introduced by the abbreviation Subj. or Re. But that doesn't work in email--not with spam bouncing off the filters of companies everywhere. It definitely does not work when the reader doesn't know the sender.

I would have recognized this subject immediately:

Invoice for Your Classroom Rental on November 28

Moral of the story: If you are sending an invoice by email, do not use the invoice number as a subject--not if you want payment. Only by pure luck will your reader hesitate before pressing Delete.

Lynn

The Smell in Building 2

Last week I led a class in Vancouver, British Columbia, for a group of IT (Information Technology) folks. They work in Vancouver for a company headquartered near Seattle.

Right now you may be wondering what a group of IT people in Vancouver have to do with the smell in Building 2, the title of this post. Well, that is exactly what they were wondering. Building 2 is near Seattle, 150+ miles from these Canadian workers, but they received an email asking them if they knew the reason for the building odor. That's because they are on an email list of all company IT people. So they get messages about the smell in Building 2. They get messages about things like free donuts in the conference room, which is three hours away by car. They get email about all kinds of things that have nothing to do with them.

This irrelevant email wastes the time of the Vancouver workers--and any others across the globe who receive it.

Solution: If you send email to people in many offices, break up your distribution lists. Yes, have a list of all employees, but use that list only when the message pertains to all employees. Have lists for Vancouver, Ontario, Seattle, San Francisco, New York, London, etc. Or at least include a note at the beginning of the email:

You may delete this email if you do not work in the Seattle office.

For those in Building 2, sorry--we can't help you. We don't smell a thing.

Lynn

Empowered Email or "Tail" Covering?

Something has gone terribly wrong in email. To understand it, imagine this scenario:

An employee walks into a manager's office a dozen times a day, asking, "Is this okay?" and "Do you approve of this?" He or she also stops by, saying, "I just want you to know about this in case I am doing it wrong" and "I'm telling you this so I know you are aware of it in case there is trouble ahead."

This scenario takes place in offices, labs, and plants across the globe, each and every day. But the employees are not actually stopping by and talking with their managers. They are copying (cc-ing) their managers on email.

I know this is happening because I hear about it in business writing classes. When I offer the email tip "Avoid copying people on messages they don't want or need," people regularly say, "I copy my boss whether he wants it or not. I want him to be in the loop in case something comes back to haunt me."   

And when I talk with managers and executives, they say, "I get hundreds of copies of messages every day. I wish people would stop covering their tails." (My definition of "covering their tails," also known as CYA, is "passing on responsibility, putting oneself in a position to accept no responsibility or blame.")

Why are employees sending copies of messages to managers who don't want to receive them?

Maybe it is because many managers supervise people they never see. The days of the weekly supervisory meeting--the place where employees would check in about challenging situations--have ended in many industries. Perhaps it is because managers supervise many more people, so less time is available for coaching and developing employee confidence. Maybe some companies are bogged down in overly cautious or blaming behavior, leading to a CYA mentality.

But it is a waste of managers' time, employees' skills, and email bandwidth when employees constantly cc their managers. Managers who receive hundreds of messages daily are not reading those cc's. They are glancing at the messages, wishing their employees would stop sending them so many copies, and deleting or filing them--perhaps with a still, small dread that something in an unread message will come back to haunt them.

What is the solution? In the scenario that opened this post, I imagined an employee walking into the manager's office frequently throughout the day. A good manager would put an end to that behavior quickly. The manager would coach the employee to accept increasing authority and responsibility. Then if the employee stopped by to ask "Is this okay?" he or she would reply, "You are empowered to make that decision. What do you think?" Eventually, the employee would bring up topics for approval only in weekly meetings--not in daily encounters.

Let's make that happen with email.

Managers, if you want to receive fewer email cc's from employees who report to you, make clear to them the level of decision-making authority they hold. Coach them to accept responsibility for their decisions and actions. Get agreement that they will not send you copies of their email except in limited special circumstances that you agree on.

Employees, talk to your managers. Find out what types of email they really want and need to be copied on. Develop the knowledge and confidence to stop bringing (roping?) your manager into the loop.

All this is easy for me to say. I work in an office of two people--just my husband and I--and we sit three feet apart. He never complains about my cc's, and I don't object to his.

Empowered email? CYA messages? What is your view? What can managers and employees do to reduce debilitating email copies?

Lynn

Make No Exceptions

On Monday I emailed my friend Melissa about getting together for lunch. I wrote, "I can get together any day except Friday." She wrote back, "Great! I'll come to your office on Friday."

A while ago, I was asked to have a teleconference with several doctors. I emailed Chris, the coordinator: "I can be avai