Division 4 Member Training
Email. The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly!
There has never been a better tool to quickly disseminate information to multiple recipients than email. Research suggests that this will be the case in the years ahead as we rely on emails to communicate internally and externally. They are a powerful tool in communicating properly and maintaining a professional image.
However, in the wrong or lazy hands; emails become difficult to understand, and recipients receiving email that does not pertain to them (either at the early stages of discussion or at all) can be an absolute scourge.
Learning how to go about using this form of electronic communication effectively can get emails and actions noticed and acknowledged rather than ignored, lost or deleted.
Some of us grew up in the digital age, some did not, but along the way both types learned either great habits, or really bad ones which brings us to addressing the serious problem involving all protracted email discussions within the AUX.
Email Blindness Syndrome (EBS)
Is caused by emails/notes providing data, status and requests for actions that are frequently not fully understood, and therefore not read. Subsequently, the emails are pushed aside, and/or skimmed through, filed away, and never seen again.
How do you get EBS?
EBS happens when the recipient gets a large number of emails. It is not uncommon for mid to high level business owners and AUX leaders to get hundreds of them on a daily or weekly basis.
Members “CC"ing or forwarding lower level leadership communications to higher level leadership in initial phases of discussion can be very detrimental which only worsens EBS.
Ask yourselves; why are you including others in your conversation/discussion. Do they need to know right now, or can it wait? Is the email with a request directed to you personally, or is it for wide circulation? Is the email confusing? Is it unclear what the purpose of the note is? Does it ramble on and take too much time to discern the salient information?
Preventing EBS
1) Clean up the email
Do not make assumptions about cascading email out to the membership unless it is clearly stated by the writer that it is indeed the writers intent. Clean up the quoted text and get to the point; especially when the reader is coming into the discussion late in the conversation.
Be careful not to send a long string of connected emails forcing the reader to go through the entire string to understand all the specifics and chronology.
Is there a clear message in the note regarding priority, reason for the actions, owner or expected due date for the action?
(All dates, addresses, times, members to attend?)
2) Avoid “reply all.”
It's usually a good idea to forego the temptation to hit the “reply all” option when sending emails. Proper email etiquette aside, it can be quite annoying for people to be included in a group email if the content of the message has nothing to do with them. So be considerate and hit “reply all” only if the message would be of interest to all of the recipients.
We cannot stress the importance of using the “Reply All” button sparingly.
Avoid “Reply All” unless it is absolutely necessary!
3) Always place the appropriate title and priority in the subject line.
4) Do not start another topic in a reply.
Create a new email for the new subject, and keep the subject line concise in order to better recall and search for the email in the future.
The first step in professional email etiquette is that you should title your email in such a way that the recipient immediately knows what the message is actually about. For instance, if you're emailing to inform about a specific meeting, you can title your email something like, “Info about Division 4 meeting February.” All in all, you want your title to get to the point, right away.
- Start with the end in mind. Bullet point the information and significance of items being addressed.
- List the actions needed with owners and due dates.
- Re read the note several times to make sure the data is correct, error free and does not ramble on.
- Make sure that the distribution list is correct. Who needs to know at this moment?
- For high priority/urgent items, pick up the telephone. Do not rely on email to convey urgent or time sensitive information.
- Eliminate email trails if possible. Summarize in one or two paragraphs with all of the salient information.
5) Proofread.
Just to be sure your message is clear and concise.
Sometimes people pay less attention to spelling and proper grammar when composing emails than when writing actual letters, which is the way business correspondence was traditionally done.
However, the truth is that proper spelling, grammar and formatting still counts. After writing your email, read it through out loud to ensure that your errors don't overshadow your message. The reason for reading it out loud is that sometimes your ears will catch something that your eyes skim over. Paragraph’s matter.
6) Acknowledge emails.
Regarding email etiquette and whether or not the person emailing you requests a response; it is always a good idea to send one anyway. You should not only acknowledge all emails, but also do so in a timely fashion. This sort of courtesy is not always extended, and you'll be surprised at how much your professionalism can set you apart.
7) PDYPTSOOAFTROU:
Please do your part to spell out our acronym’s for the rest of us.
Not all Auxiliarist know all the acronym’s we use. Perhaps at the first use of the acronym in a letter you (spell it out in parentheses)
8) Avoid all caps.
Using all capital letters in a written communication is like shouting in a face-to-face conversation — no one likes to be yelled at.
It is not appropriate or proper email etiquette to employ all caps in order to convey your message. If you know what you want to say, let your words show how you feel and leave the “caps lock” button alone.
One obvious exception to all CAPS would be if you're using acronyms.
9) Attach carefully.
If you need to send large attachments, always ask the intended recipient whether or not doing so is okay.
Assuming you get the go ahead, you should use a program to compress or zip the attachment so that it takes up less space in the recipient's email inbox. It is also a good idea to let the recipient know when you plan to send the attachment.
Avoid sending platform specific attachments like Word or Excel spread-sheets. Not everyone has MS products! There are millions of Mac users, hundreds in the AUX, and most Mac’s can read Word. However, many older systems cannot so when appropriate; convert documents to PDF. The exception of course is if the recipient needs to complete data in a Word or Excel spread-sheet.
10) Double check the email address.
The last thing you want to do is send an email to the wrong person. That is why you should double check the recipient's info before hitting the “send” button. If you make a habit of verifying the receiver's information; you'll avoid making mistakes.
11) Sign off in style.
It is a good idea to have an email signature as a component of your identity. It will make your emails come off looking more legitimate and professional, and be the digital equivalent of your business card. That said, you want your email signature to be as properly formatted as is your printed business card, so drop the multiple font types, and go for standardization to present a nice, professional image.
12) Use a separate email address.
Keeping track of personal email and business email can be a chore, and sometimes it gets lost. We recommend getting a separate email address for all AUX business to keep your personal and AUX related email separate. It really does help, but ultimately it is up to you.
If you choose to get a AUX only email, be sure to update your “Member Information”.
Log into: https://auxofficer.cgaux.org
AuxOfficer > AuxDirectory> Your Information > Webform 7028 Button> Update and submit.
As you can see, there is quite a bit to think about when it comes to email etiquette. The above information should give you a good start on the effective use of email in the AUX environment which in turn will significantly reduce EBS, and enable effective communications with the desired results.
Thomas E. Bliss
USCG Auxiliary
VCDR Division 4
IPFC 130-04-05
Detachment Leader - Gig Harbor