eFauxPas

An interesting article here from Bill Howard in PC Magazine on how to Save Yourself from E-Mail Faux Pas. I don’t agree with all his points, but by and large, he’s on target.

Send one complete e-mail, not two partials.

In other words, wait until you have the answer before you reply. Don’t reply with “I’ll tell you later.” Maybe. It depends on how long it’s going to take to respond.

Use clear subject lines.

Amen. For God’s sake, use subject lines of some sort, at least!

Cover one topic per message.

Probably good advice. At the very least, don’t slip in something off-topic way at the very end of a long e-mail.

Make the subject line work for both sides.

If subject lines are supposed to inform, make sure they don’t assume a particular point of view. An e-mail titled “Meeting with Dave” is not terribly helpful to Dave.

Append to the subject line when responding.

I agree in principle, that a given discussion thread should use similar or evolved subject lines as side discussions start up. Easier to sort that way. I also think it’s possible to make a subject line too long, and try to convey too much info.

No unnecessary attachments.

If I receive an e-mail message that is simply a container for a Word doc which is a memo — which content could have been in the e-mail message — I’m going to scream.

Don’t include previous messages.

I disagree. While it’s useful, over a long discussion, to truncate the original messages being automatically included, it’s still useful to be able to refer back to previously discussed points, especially over time. It’s also useful (if sometimes hazardous) if you invite a new person into the thread.

Write short — for PDA users.

Not many people I know use Blackberries or similar devices for e-mail, except in extremes. Staying succinct, though, is always good advice (even if I rarely follow it myself).

Check the cc: list.

Make sure that the people receiving the message are all still germane to the discussion (or should even hear about it).

Use addressee auto-fill cautiously.

Duh.

Angry? Save it to the drafts folder.

This can’t be repeated enough.

Beware the tone.

An old netiquette rule, especially true in a business setting where smilies might be unprofessional.

Give your kids grown-up e-mail addresses.

I never thought of this one before. His advice here is good:

If the daughter of a neighbor I hardly know e-mails me asking which laptop to buy, using the screen name mustanggurl with the subject “Love your help,” I’ll probably figure it’s yet another porn message that deserves the Delete key.

‘Nuff said.