Workplace Email Etiquette - 5 Tips To Impress Others

Have you ever received an email at work that was poorly written, could not be understood, or was offensive? Most people have received those types of emails and that is precisely why workplace email etiquette is such an important part of etiquette and manners.

If you do not follow email etiquette at work, people are going to view you as someone that is not educated or polite. Any of these perceptions of others will hurt your career. Ultimately, something as simple as proper email etiquette can help you get ahead and help to open the doors of opportunity. Even if email etiquette does not open doors of opportunity, at least it will not hurt your image. These five tips will help you establish yourself in regards to workplace email etiquette.

1. Always read what you have written before sending - It is so easy to make a mistake on an email that will make you look uneducated or cause you to lose clients. I know someone that I was consulting with that sent out a message to all of his investing clients. The message was talking about how they should come to him to set up a business trust to protect their assets. Instead of business trusts, the message said business "thrusts."

A small error like that will not be found with spell check. He ended up losing several accounts because of that message. Make sure you read what you have typed out before you send it. It is always better to catch your own errors than to have someone find it for you.

2. If you are attaching a file to the email, make mention of it in the body of the message - I have seen many emails where there was an attachment to the email, but the sender did not mention it in the email and the recipients missed the file. If the attached file is important enough to send with the email, make mention of it so that the people receiving it will know to look for it.

3. Do not type in all capital letters - In the online world, something that is written in all capital letters is considered to be yelling. You do not want people to think that you are yelling all the time.

I had one person that I worked with that wrote all of his emails in capital letters because it was easier for him to read the larger font. However, all of his co-workers would talk and ask why he was so angry all the time. They were basing their opinions of him on the emails that he would send.

4. Email signatures make a statement - Emails in the workplace should have a signature on them. In your signature, you should put your name, your title, the company you work for, and your contact information. This basic information at the bottom of an email lets people know who you are and how to contact you if they have questions.

If you send emails to customers, you should never send out an email without a signature on it. It is also a good idea to include social media information (Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, etc.) in your signature if you use social media. This is an easy way to pick up followers.

5. Never compose an email if you are angry - You may have just received an email that upset you. If you do, do not hastily send a response. When you respond to the email out of anger, it just makes a bigger mess. Not only does it make a larger problem, people begin to associate you as the person making it a problem.

The best thing to do is to step away from the computer, go for a short walk, and then come back to it when you have calmed down. You want to be viewed as the problem solver instead of the one causing the problem. Having a cool head while writing an email will really make a good impression in the workplace.

These workplace email tips will help you impress others at work and avoid offending others.

By: Karn Smullin

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Karn Smullin created a website to teach people about manners and etiquette. The site also contains additional information on workplace email etiquette.