Son günlerde elime geçen bir kitaptan etkili email kullanımıyla ilgili birkaç not:
*Use email instead of memos, when possible.
Instead of cluttering up people’s desktop with memos (and wasting paper), use email. It’s great to use email for communicating with one person or with 100 people. But to make email effective, check messages frequently, and don’t let them pile up.
* Compose the subject line carefully.
Don’t make the subject line too general, e.g., Subject: Writing Seminar. Instead, narrow it to encapsulate your precise message, e.g., Subject: Suggested candidates for January writing seminar. A subject line should do more than biggest the general topic; it should summarize the point of the message. Ask yourself: What do you want the reader to know, do,or believe as a result of the message? If you want a go ahead to hire a temp, your memo’s subject isn’t just “Hiring a temp,” it’s “Request to hire a temp for next week.”
*Keep it short
Short messages are appropriate for email. Lengthy documents sent unsolicited to numerous recipients are inappropriate. Just because you can push a button and share your missive with multitudes, don’t give in to the temptation to share every bright idea you have with worldwide collegians. Also, it’s better to send a message announcing the availability of the document than the document itself.
Although email started out as a handy way to send short messages, some people piggyback new messages on top of the original messages, often causing confusion. Once you start piggybacking messages, you stand a chance of fouling up everyone else’s message as well as your own. It’s better to just write a separate message.
Keep each message to one topic. This way you increase the chance your readers will read and understand what you write.
* Be consistent.
Since email is so informal, there is a tendency to write in short,staccato sentences and phrases; to keep the message in all capital letters; and generally to ignore the rules of punctuation and spacing. Appearance still counts. Treat your email the same as any other professional communication.
Send messages in both upper- and lowercase letters. All uppercase letters make your message hard to read; all lowercase messages are hard to read and unprofessionla looking.
*Restrain the urge to “return fire.”
The immediacy of email may take the recipient feel compelled to compose an immediate response. Don’t be hasty, especially if you are responding to an email message thta has made you angry or defensive.
Be diplomatic. Email’s convenient reach can be drawback, because it makes it easier tıo insult or alianate recipients. Remember thta email is irrevocable and permanent. Don’t write in anger, and stay away form profanity Cool down befre hitting your “send “ button.
*Be sure to refer to the original message.
For example, if you reeive a meeting notice, mention it in your reply: 1I will attend the meeting scheduled for” or “Re:Your Email message of 9/10/XX, 9
8 a.m,” instead of,” I will attend” or “Yes, I’ll be there.”
On saome email systems, the original “Re” line automatically remains the same when you are responding to a message.
* Paraphrase when necessary.
Since email has a fature thta allows a recipient of a message to add some comments and forward it, a short message can become lenghty chain of comments. Rather than perpetuate the chain of messages, paraphrase the comments and original message. A sample paraphrase: “I received a meeting notice for August 12, 19XX, at 9 a.m, but Johmn,Joe,and Mary all said they can’t attend, so please reschedule it.”
The paraphrase is more concise than threee seperate messages saying: (!) I received a meeting nitce ofr August 12,19XX, at 9 a.m., (‘) I received word that John,i Joe, and Mary will not be able to attentd thta August 12th meeting, and (3) Will you plase reschedule the meeting to a time when we can all attend?
* Guard confidential information.
IT’s easy for such information to accidentally get into the wrong hands. Realize that email can be misaddressed as well as forwarded. As a general guideline, don’t send anything via email that you don’t want to see on the front page of your company newsletter or local newspaper
Quick Tips for Better Business Writing by Garry Blake, MacGraw-Hill (1995:New York)
*Use email instead of memos, when possible.
Instead of cluttering up people’s desktop with memos (and wasting paper), use email. It’s great to use email for communicating with one person or with 100 people. But to make email effective, check messages frequently, and don’t let them pile up.
* Compose the subject line carefully.
Don’t make the subject line too general, e.g., Subject: Writing Seminar. Instead, narrow it to encapsulate your precise message, e.g., Subject: Suggested candidates for January writing seminar. A subject line should do more than biggest the general topic; it should summarize the point of the message. Ask yourself: What do you want the reader to know, do,or believe as a result of the message? If you want a go ahead to hire a temp, your memo’s subject isn’t just “Hiring a temp,” it’s “Request to hire a temp for next week.”
*Keep it short
Short messages are appropriate for email. Lengthy documents sent unsolicited to numerous recipients are inappropriate. Just because you can push a button and share your missive with multitudes, don’t give in to the temptation to share every bright idea you have with worldwide collegians. Also, it’s better to send a message announcing the availability of the document than the document itself.
Although email started out as a handy way to send short messages, some people piggyback new messages on top of the original messages, often causing confusion. Once you start piggybacking messages, you stand a chance of fouling up everyone else’s message as well as your own. It’s better to just write a separate message.
Keep each message to one topic. This way you increase the chance your readers will read and understand what you write.
* Be consistent.
Since email is so informal, there is a tendency to write in short,staccato sentences and phrases; to keep the message in all capital letters; and generally to ignore the rules of punctuation and spacing. Appearance still counts. Treat your email the same as any other professional communication.
Send messages in both upper- and lowercase letters. All uppercase letters make your message hard to read; all lowercase messages are hard to read and unprofessionla looking.
*Restrain the urge to “return fire.”
The immediacy of email may take the recipient feel compelled to compose an immediate response. Don’t be hasty, especially if you are responding to an email message thta has made you angry or defensive.
Be diplomatic. Email’s convenient reach can be drawback, because it makes it easier tıo insult or alianate recipients. Remember thta email is irrevocable and permanent. Don’t write in anger, and stay away form profanity Cool down befre hitting your “send “ button.
*Be sure to refer to the original message.
For example, if you reeive a meeting notice, mention it in your reply: 1I will attend the meeting scheduled for” or “Re:Your Email message of 9/10/XX, 9
8 a.m,” instead of,” I will attend” or “Yes, I’ll be there.”On saome email systems, the original “Re” line automatically remains the same when you are responding to a message.
* Paraphrase when necessary.
Since email has a fature thta allows a recipient of a message to add some comments and forward it, a short message can become lenghty chain of comments. Rather than perpetuate the chain of messages, paraphrase the comments and original message. A sample paraphrase: “I received a meeting notice for August 12, 19XX, at 9 a.m, but Johmn,Joe,and Mary all said they can’t attend, so please reschedule it.”
The paraphrase is more concise than threee seperate messages saying: (!) I received a meeting nitce ofr August 12,19XX, at 9 a.m., (‘) I received word that John,i Joe, and Mary will not be able to attentd thta August 12th meeting, and (3) Will you plase reschedule the meeting to a time when we can all attend?
* Guard confidential information.
IT’s easy for such information to accidentally get into the wrong hands. Realize that email can be misaddressed as well as forwarded. As a general guideline, don’t send anything via email that you don’t want to see on the front page of your company newsletter or local newspaper
Quick Tips for Better Business Writing by Garry Blake, MacGraw-Hill (1995:New York)