The Truth About The New Rules Of Business Writing Part 8

Truth 22. Use e-mail to communicate in the fast lane-powerfully.

Did you hear the one about the company CEO whose indiscreet e-mail about the company president was forwarded to the board of directors by a disgruntled executive? Or about a giant firm's financial managers who naively thought that "delete" actually erased their e-mails about illegal accounting practices?

Such high-profile anecdotes pale in comparison to the thousands-maybe millions-of e-mails that are just poorly conceived and written and, as a result, damage countless careers and relationships. And, most people don't even realize when it happens.

Electronic communication is how we interact with most people now. Your e-mails may be the only thing your colleagues, bosses, clients, and customers ever see from you. Your professionalism, or lack of it, is your calling card.

All the principles of good writing that we've been talking about apply to e-mails. When is a carelessly thought-out e-mail with indifferent spelling, grammar, and punctuation okay? Never. E-mails are kicked upstairs, sideways, out of the loop into new networks endlessly. Their ghosts may live forever in company storage servers and archives, backed up for disaster recovery, government regulations, and legal reasons. They can and do come back to haunt you.

It's also a mistake to think that you have two or more "selves"-one who writes "good" and proper e-mails to the boss, for example, and a second self who writes casual, sloppy e-mails to people you're not worried about impressing. Often our friends and business a.s.sociates travel in the same circles. When you behave unprofessionally-and poorly done e-mails are definitely unprofessional-you risk losing opportunities you'll never hear about.

The bottom line: Supervisors take note of well-written e-mails, especially over the long run, and so do clients and colleagues. And every day, e-mail gives you at least an equal opportunity to screw things up, maybe irretrievably.

We haven't even mentioned the efficiency factor: Poorly written e-mails that deliver information badly, cause confusion, and waste time are so common that hardly anyone complains about them. One carelessly done e-mail about a meeting time, sent to 20 people, could easily cost each of them 15 minutes worth of e-mailing and phone calls to resolve. That's five hours for just a simple example.

So write good e-mails. Here's how.

The challenge: You want to go to an expensive conference run by your industry's a.s.sociation and need your boss's sign-off. You know the budget is tight.

Your goal is clear. Your audience is your boss-someone you probably know quite well. Or do you? If you've never done a "formal" a.n.a.lysis of your supervisor, invest the time, especially if you feel as if you're not on the same wavelength. Use the criteria in Truth 7 for audience a.n.a.lysis and don't skip the "what's in it for me?" criterion. Consider personality types, too, for clues about what works with different kinds of people.

Remember that your memo may be channeled up the managerial line, and to lateral departments, so remember that your audience often goes beyond your immediate target.

Tone: Go for respectful and business formal, without groveling.

Content: What might make your case? Business advantages all the way-probably your boss doesn't want to think you'll be enjoying the surf in Hawaii. Specify: * What you'll learn and what that will do for your employer * Whom you'll meet * The value of having your company represented * Any supporting information (such as, you haven't been to a conference for two years, or the last one you attended produced a long-term client) Don't forget to cover: * How your work will be handled in your absence * That your trip will cause your boss absolutely no inconvenience How to organize? Start with the order of your content list and see if it works.

How to lead? For an e-mail, the lead is the subject line, plus the opening sentence or two of the message. Here, typically, you clearly identify your subject and give the reader a positive view of your goal.

The working rule is: Put the bottom line on top.

One way to write this e-mail.

Subject: Major Industry Conference Opportunity in June.

Dear Elaine:.

I request your approval to attend the Bottomline Building a.s.sociation conference in Cleveland June 11-13.

Three special presentations this year directly relate to major company initiatives: project financing, working constructively with local government, and downtown revitalization. Several of the country's top experts will speak, and I'd plan to follow up with personal meetings. I intend to bring back problem-solving ideas and guidelines.

Additionally, I'll have opportunities to meet on a collegial level with some of the 1,500 attendees from around the world, so I'll have chances to scout the compet.i.tion, find leads to collaborators, and even clients. Companies including Marvel Construction and Worldwide Fabrication will be there in full force.

I plan to be a very active representative of this company and work to raise our international profile.

This will be the first major conference I've attended in two years. As you'll recall, my partic.i.p.ation at a regional-level BBA conference then resulted in a long-term relationship with CGA Development.

Workflow should present no problems-I've completed the Smith project, and Jerry is fully prepared to back me up. And of course I'll keep in close touch so I can handle anything unexpected.

The conference information is attached. I will appreciate your approval, and any input for representing the firm.

Review your e-mails-every one.

Now, evaluate: Did you make a good case? Leave anything out? Is it right for the person you're addressing?

And, the most important thing: Would you approve the request if the relationship were reversed? Put yourself in the boss's shoes and see whether what you've written would persuade you to send the writer to the conference. If not, rewrite!

Truth 23. Good subject lines say, "open sesame"

Simply put, the purpose of a subject line on an e-mail is to get the recipient to open and read the message. Like a good lead, the subject line should attract the reader and get him or her involved in the message.

In a business setting, it's best to stay away from anything that can be construed as "cutesy," suggestive, bold, or nasty. The trick is to come up with subject lines that tell the story directly, clearly, and with as few words as possible. Here are some examples, good and bad, taken from the authors' mailboxes:

* Winners.

Case Study PDF on Server Ready to Proof.

Chapter 11 Needs Two More Examples.

Speaking Opportunity Offered to Your Club More Information for ASTD Conference Attendees IT Dept. Progress Report, June 30 Referred You to Potential Client, Collegiate Inst.i.tute IABC Nov.18 Meeting Location Changed.

* Second Place.

Shipping Dept. Is Low on Manila Boxes Three Editing Questions on Article Writing Tips for Communicators Info for Members Add Items to Agenda Sept. 24 Query Meeting Notes Need a Reference Need Immediate Answer.

* Losers.

Reply #2 Yet Another Question Advertorial Inquiry Get Me Off This List!

Web Site News from Ralph Jackson Started a New Biz Good Day.

Need Your Help.

Don't Miss This Opportunity!!!

In considering these subject lines, you may notice a few commonalities: 1. The winners tend to be strong, concise, direct, and self-explanatory.

2. Those in second place need additional information for the recipient to get a good grasp of what the e-mail contains. In each case, the recipient is left saying, "What does that mean?"

3. And the losers are in that boat because they say too little or too much, forcing the recipient to make a judgment call on whether the message is spam or a useful bit of information. If, for example, you don't know who Ralph Jackson is, you probably will press Delete quickly.

Thinking through subject lines-Because e-mails are forever, taking the time to make yours work is time well spent. With subject lines, this means making sure the subject is clearly identified and will pull the reader into the body of the e-mail. The urge to press Delete is strong, so don't give your recipients a chance to do it. (Of course, if the e-mail is in fact irrelevant to recipients, a clear subject line won't help you.) If what you're communicating is important or even urgent, get that across right up front but be specific: "Important matter" doesn't work; "Important meeting for accounting staff" does.

There are additional reasons to take trouble with subject lines: * Finding specific e-mails-Good subject lines make it easy for people to find e-mails again when necessary, which can be quite often. Don't be surprised if someone actually thanks you for this someday-how often do you feel frustrated trying to retrieve an e-mail from a co-worker who customarily labels them all "Greetings"?

* Change the subject line of the thread if the topic changes-A "thread" is the sequence of e-mails on one topic that may loop back and forth between sender and recipient several times. If the topic changes in, say, the fourth round, change the subject line. It can be maddening to search a thread labeled "2010 Projections" for a reference to new-construction costs that you know is in there somewhere.

* Topics and legalities-In business, e-mail subject lines should serve as specific headings for the topics they contain. There are even legal reasons. Both subject lines and content are used during the discovery phase of court cases to find and identify companies' or executives' unethical or illegal behaviors. If your subject line can be misconstrued, there may be unintended consequences.

And one more thought: If you have an e-mail address that's not professional sounding, change it. Receiving a business e-mail from "Dis-a-kitty" or from "imbozo32" will not exactly strike the recipient as a business communication. Your e-mail may even wind up in the company's spam filter before it reaches the intended recipient. Although corporate, educational, and scientific e-mail addresses use a business-type format, some independent business owners may be more free spirited-often to their own detriment.

Most professional-looking is to use an address with a domain name, which is easy to obtain even if you don't have a Web site.

Truth 24. Know your e-mail do's and don'ts.

We've become a nation of scanners. We screen every incoming message for relevance and importance, and if we decide to read it, usually give it a rapid review and stop as soon as we feel we've gotten the gist. Beyond the fact that there are so many demands on our attention, we don't like reading a lot of text on screen, and there are physical reasons for this-it tires our eyes.

Take this into account in crafting your e-mails. Here are some things to keep in mind.

E-mail do's.

* Put the bottom line on top. Don't make people guess why you're writing or what you want.

* Take the time to write strong subject lines that work as leads and clearly identify the subject-which shouldn't need saying again but it does. People will delete anything frivolous, irrelevant, and unclear.

* Make e-mails short and stick to one subject. People read quickly and distractedly-if you ask two questions in the same e-mail, often you'll get a response to only one. Buried points and subtleties will also be overlooked.

* When you have a major goal to accomplish, you might plan a series of e-mails rather than trying to jam a lot of information into one. If you need to spell out to a group what's involved in various stages of a project, for example, consider covering one area at a time.

* Use attachments when your subject is necessarily long and complex, unless you know the person or company won't open it. In that case, separate the body of the message graphically from the "cover letter" aspect by using a headline or bold lead-in.

* Think short and concise in every possible way: words, sentences, paragraphs.

* Aim to avoid making the reader scroll. People don't like to and won't.

* Make sure your text size is readable on screen. It should never be smaller than 10 point; 12 point is better. Also ensure that your line length doesn't exceed 60 characters, or it may run off the end of the recipient's screen.

* Organize clearly and simply. Bullet points and numbered paragraphs are useful for people who might not read to the end of the e-mail. When you use numbers, start with a sentence such as "Here are three items that need your attention." You can also put this information into the subject line, such as, "Two Questions re Finch Contract."

* Follow up. Don't rely 100 percent on cybers.p.a.ce. When an e-mail is important to you, check that it was received. Rarely will people mind. It's risky to a.s.sume that they got your message, given the increasing number of filters that might identify your message as spam or high risk.

E-mail don'ts.

* Don't forget to ask for what you want at the end, even if you have to repeat.

* Don't use fancy graphics that require HTML; many people don't have the option or won't use it, and your message may look terrible. Some corporate spam filters also reject such messages.

* Don't use a color other than black for your typeface, a fancy typeface, or a background with a design on it for business e-mail. Not only does it look unprofessional, but it also makes reading the message more difficult and these elements may not display properly on the recipient's screen.

* Don't use all capitals, which make it look as if you're shouting and make the message hard to read, too. And avoid using all italics, which are also hard to read.