Bad Emailing Habits: A Bane in the Professional World

E-mail has long been a part of workplace: it is an almost perfect tool that helps you send meeting invites, informing the team about a vacation in tow, or encourage and boost a new hire. Most importantly, emails are a valuable resource when it comes to converting prospects into reliable customers. Yet, just like a flip side of a coin, emails too have a darker side as they are surcharged with an unending burden of sealing the deal, with the sweet yet astute use of words. The space for poor communication rises when our human failings overshadow the simplicity that beautiful words carry. The urge to forcefully cram the email with the plethora of things has unfortunately spelt a death knell for effective communications.

Hence, email wrong doings are committed in a blatant fashion, with a disregard for the readers, where it should actually be the readers to whom the email should cater to. An army of email- mass murderers, equipped with the power of annoying emails, bad communication flow and infuriating zing of words, are rising on an alarming rate. A collective sensitization towards the distinctive requirements of an effective email is the need of the hour.

On this note, let us explore the 3 popular gaffes of the email world:

Although people say that pushiness works, sometimes it can backfire too. “Hey, what is the update about the email I just sent? Just wanted to know about the work done” is a sure-shot reputation wrecker. Such emails scream impatience, annoying traits, paranoia, all in one, as the sender fails to understand the working of emails and treats it as an instant messenger. Patience is the key to work upon, here. Emailers need to respect the time and effort the receiver is allotting, to read their mail and hence should be considerate while indulging in a follow-up.

Body text in emails that is heavily reliant on bold/italic/underline formatting, garnished with an overflow of lists and bullets, renders the rise of an email eyesore to its truest form. It is understandable that the emailer wants to grab attention, yet the said attention can take a negative spin on the reputation, through such fluff-packed email. Apart from dragging the tone of the mail, the purpose is often lost in the overflow of emoticons and font. The sign of maturity and experience is a uniform email that looks pleasing to the eyes, so one can do a lot through sticking to a particular font.

Choosing a wrong subject line can be detrimental for the whole purpose. For every story that goes in form of email, subject line is the efficient title that gives a glimpse into what is about to occur. Hence, the eminence of a valuable subject-line is irrefutable. Yet, often, it is this property that emailers get confounded about, while setting out to draft an email, leading to a massacre in the subject line itself. The subject line needs to spell out the purpose, in the most succinct manner possible. The effectiveness of the email can be only delivered through a power packed subject line.

Conclusion

An email can be a bridge to a new relationship as well as a deal breaker and hence, a great deal of pressure lies in mastering the etiquettes of email. The beauty of a well crafted email doesn’t lie in the message but in the way it has been conveyed. Therefore, emailers need to sharpen their skills to optimize on this veritable tool.

Digvijay Singh Ponia
Product Manager, Hallwaze Inc