Seven Essential Tips for Great Email Communication!

1. Use Email with Care
   • Don't use email to replace the human touch when communicating major change, sensitive information, conflict, bad news, or performance issues.
   • Avoid sending angry, sarcastic, or joke messages
     Remember email is not private, and you have little control of where it will end up.
2. Respond Promptly
   • Remember that internal and external customers appreciate a prompt response.
   • Let your customer know when to expect your response, especially when you need more time.
   • Use auto-response if you are unavailable.
3. Be Aware of Audience
   • Maintain a professional tone for both internal and external email
   • Modify language based on how well you know the customer - internal may be more informal, and external may be more formal
4. Show Respect and be Courteous
   • Use warm greetings, kind words, and thanks
   • Use customer's name in message
   • Make the customer feel important
5. Format with Brevity
   • Be brief, using short paragraphs, lines and bullets
   • Avoid fancy fonts, graphics, and tabs - they may be different when received by your customer
   • Send only necessary email
6. Communicate Effectively Through Clarify
   • Make subject lines clear, short, yet descriptive
   • Quote the previous email to which you are responding
7. Always Proof Read
   • Spell check and use excellent grammar and punctuation
   • Avoid sending messages when angry and/or tired
   • Keep in mind, when proof reading, that anyone may read your email message!