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paper—and we can imagine that this percentage has gone down even further since
[6]
then. To combat the overuse of e-mail, companies such as Intel have even
instituted “no e-mail Fridays” where all communication is done via other
communication channels. Learning to be more effective in your e-mail

communications is an important skill. To learn more, check out the business e-mail
do’s and don’ts.
Business E-Mail Do’s and Don’ts
1. DON’T send or forward chain e-mails.
2. DON’T put anything in an e-mail that you don’t want the world to see.
3. DON’T write a Message in capital letters—this is the equivalent of
SHOUTING.
4. DON’T routinely “cc” everyone all the time. Reducing inbox clutter is a
great way to increase communication.
5. DON’T hit Send until you spell-check your e-mail.
6. DO use a subject line that summarizes your Message, adjusting it as the
Message changes over time.
7. DO make your request in the first line of your e-mail. (And if that’s all
you need to say, stop there!)
8. DO end your e-mail with a brief sign-off such as, “Thank you,” followed
by your name and contact information.
9. DO think of a work e-mail as a binding communication.
10. DO let others know if you’ve received an e-mail in error.
Source: Adapted from information in Leland, K., & Bailey, K.
(2000). Customer service for dummies. New York: Wiley; Information Technology
Services (1997). Top 10 email dos and top ten email don’ts. Retrieved July 1, 2008,
from the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center Web
site:http://www.uic.edu/hsc/uicmc/its/customers/email-tips.htm; Kawasaki, G. (2006,
February 3). The effective emailer. Retrieved July 1, 2008, from How to Change the
World Web site: http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2006/02/the_effective_e.html.
An important, although often ignored, rule when communicating emotional
information is that e-mail’s lack of richness can be your loss. As we saw in the chart
above, e-mail is a medium-rich channel. It can convey facts quickly. But when it
comes to emotion, e-mail’s flaws make it far less desirable a choice than oral
communication—the 55% of nonverbal cues that make a conversation
comprehensible to a listener are missing. E-mail readers don’t pick up on sarcasm
and other tonal aspects of writing as much as the writer believes they will, researchers
[7]
note in a recent study.
The Sender may believe she has included these emotional signifiers in her
Message. But, with words alone, those signifiers are not there. This gap between the
form and content of e-mail inspired the rise of emoticons—symbols that offer clues to
the emotional side of the words in each Message. Generally speaking, however,
emoticons are not considered professional in business communication.
You might feel uncomfortable conveying an emotionally laden message
verbally, especially when the message contains unwanted news. Sending an e-mail to
your staff that there will be no bonuses this year may seem easier than breaking the

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