Page 2 - Business Communications

The Writing Process (continued)
• You can improve your nonverbal signals by talking to a friend or loved one honestly; often, Telephone Communication
it is helpful to tape yourself giving a presentation and then show that tape to another person
with the volume off; ask the person for his/her initial impressions and quick, off-the-cuff How Cell Phones Have Changed the Game
comments; you might be doing something that you did not even realize was off-putting • Almost every cell phone has caller ID and voicemail; this
• One key item that creates a sense of approachability and trust in business dealings is eye means that you are able to screen calls and so is your
contact; although there are cultural differences, in general, making regular eye contact is a recipient; calling a client or coworker over and over again
key part of connecting with another person will be apparent in his/her phone history and usually
makes one look either desperate or unprofessional
• If you are stressed out and angry, it will be very difficult for you to convey a warm and • Never answering your business cell phone may grow
calm tone to a listener; consider taking a vacation or a break if you notice your stress level
climbing—chances are that your listener has already noticed tiresome for your callers over time; for example, you
might want to indicate on your voicemail that you do
not take phone calls during meetings but that you will
call back as soon as you are free; you might also put the
Email Communication direct phone number of your assistant or coworker on
the outgoing message if you think some of your callers
Beginning an Email might need assistance immediately
• Make sure the email is going to whom you intended; use the “Reply All” option very • Many employees have a cell phone as their primary
sparingly; few things are more annoying than seeing multiple individual responses to a sent contact point; it is becoming increasingly popular for
mass email people to leave outgoing voicemail messages that give
• The email should be written like a letter; it should begin with “Dear Bill” and end with their specific availability for that day; for example, one
“Sincerely, Jane Robertson,” or similar language; it should contain paragraphs and space might leave a message that says, “Good morning, you
breaks if longer than 5 or 6 sentences; it is difficult to read a “wall of text” that contains no have reached the voicemail of Joe Smith. It is Tuesday,
proper punctuation and paragraph breaks December 6, and I will be in meetings most of the
Ending an Email morning; however, I will be returning phone calls in
• Many people have a standard signature block with their name, company, and contact the early afternoon”; this type of message minimizes
information listed at the bottom of the email; this is a simple way to give a uniform, the frustration for people who may not have their call
professional look to all of your emails; you may wish to consider adding your corporate returned immediately
logo to the signature block as well When Not to Make a Business Call
• Many companies have standard confidentiality and legal disclaimers at the end of their • Do not return a call in which the caller has left you a
emails; check with your human resources department to find out if you need to add such voicemail message without listening to the message first;
language to your emails many people find this a time waster and an annoyance
What to Never Do or Say in an Email • Do not make a business call from places that have
• When possible, try to limit an email to one basic subject matter; many people “sort” emails loud or unpleasant background noises; talking to your
by subject matter and put these emails into folders; if your email touches on multiple issues, friend while walking down the street is appropriate, but
it can be impossible to sort the email properly for future review; remedy this by simply your clients do not want to hear a police siren in the
sending multiple emails to your recipient with different subject lines; if you need to send background when they are trying to speak with you
several emails to one person, you may wish to space these emails out a bit so that you do not • If you are making calls from home, try to keep noise
overwhelm your recipient from family pets or children to a minimum; calls
• Using poor grammar or sentence fragments should be done rarely (if ever) and only with from a bathroom, loud restaurant/bar, or public
people you know very well and with whom you correspond frequently transportation are never appropriate in a business
• Remember, the more cryptically your emails are written, the more likely it is that they will setting for anything other than an absolute
be misinterpreted; in addition, if you use sloppy language or structure, you are telling your emergency
recipient that you are too busy to give him/her a properly worded and structured letter, which Speaking to Someone’s Administrative Assistant
is probably not the message you want to send to anyone • Part of a professional approach to business is in the
• Use acronyms sparingly, as they create an email that can be difficult to read manner in which you speak to administrative assistants
• Never send large attachments unless your recipient is expecting them and he/she knows and secretarial help; many times a boss will ask his/her
you well; often, these attachments carry a heightened risk of containing a virus; for the assistant how a client, vendor, or prospect acted toward
same reason, you should not open an email attachment from a stranger without using virus him/her on the phone or upon exiting a meeting
detection software • It is appropriate to ask an administrative assistant for
Responding to an Email assistance on a business matter related to your meeting
• It is considered basic email etiquette to at least acknowledge the email by thanking the sender or call, but any such request should be simple and asked
with courtesy
• Responding in ALL CAPS is akin to shouting in the online world and should be avoided
• Tone can be difficult to communicate via email—sarcasm and irony are usually best avoided • Remember that the administrative assistant already
has a boss and his/her loyalty is to that individual; if,
unless you know the other party very well; humor and pictures should be used sparingly for example, you request the cell phone number for an
Things to Remember individual who is out of the office and the assistant is
• You cannot un-send an email reluctant to give it out, he/she may be under specific
- Always take a quick glance over the email to check for basic things: instructions as to when and to whom to give such
› Did you spell the name of your recipient correctly? information; it is not to your benefit professionally
› Did you run a spell-check? to pressure the assistant to do something he/she was
› Is there a contact on the email chain that you did not mean to attach? instructed not to do, regardless of circumstance;
› Is there a subject line so that the recipient can easily determine what the email is about? consider offering an alternative (e.g., asking the
- Emails are generally intended to be somewhat short; sending a 10-page email almost assistant to give the message to the individual next time
certainly means the other party will not read the email in its entirety; anything longer they speak)
than 1–2 pages should likely be put in a Word document and included as an attachment
• The email may be forwarded with your name attached
- Once the email is sent, you no longer have control of the information you put in it; if
information is sensitive or hurtful, you probably should not send it via email (if at all), as
the probability that it will end up being public or semipublic information could be higher
than you realize
• The email may be used in litigation in the future
- A general rule of thumb: “Do not send anything in your work email account that you
would not want to discuss openly with your boss or human resources manager”
- Remember that your work email account may be legally monitored and almost all large
companies (as well as many smaller ones) have technology that “watches” emails for
certain key words, pornography, obscenities, and other inappropriate things
- Your company may have an email policy in its “Policies and Procedures” manual that you
should review

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