2.8 Effectively Using Telephones and Emails in the Workplace

Workplace Conventions

Telephone Etiquette

Business conversations over the phone are often direct and time sensitive. Just like a letter, memo, or email, you do not want to make a phone call unless there is a reason. Thus, knowing some general rules around making business calls will ensure you are always prepared for all your telephone conversations.

• Give each phone call your full attention. Avoid side conversations and avoid emails or messaging during your conversation.
• Plan what you will say. Use your time and their time efficiently.
• Leave clear messages. If someone is not available, leave a message with your name and contact information and the reason for the call.
• Have manners and do not chew gum while speaking with someone.
• Use a professional tone. Remember, the receiver cannot see your body language. Therefore, non-verbal cues, such as tone of voice, become even more important in effectively communicating a message.
• Excuse yourself when you step away from the phone. If you need to leave your desk, inform the receiver.
• Apply active listening skills. Pay close attention to what the receiver is saying.
• Make sure to be in a professional setting when you make business phone calls. Taking a business call in the car or in a public space with background noise may be distracting.

This section is adapted from Business Etiquette in Communication @ Work Copyright © 2019 by Jordan Smith licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Email Etiquette

Electronic mail, widely known as “e-mail” or just “email,” is by volume the most popular written communication channel in the history of human civilization. This channel is also the most utilized way to communicate in business. Its ability to send a message to one person or as many people as you have addresses for, integrate with calendars for scheduling meetings and events, send document attachments, and send automatic replies makes it the most versatile communication channel in the workplace.

We offer tips on writing a professional email:

• If you are writing on your own behalf for any business or job-application purposes, it is vital that you have a respectable-looking email address.
• Because it acts as a title for the email, the subject line should accurately summarize its topic in 3-7 words. Avoid using words in your subject line that might make your email look like spam.
• Opening with Dear [Full Name] or Greetings, [Full Name]: strikes an appropriately respectful tone when writing to someone for the first time in a professional context. When greeting someone you’ve emailed before, Hello, [First name]: maintains a semiformal tone.
• If you have a primary recipient in mind but want others to see it, you can include them in the CC (carbon copy) line. If confidentiality requires that recipients shouldn’t see one another’s addresses, BCC [blind carbon copy] them instead. Be selective with whom you CC, however.
• Never send an email that you would be embarrassed by if it were read by your boss, your family, or a jury.
• Keep email messages brief by sticking to one topic per email.
• With brevity being so important in emails, keeping the message body concise, with no more information than the recipient needs to do their job, is extremely important to the message’s success.
• An email closing usually includes action information such as information on what to do with the information in the message above and deadlines for action and response. The reader should know “what’s next?” at the end of your message.
• A courteous closing to an email involves a combination of a pleasant sign-off word or phrase and your first name.
• The e-signature that automatically appears at the very bottom of your email is like the business card you would hand to someone when networking.
• Ensure to proofread the email before sending to avoid spelling and grammar errors.

This section is adapted from Emailing in Communication @ Work Copyright © 2019 by Jordan Smith licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.