Email Etiquette Overload

http://www.michaelpage.com.sg

Dear Stanley,

In a recent email I used “ASAP” to request that the recipient contact me. The individual called me immediately, was very upset and said to me, “Did you know that when you use capitals in e-mail it means that you’re shouting at the person?!” My reply was that it was an acronym meaning “as soon as possible” and most acronyms are written in capital letters. In business writing, I’ve always seen ASAP in capital letters. What is the proper use? Several others in my department agree with me.

Signed,

E-tiquette Challenged

Dear Challenged,

First of all, it sounds like you guys have too little to do. I’d tell my correspondent to get real and stop bothering me with inane superfluities. But on second thought, that would eliminate most business communications and certainly 90 percent of all e-mail, so forget it. E-tiquette is a tough master. There are no real rules, and the target keeps moving all the time. Like, a few years ago, it was okay to use emoticons all the time. Then it became sort of ironic to do so. Now if you use one in any but the most rare and personal cases, you’d might as well declare your status as a fan of the Jonas Brothers.

In a general sense, your critic is actually more correct than not. Anything capitalized may be interpreted as screaming in an e-mail. It is always best to use lower case in just about everything you do. But don’t hesitate to use capital letters if you want to STRESS something. That’s not screaming. That’s emphasis.

Of course, you may be forgiven for assuming that “ASAP” is not the same thing as “AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.” In this regard, your recipient really is being TOO sensitive. Make sure, by the way, to do several other things that signify your e-mail excellence, including but not limited to:

Keep those in mind and you’ll be a master e-mailer in no time!

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