Email...

[semperfiona]

Yet another exciting three hours of Customer Service Training this afternoon. Today's episode: Email and Forums.

I am at odds with one of the big things they kept reiterating, and I'm curious about the views of my Loyal Readership.

Copied from the manual:

Email Rule: Creating an email is much like writing a letter. You need: An opening The body of the email A polite close

It has always been my belief that email requires neither a salutation nor a closing because the names of the addressee and sender are right there in the header; I liken email to verbal conversation. To some degree I do use greetings, especially when the email is a new start to a conversation or I haven't communicated with the recipient in a long time, but only on the first one in a thread, very-rarely-to-never on a reply, and I don't generally sign them unless to add other contact information.

Am I obliviously rude in this regard, or are they being backward and old-fashioned?

Comments

[maiabee8.livejournal.com]

For business emails I always include a greeting and a close as I would in a paper letter. Business emails are electronic letters not conversations in my line of work.

For emails to friends they're either letter-emails (as in communicating specific information for a specific purpose) and carry an opening and close or they're unformal conversation style emails that only carry an opening and close sometimes, when I feel like it or when it is appropriate.

I have been emailing and iming since adolescence and it often grates me when older folks* try and send me conversation style, informal emails in a business setting because it makes them look like they are 'talking down' to me or that they have poor manners/no sense of business appropriateness or that they are idiots trying to be "hip" and looking like fools, or some combination of the above. It is very rarely appropriate and in those cases it doesn't bother me, but only very rarely.

Generally, I think you are better off erring on the side of too formal for business communication. At least at first.

*Older folks here defined as anyone who has not been emailing since adolescence, defined as you will.

[tsita.livejournal.com]

Yup, very much so! If I know you, I'll be all chatty and whatnot. If I'm in a professional setting, yeah, my sense of 'hi, what's up' will show through, but it's very reserved and much, much more well, professional.

And I can't stand 1337 speak. Grammar and spelling are our friends.