Page 98 - How to write effective business English your guide to excellent professional communication by Fiona Talbot

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E-mail and instant

messaging

General

In e-mail and instant messaging (IM), the focus is on the one-to-
one recipient or the relatively ‘captive audiences’ of your e-mail
thread or address book contacts. It contrasts with social media’s
main focus on writing to interest and engage a wider (often spe-
cifically targeted) audience.
E-mail remains a predominant form of business writing today;
and inestimable billions of e-mails are sent worldwide each day. This
doesn’t mean to say volume equates with effectiveness as a business
writing medium. The problem can be that every sender feels their
e-mail is the most important one, and more words (and more people
copied in, sometimes almost on autopilot) not only leads to informa-
tion overload but can also come over as ‘talking all day about noth-
ing’! It’s no good having a big inbox with little content. No wonder
some companies actually have a policy of deleting e-mails that re-
main unread after a certain time. Their view is if the sender hasn’t
followed up, maybe by phone, then the message can’t have been that
important! Messages need to be clear and get to the point so readers
don’t have to get back to you with ‘What do you want from me?’
Let’s look at your business. How many e-mails do you write in a
week at work? Do you treat them all as professional, corporate com-
munication? If you hesitate, the chances are that you don’t – and if
not, why not? Your readers and your competitors may be ahead of
you on this. Also, do you check each time you use e-mail that it is the
right medium? Would a phone call, face-to-face conversation, or IM