Would you ever send out a business letter completely lacking capital letters? Would you ever send your prospects marketing material that contains misspelled words or poor punctuation? Would you ever use notebook paper for a company memo?
No, of course you wouldn't. No competent businessperson would. Yet many do practically the same things with their email.
Email, now more than ever, is a vital business communication tool. It is no less important than "snail mail" or the fax machine, yet people routinely send business-related emails that are the equivalent of a note scribbled on a napkin in crayon.
We all judge others on appearance, especially in the realm of business. Online appearance is no different. So if you want your business to be taken seriously, you must devote the extra few minutes necessary to make your emails as professional in appearance as any other business correspondence. This means beginning each business-related email (unless you're writing to a good friend, perhaps) with the proper headers and a formal introduction. It means capitalizing proper nouns and the first letter of the first word in every sentence. If you're too lazy to reach for the shift key, what does this say to your partners and prospects? And don't just hit the caps lock, either. Using all caps is called "screaming" by net-savvy individuals, and it's never appreciated.
It also means using proper punctuation. If you don't know where to stick a comma or can't differentiate between a question and a statement, who's going to want to trust you with important business? And it means double-checking your spelling and grammar. Nothing will make you sound dumber than having the subject of your sentence disagree with the verb ("we calls this product the Elite model," or "my associate run a printing shop").
Other ways to look like an amateur are to use a free email server and/or a jokey address. "Stevo69@yahoo.com" is all well and good if you're a college student, but it's hardly appropriate for a professional. Your email address is a bit like your stationary. It's the palate on which your message is presented. It should, then, be formal in appearance (there are, of course, exceptions), and you should spring for a real account, and, if it's feasible, your own domain name. Consider how much more professional an email looks when it's from "stevesmith@businesssolutions.com."
In a perfect world, maybe none of this would matter. The content of your correspondence would be the only important thing. But this ain't a perfect world. Like it or not, appearance is crucial in all aspects of business, and your online appearance is no different.
Author: Rick Sheldon has 18 years experience in the Promotional Products Industry and is currently CEO of Save on Promotional Products Inc. a Discount Online Promotional Products Company. He can be contacted at:
1-800-204-0525;
email: rick@saveonpromotionalproducts.com;
or visit Desk Top Accessories. |
