Many times, people ask me “what is the worst email message you’ve seen?”
In the category of worst’ e-mails is one that plain old shouldn’t have been sent. Nothing you can do can “fix” the message – it just was the wrong medium to use.
Too many workers default to using e-mail when e-mail may not be the most effective communication method. The first question anyone should ask, prior to crafting an e-mail message is “Is e-mail the most effective way to communicate on this subject?”
I like to challenge people to consider the overall time of the transaction when deciding whether to use e-mail. A simple phone call or voicemail message may take less time than five back and forth e-mail messages over a two-day period. Additionally, because it is easy and free, many workers have a tendency to add a multitude of recipients as copies on the message. Each one of these messages has to be dealt with by the recipient, who may have been an afterthought or not truly involved in the subject at hand.
So the first best question is not “how shall I compose this email message?” Instead, the best question is, “what is the best way for me to communicate this message?”
