Chapter 5 EMail and Memorandums Essentials of Business

Chapter 5 E-Mail and Memorandums Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 1 1

Intended Learning Outcomes 1. 2. 3. 4. Explain the importance of internal communication. Analyze the characteristics of and writing process for successful e-mail messages and memos. Understand how to use e-mail safely and effectively. Explain and demonstrate a writing plan for memos and email messages. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 2 2

Intended Learning Outcomes 5. 6. 7. Write procedure, instruction, and information e -mail messages and memos. Write e-mail messages and memos that make requests. Write e-mail messages and memos that respond. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 3 3

Characteristics of Successful E-Mail Messages and Memos • • • To, From, Date, Subject Headings Single Topic Conversational Tone Conciseness Graphic Highlighting: letters, numerals, bullets, headings, capital letters, underscores, boldface, and italics Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 4 4

Writing Process • • • Phase 1 (Prewriting): Analysis, Anticipation, and Adaptation Phase 2 (Writing): Research, Organization, and Composition Phase 3 (Revising for Clarity): Revision, Proofreading, and Evaluation Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 5 5

Smart E-Mail Practices (1) • Getting Started • Compose offline. • Get the address right. • Avoid misleading subject line. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 6 6

Smart E-Mail Practices (2) • Content, Tone, and Correctness • Be concise. • Don’t send anything you wouldn’t want published. • Don’t use e-mail to avoid contact. • Never respond when you’re angry. • Care about correctness. • Resist humor and tongue-in-cheek comments. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 7 7

Smart E-Mail Practices (3) • Netiquette • Limit any tendency to send blanket copies. • Never send “spam” [unsolicited ad]. • Consider using identifying labels, such as “ACTION, ” “FYI, ” “RE, ” “URGENT. ” • Use capital letters only for emphasis or for titles. • Announce attachments. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 8 8

Smart E-Mail Practices (4) • Netiquette (continued) • Don’t forward without permission. • Scan all messages in your inbox before replying to each individually. • Don’t automatically return the sender’s message. • Revise the subject line if the topic changes. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 9 9

Smart E-Mail Practices (5) • Personal Use • Don’t use company computers for personal matters. • Assume that all e-mail is monitored. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 10 10

Smart E-Mail Practices (6) • Other Smart Practices • Use design to improve readability of longer messages. • Consider cultural differences. • Double-check before hitting the Send button. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 11 11

Formatting E-Mail Messages (1) • Guide Words To: From: Date: Subject: Consider keying receiver’s full name with e-mail address in angle brackets (Heather Jones<hjones@peach. com>). Entered automatically Include meaningful topic summary. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 12 12

Formatting E-Mail Messages (2) • Salutation Options • No salutation • “Heather, ” “Dear Heather: , ” “Hi, ” or “Good morning!” • Include name in first line (“Thanks, Heather, for your help. . . ”). Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 13 13

Formatting E-Mail Messages (3) • Body • Cover just one topic. • Use uppercase and lowercase letters. • Keep the total message under three screens in length. • Closing • Consider a complimentary closing such as “Best” or “Cheers. ” • Include your name and identification– especially in messages to outsiders. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 14 14

Sample E-Mail Message (1) Date: To: From: Subject: September 3, 2004 9: 05: 12 AM EST Matt Ferranto <mferranto@qualcom. com> Brooke Johnson <bjohnson@qualcom. com> Supervising Two Assigned Interns Dear (Hi) Matt: Two interns will work in your department from September 20 through November 30. As part of their supervision, you should do the following: * Develop a work plan describing their duties. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 15 15

Sample E-Mail Message (2) * Supervise their work to ensure positive results. * Assess their professionalism in completing assigned work. Please examine the packet being sent to you. It contains forms and additional information about the two students assigned to your department. Call me at Ext. 248 if you have questions. Best, Brooke Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 16 16

Formatting Hard-Copy Memos (1) • • Leave a 2 -inch top margin. Set side margins at 1 to 1 ¼ inches. Leave a blank line between the heading guide words. Align the information following the headings Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 17 17

Formatting Hard-Copy Memos (2) • • For the subject line: use (1) initial capital letters for the main words, or (2) all capital letters Leave two blank lines between Subject and the first line of the memo Single-space within the memo and doublespace between paragraphs Sign your initials after your name on the From line. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 18 18

Sample Hard-Copy Memo (1) Qualcom Enterprises 2 inches Interoffice Memo DATE: TO: September 3, 200 x 1 blank line Matt Ferranto BJ FROM: Brooke Johnson SUBJECT: Supervising Two Assigned Interns Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 19 19

Sample Hard-Copy Memo (2) 2 blank lines Two interns will work in your department from September 20 through November 30. As part of their supervision, you should do the following: • Develop a work plan describing their duties. • Supervise their work to ensure positive results. • Assess their professionalism in completing assigned work. Please examine the packet being sent to you. It contains forms and additional information about the two students assigned to your department. Call me at Ext. 248 if you have questions. Enclosure Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 20 20

Writing Plan for Routine Memos and E-Mail Messages • Subject line: Summarize memo contents. • Opening: State the main idea. • Body: Provide background data and explain the main idea. • Closing: Request action, summarize the message, or present a closing thought. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 21 21

Improving Memo Readability With Listing Techniques (1) • Parallelism Instead of this: Try this: Workers were nervous, stressed, and full of preoccupation. Workers were nervous, stressed, and preoccupied. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 22 22

Improving Memo Readability With Listing Techniques (2) • Instructions Instead of this: Try this: To clean the printer, you should first disconnect the power cord. Then you open the front cover, and the printer area should be cleaned with a soft, dry cloth. To clean the printer, do the following: * Disconnect the power cord. * Open the front cover. * Clean the printer area with a soft, dry cloth. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 23 23

Improving Memo Readability With Listing Techniques (3) • Headings Instead of this: Try this: On April 3 we will be in Toledo, and the speaker is Troy Lee. On May 20 we will be in Detroit, and the speaker is Erin Win. Date City Speaker April 3 Toledo Troy Lee May 20 Detroit Erin Win Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 24 24

Improving Memo Readability With Listing Techniques (4) • Within Sentences Instead of this: Try this: Our team constantly tries to achieve our goals, customer service must be improved, and our production targets must be hit. Our team constantly tries to (a) achieve our goals, (b) improve customer service, and (c) hit our production targets. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 25 25

Improving Memo Readability With Listing Techniques (5) • Bulleted Items Instead of this: Try this: At the Auto. Select Web site, we let you compare car prices, you can research the best financing, and you can learn about leasing. At the Auto. Select Web site, you can do the following: • Compare car prices. • Research the best financing. • Learn about leasing. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 26 26

Improving Memo Readability With Listing Techniques (6) • Paragraph Headings Instead of this: Try this: The next topic is vacations. A new vacation schedule will be available in two weeks. Vacations. A new vacation schedule will be available in two weeks. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 27 27

Try Your Skill • Arrange the following in a concise, bulleted list. In the next training session, the trainer will demonstrate how to use video conferencing, how to share multiple programs, and how to maintain an Internet directory. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 28 28

Try Your Skill Improved Version: The next training session will demonstrate • Video conferencing • Sharing multiple programs • Maintaining an Internet directory Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 29 29

Try Your Skill • Improve the readability of the following instructions that will become part of a student employment booklet. [Poor] In preparing for an employment interview, you should begin by studying the job description. Itemizing your most strategic skills and qualifications is also important. Giving responses in a mock interview is another good practice technique. Last, you should be prepared to ask relevant questions. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 30 30

Try Your Skill Improved Version: You can prepare for interviews by doing the following: • Study the job description. • Itemize your most strategic skills and qualifications. • Practice giving responses in a mock interview. • Prepare to ask relevant questions. Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 31 31

Questions ? Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 5– 32 32

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