How to set email writing standards in your organization
In my 30 years as a business writing trainer, I've become aware that leaders in organizations must set business writing quality standards.
A challenge in setting these standards is they must apply to the deluge of emails threatening to drown our organizations. And, the quality of these emails continues to decline. In short, people are sending more bad writing to more people faster than ever before.
That's where an email code of conduct can help.
The military, businesses and other organizations use codes of conduct to set expectations and structure accountability for important practices, including ethics, safety and personal conduct.
Recently, I've introduced an email code of conduct process to help clients manage email as a communications tool. The typical code has 15-20 provisions—enough to set key standards, not too many for staff to remember and practice. And, each organization can select and tailor those provisions.
Here are 10 sample provisions, along with a few comments:
Business emails will always:
- Serve as business correspondence. Emails should have the same purpose as other forms of business writing—to communicate ideas quickly and help produce results for the organization. They're not a medium for chatting, spleen-venting or thinking out loud.
- Strengthen reputations and business relationships. We always want to enhance the (a) reputations of the writer, the department, management and the organization, and (b) business relationships with colleagues, management, customers and other strategic partners.
- Offer an option to a conversation, not necessarily a replacement for one. Email frequently replaces conversations. Sometimes, this works. However, if the subject is complex or if there are particular feelings involved (anger, irritation, impatience), a conversation still works best. Harsh feelings expressed in writing will create more harsh feelings.
- Be considered permanent, discoverable and forwardable.
- Have an appropriate tone strategy. Virtually every piece of writing will cause your reader to feel something. So, a key part of a tone strategy is to determine how you want the reader to feel. If you make this decision before you write, you're more likely to produce feelings that promote understanding and action.
- Be visually “pleasing.” Readers initially react to an email as a visual aid. If an email has paragraph breaks, bullets, headings and white space, it's easier to read. This shows respect for the reader. Conversely, if readers see words filling the screen, they're more likely to hit “delete.”
- Have a message that's clear and accessible to the reader. Readers quickly ask four questions: Who sent it? What's it about? Why did I receive it? What am I supposed to do? The last three involve the message (what you want your reader to know and/or do.) Put that up front if possible.
- Be concise, using only those words contributing to message or tone.
- Be proofread and spell checked. Always do both for quality assurance. You can proofread as you do a final re-read of the email for message, tone and overall clarity.
- Limit the use of a chain of previous emails. Check earlier messages. A reader may not need — or want to read — all the background emails in the chain. Additionally, a confidential email could be mixed in with the chain.
Here's how to implement this in your organization:
- Assess the quality of the emails within your organization. What are the strengths and weaknesses? Importantly, what are the practices that might damage the organization's reputations and relationships?
- Develop your code provisions. As a leader, you can do this yourself. Or, solicit ideas from your staff. In my experience, you'll receive terrific ideas, and the code will have greater support and staying power if it has many creators.
- Provide business writing training as necessary. Some of your code provisions may involve strategic skills (how to use tone, structure a message, edit). Training can help your staff learn how to use these.
- Announce the code with great enthusiasm and commitment. Make a presentation(s) about it—why it's necessary and how it will benefit the organization. Declare your personal commitment. Distribute the code in an easily accessible form.
- Set expectations. Enforce the code. Praise those who use it. Coach those who don't.
- Set an example with your own writing. Make business writing skill a performance appraisal item, and tell people the quality of their writing will help determine promotions and career paths.
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