Communicating Clearly Through Voice Mail and Email

Clear messages are concise, complete, correct, quick and make you look competent. Whether you were a pioneer in the use of email and voice mail, or have just recently been introduced to this technology, making effective use of these forms of communication is not a "by chance" happening. Here are a few tips for polishing your messages.

Follow the rules of etiquette when creating your messages.
Even though technology has changed, the rules of etiquette have not. Avoid remarks that are vulgar, repetitive and verbose, and never write or say anything you wouldn't want forwarded to your company CEO, your customers, your family, or your friends.

Distinguish between fact and opinion when the difference may not be obvious to the person receiving your message.
If you are making a personal judgment, say so, lest your words come back to haunt you. And even then, be sure you really want to state your personal opinion in potentially libelous situations.

Respect others' confidentiality and expect your own to be nonexistent.
Most of us have been comforted by the thought of our guaranteed right to free speech to say what we think and feel with few exceptions. However, messages left in the private sector do not enjoy such immunity; they are considered private domain and are not subject to "free speech" protection.

Respect all copyright and licensing agreements.
Take great care to discover who has authored information you may be tempted to include as yours. Just because you do not claim the ideas as your own, and even if you acknowledge other "unknown" sources, you may still be liable for copyright infringement.

Understand the difference in being informal and looking careless or stupid.
Informal means a conversational tone, a breezy manner, colloquial words and phrases, intentional sentence fragments, and acronyms. On the other hand, informal does not mean unclear and incomplete thoughts, ambiguous references, irrelevant details, repetitive information, disorganized ideas, unclear actions, misspelled words, or grammatical errors.

Use the MADE format to structure your messages.
People rarely understand messages that do not immediately get to the point. Detailed information or situations make more sense to the reader or listener when the message begins with a summary or overview and the required action, followed by relevant details.

Message: Summary of 1-3 sentences.

Action: What action do you plan to take or want the reader to take?

Details: Elaborate on who, when, where, why, how, and how much.

Evidence: Mention any materials you think will make the message clearer or the action easier to take.

Email and voice mail have made our lives increasingly more productive. Use them to their fullest advantage, without abusing others' rights or offending their sense of decency and appropriateness. Common courtesy and good sense go a long way in matters of etiquette. Your coworkers, customers, family, and friends will appreciate your skill and your courtesy.

by Dianna Booher