Email Etiquette Does Not Exist

Dear Saidie,
Do you have any tips for e-mail etiquette? Is there such a thing?
Signed,
Caught in the Web

Dear Caught,
Yes, certainly, e-mail etiquette exists. Although Saidie fears we have been making it up as we go along rather than applying some time-tested guidelines for paper-based messaging that e-mail was meant to replace. The e-mail format gets the basics right — a recipient and sender, date and subject, even cc: or “carbon copy,” a dinosaur from the days before photocopying machines. Because e-mail has allowed us to eliminate envelopes, stamps and a trip to the mail basket, along with phone calls and personal interaction, we’ve churned out more words than ever. It has allowed us to produce more, while conversely expecting instant answers on matters for which we used to allow days.

This need for speed has caused us to produce messages more quickly. Though, unfortunately, more quickly than we should. How many emails have you read that contained typing or spelling errors, unclear information or a ridiculous trail of ‘correspondence’ as it is sent back and forth, forwarded hither and yon, to this one and that one?

Three principles guide e-mail: Be Clear, be concise, communicate. Let’s start at the top. Subject Line: Be Specific The subject line is your opportunity to sell your message. Think of it as a headline. And for heaven’s sake, don’t leave the line blank. Specifics help the recipient remember your note and find it later.
Examples: YWCA Gala set March 27, Benefits International Programs Dept. meeting scheduled Thursday
Marketing Budget: We need to meet by 3/1

Salutation and body: Be Brief, Use a Style
We don’t do it, but we should. Think of the old-fashioned thank-you note.
Date
Dear Sally (or Sally): Information or request – no more than 200 words. If it’s longer, write a memo and attach it. Thank you, Jane Jane’s Title Jane’s Company Jane’s Phone, Fax and E-mail address

Replies: Be Clear
When replying, help your reader remember the topic by repeating back briefly their request or question. “I will be happy to pick you up for the AWC meeting on March 12. I’ll come by at 11:15.” Or: “In reference to your question about rat killing, I suggest calling Charles at 555.5555.”

Forwards: Be Helpful
Explain, briefly, why you are forwarding the message. “Joe: Mr. Jones from accounting has questions about last year’s design budget, including expenditures on erasers, pencils and Post-It notes. The details are below. Can you answer?”

Smilies and Abbreviations: Be Gone
:) may be cute for text messaging; even among friends at the office, but avoid for business. Same for abbr. — Unless it is a generally known, such as FYI, ASAP or perhaps BTW. Generational differences may apply in understanding them. Think LOL vs. S.O.P.
Finally, please, please, proof your work.
Electronically yours,
Saidie

Avoiding Catastrophes

Dear Saidie,
I've noticed that apostrophes are showing up in all the wrong places. So when is (when's) it right or not to tack on apostrophes?
Signed,
Avoiding Catastrophes

Dear Avoiding,
I've noticed that writers are getting loose with their apostrophes and it's (it is) easy to become confused when that little character is out of place. So, here's (here is) a New Year's (possessive apostrophe) resolution to remember to put our apostrophes (not possessive) in the right spot - or not.

Commonly, apostrophes indicate something is missing or make a word possessive:
1. Use an apostrophe to replace something that's (that is) missing. It's (it is) time to turn your calendars to 2009. Other common contractions are can't (can not) and that's (that is).
2. Form a possessive of a noun: New Year's resolution. To decide if you need an apostrophe, turn your phrase around to say "Resolution of the New Year." Think of possessive as "belonging to," such as Tulsa's new arena. The arena belongs to Tulsa.

An apostrophe footnote: Words that end with an s can be confusing when forming possessives. Sally Jones' pencil. Associated Press style recommends not adding an extra s after the apostrophe (Jones's) but some other style guides say it's (it is) OK to add the extra s. It depends on how you pronounce the word - no extra syllable, add only an apostrophe. It is (it's) a style issue.

Finally, we make most nouns plural by adding a simple s. Then to make the plural noun possessive add the apostrophe. So it's (it is) a formula: girl + s + ' = girls' = something belonging to more than one girl. Plural words that don't (do not) end in s need an apostrophe at the end for possession: Their children's classrooms.

I hope that helps lasso those tricky runaway apostrophes.
Saidie

Party Planning Conundrum

Dear Saidie,
We have a number of employees from different faith groups. What is the best time to schedule a holiday party?
Signed,
Party Planner

Dear Planner,
You grew up with memories of Santa Clause and Christmas trees, but some members of your board or perhaps colleagues at work spent the holidays lighting a menorah and playing dreidel. With the increasing number of religious and ethnic groups adding a rich diversity to our community, it is important for all of us to be more aware of these traditions and specific religious holidays when we plan our events. In some faith traditions, calendar dates for sacred times are determined by both solar and lunar computations, so dates vary from year to year. In addition to Christmas, December has several holidays to keep in mind when planning your events:

Kwanzaa
An African American and Pan-African holiday celebrating family, community and culture, Kwanzaa is a secular observance with some religious participation. Seven life virtues are presented.

Hanukkah
The Jewish Festival of Lights. It commemorates the Maccabean recapture and redirection of the Jerusalem Temple in 165-164 b.c.e. Special readings and praise songs focus on liberty and freedom. The eight candle Menorah is lit - one for each day of the 8-day feast.

Hajj
Three-day Islamic festival recalling Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son in obedience to Allah. The most important feast of Islam-Feast of Sacrifice on Dec. 9- concludes the Hajj.

Muharram
First day of the first month of the Muslim year.

Pancha Gananpati
Modern Hindi festival and Winter Solstice celbrating Lord Ganesha, the five-faced Maha Ganapati, Lord of Categories.

Saidie

Promotionally Challenged

Dear Saidie,
I am helping my company pitch Tulsa to our national organization as our 2010 convention site. How can I sell Tulsa to them?

Signed,
Promotionally Challenged

Dear Promo,
Saidie knows your pain. There are many nice things to say about Tulsa! We all ought to have a few selling points we can draw upon - whether we are event planning or simply chatting with our seatmate on an airplane. Here are a few of my favorites:
• Tulsa is an affordable city - the fifth most affordable in the U.S.
• Our cost of living is 10 percent below the average of 381 metro areas.
• Cost of doing business is 8 percent below the average.
• Along with its central location, this makes it an exceptionally affordable location for conventions. In fact AAA named Tulsa the 2008 Most Affordable Destination.
• We are facility rich - the new BOK arena, which will be joined by the upgraded Tulsa Convention Center in 2010; the Spirit Bank Event Center in Bixby; the Mabee Center; and facilities at The University of Tulsa, plus a growing number of hotels to house guests.
• We have great attractions - art museums, Art Deco, an award-winning aquarium, America's Favorite Zoo, unique local fine dining and upscale shopping, and places to party after hours.

And that's just the short list.

A great source for detailed information is the Tulsa Convention and Visitors Bureau at www.tulsachamber.com. They can arm you with even more stats and help you in other ways.

Saidie

An appreciation "of" or "for"?

Dear Saidie,
I was in a meeting this afternoon with three newspaper writers, one English professor, one professional novelist, three PR people, and other smart and important people. We spent an inordinate amount of time discussing whether to say "an appreciation of" or "an appreciation for" something. Help! What would Saidie do?
Signed,
Perplexed on Peoria

Dear Perplexed,
Use "appreciation for" when talking about the finer things in life. But use "appreciation of" when referring to the value of your home. One of our own members has a wonderful resource for all kinds of grammatical and word usage questions called "The Writing Coach." It is written by Lee Clark Johns and can be ordered at Amazon.
Saidie

Introduction

Welcome to "Saidie Says!" We are channeling the legendary communicator Saidie Adwon to create an informative resource for the Tulsa Chapter of the Association for Women in Communication. This blog expands what we are doing in a column in our newsletter. In addition to the questions that we answer for our members, we wanted to open up this resource to the public. Each month, we choose a question, sent by members, and not only give you the answer to your burning questions, but also references to research similar questions yourself.

Our lifetime achievement award given at the Newsmakers luncheon every year is the "Saidie," named after the pioneer woman in the filed of communication, Saidie Adwon. Saidie was the consummate communicator, a trailblazer for women and a member of the Tulsa AWC Chapter.

If you have a question, email saidiesays@awctulsa.org. You will remain anonymous, so don't be afraid to ask anything pertaining to communications.