eMail Archives

Next time one of your friends or colleagues forwards you spam, have them watch this video three times then repeat after you "I will not forward irrelevant email."

Make it easy for people to reach you. Whether it's the media, a prospective client or members of your own team, not being readily accessible can cost you time, money and even business.

Always include your phone number in your email signature, even if you're just replying to someone with whom you've been working. Case in point: I recently needed to contact a facility rep about a point in his proposal, but didn't have the file with me at that moment. I checked recent emails from him but none included his direct line (or any phone number for that matter). I ended up googling his facility to find the main number, then had to endure a series of phone transfers between departments before finally reaching his voice mail. The irony was all his emails include a fancy logo graphic in the signature area...with only his company name.

Automate your signature. Most email systems allow users to automate signatures. Take advantage of this feature. For instance, set up one signature for inclusion in new emails you send. Create another for inclusion in replies or interoffice emails. I have several signatures set up in Outlook and all I have to do is click on "Insert, Signatures" and select the one I want to use. It's a lot faster than typing my phone number every time I send an email!

Here are a few basic guidelines for email signatures:

External email - initial contact
Your Name
Title
Company
Address
Phone
Web Address

External email - reply
Your Name
Title (optional)
Company
Phone number

Internal email
Your Name
Title (optional)
Phone number

Discussion list email
Your Name (last name optional depending on the group)
Web Address (optional)

Don't put your email address in your signature. It's redundant since recipients already have it in the "From" line of the email. And if you insist on including graphics, such as your logo, be sure to keep them small so they download easily and don't tie up bandwidth. I'm hearing a lot of complaints about email "stationery" and large, unnecessary graphics in email.

Inbox: 9
Sent: 637
Trash: 0

Goal: 0 in all categories by 9:00 p.m. tonight. Wish me luck.

Today's email battle strategy: spend two hours on Saturday morning cleaning up...starting with a sent folder containing 1,756, and whittle away throughout the day until the goal is achieved.

Is there a psychological impact from having an empty inbox? Absolutely. Tangible or virtual, a full inbox is a nagging reminder that we're failing somehow. We can't keep up. We are overwhelmed with work. The drain on our psyche affects our concentration, which in turn affects our productivity.

The good news is that there are techniques for overcoming this never-ending challenge. The better news (for me anyway)? I'm winning!

Inbox: 2
Trash: 0 (I just happily deleted 334)
Sent: 1,484 (darn near impossible to get control over)

Admittedly, it has taken a very concentrated effort to get to this level of inbox management success, but I've been able to keep a handle on my inbox for over a week now. And seeing all that white space in my inbox each morning really starts my day off well.

Now, go 4D (do, dump, defer or delegate) 10 emails from your inbox and blog me in the morning.

Yesterday I received an email from an entrepreneur (who will remain nameless) promoting an upcoming teleconference he is hosting. Within the body of the email, he notes "next Tuesday evening, July 19 I'm going to hold a tele-conference..." and provides a link to register for the call.

Unfortunately, this entrepreneur has committed a major faux pas: he did not bother to update the landing page for the link.

The headline on the landing page says "Don't miss the [John Smith] Experience Tele-conference calls May 10, May 17, and May 24." The dates are in bold red type.

If he is that careless with his own materials, how careless was he in preparing the info products for sale on his web site? How careless will he be as my consultant if I hire him? These are the questions your prospects will ask before buying your products or hiring you, so why not answer those questions in advance - by making sure your work is proofread, up-to-date, and accurate BEFORE you hit the send button.

Always do a "run-through" before you launch your promotional campaign. Even better, have a couple associates run through it for you. Test the links to make sure they work, proofread your copy (email as well as web pages), and double check your day/date combinations. I had the bad habit of putting the wrong day with a date (for instance, "Friday, July 16" instead of the correct "Saturday, July 16"), but once I enlisted the help of an editor to proofread critical announcements, that habit was broken.

It only takes a moment and the result can be monumental. Skip this critical step and the results can be devastating.

(UPDATE: 7/21/05 9:30 p.m.) When I dialed in to the call, an automatic recording directed me to a new number, which I called about 10 minutes after the published start time (I hate listening to all the pre-call chit chat and the opening sales pitches). I was surprised to hear two women talking about network marketing and one's vacation in Cancun...I held out a few short minutes but at 15 minutes after the hour, the call still had not officially started so I hung up. I don't think this entrepreneur will be building a successful business any time soon if he keeps this up.)

Why do people forward emails without checking their validity? It's easier to verify these new millennium chain letters than it is to input all the names to which email-happy types spew this junk.

Whenever you get an email that makes you stop and wonder for a minute (think: Bill Gates tracking a chain letter), go to Snopes and see for yourself whether or not it is a hoax.

Snopes also lists the 25 Hottest Urban Legends. I wish more people would do that instead of forwarding it to me.

I set up an RSS feed for Snopes at Bloglines. Whenever a new hoax starts making the internet rounds, or an old chain resurfaces, I usually know about it before the first spew comes my way.

Which brings me to the mission update: Inbox: 12.

Inbox 9
Sent folder 1,367
Trash 423 (147 unread)

I started this morning with 89 in the inbox and received dozens of emails throughout the day, so 9 is not too bad, really. My printer screwed up, so 4 emails are just waiting to be printed.

Alas, this is what I get for being out of the office for a week!

(I'll take care of the trash folder now, so there's consolation.)

Doggone it, I just realized you cannot edit your posts in Yahoo groups once they have been posted, even if you are the moderator and set up the group.

Wayne Kelly and I just wrapped Week Two of the June session of our four-week course, 30 Days to Radio Success. After posting this week's homework assignment in Yahoo groups, I realized the format of the message was different than last week's posting. Sure, it's a trivial thing but I like consistency. After a bit of time searching the help section, I found that even though I set up the group and am the moderator, I can NOT edit my post. That's too bad.

Ah, well, you get what you pay for and we wanted something quick and easy for our students to use while we get our training site set up.

Inbox: 7
Wendy: 235

That's 235 emails filed, forwarded or flagged for deletion. I'm getting there!

(We'll have to talk about the sent folder next week.)

My email inbox is out of control. This morning, it held over 200 emails, so I dusted off my article on managing email to refresh my memory with 10 quick tips. I created this tip list a few years ago to help a client's staff of nearly 500 get their arms around their email deluge.

If it takes until 2:00 a.m. tomorrow, I will get my inbox cleaned out. A quick check of the "sent" folder shows 1,157 emails waiting to be filed or forsaken. I guess I know what I'm doing this weekend!

Finally! A quick google of "html code for the trademark symbol" turned up html code my blog headline needed desperately.

Tip: don't put the space between the & and # characters. I only did it here so it would show up as the code rather than the actual symbol.