SUNY Empire Email Etiquette Guidelines

Relevant To: All  Faculty/ Staff and Students

Introduction

A distinct feature of an online collaborative environment is that communication occurs solely via the written word. Because of this, the nuances of body language and non-verbal feedback of traditional conversation are absent. These facts need to be considered both when writing online messages and when reading them.

SUNY Empire Online Etiquette Guidelines

1. Be respectful and mindful of the words you choose.
   • Electronic communication can be tricky, so choose words that are clear and direct. Remember too, that tone is not the same when you are reading an email versus listening to someone speak those same words out loud.
2. Be mindful of spelling and grammar.
   • Proofread before you send, post or publish. Tools such as spell-check are useful.
   • Read your work out loud, and you will catch typos faster and more readily than editing silently.
   • Before responding too quickly to a challenging situation, prepare a draft, set it aside, and review it later before sending.
   • Use standard forms of capitalization.
     • Using all capital letters comes across as angry, as if YOU ARE YELLING.
     • Use bold font if you're excited and want to "yell" something positively.
3. Be polite and concise.
   • Be conscious of who will be reading your post or email by tailoring the message to your audience.
   • Approach communications positively. If you must make a constructive criticism, balance it with complimentary feedback as well.
   • Maintain an academic level of communication — avoid colloquial language.
   • Keep emails short and to the point. Long emails may be left unread.
4. Cite your sources.
   • Maintain academic integrity and do not plagiarize.
   • Whenever you’re sharing an idea that isn’t your own (even if it’s not word for word), it’s good practice to cite the source. This applies to discussion forums too.
   • If you read a great thought, share it, but be sure you let your audience know where you saw it first.
5. Respect everyone's privacy.
   • If someone shares something online in class, treat it like a personal communication.
6. Always have a good subject heading.
   • An email without a subject heading may be ignored. Appropriate and relevant headings in the subject line help the recipient understand and prioritize their responses. When forwarding or replying to an email, consider changing the subject heading if you want to emphasize a slightly different point.
7. Keep in mind that emails are public documents. As such, they may be retrieved at any time for legal purposes.
   • Only put in an email what you would not mind reading in the news.
   • Avoid sharing personal data.
   • Never put confidential information like social security numbers, credit card or financial account numbers, state-issue ID numbers, etc... in an email.
8. Be Cognizant of the Work Environment.
   • GIFs, emojis and slang that we use in personal emails may not be appropriate at work or school.
   • Avoid using informal communication methods in graded discussions and assignments.
9. Be conscious of your intentions at all times.
   • Mean what you say and say what you mean. Your voice should remain authentic, clear and honest.
   • Avoid hitting "reply all" unless it is appropriate and truly intended for the entire group.