The following question comes from the manager of training and development at a major corporation. Here it is:
Busy professionals write e-mail messages all day. How formal do you think those messages should be? For example, should messages include a salutation and closing? Is it all right to use text abbreviations in messages—why or why not?
Also, consider the business world today compared to the business world 20 years into the future—will the same standards hold? What changes do you think you will see in how e-communication is used in your profession?
Hi Class-
I feel like this is a very relevant and important question. I work as a home visitor for a child abuse prevention program. There are about 30 of us that are employed by our program and this includes our assessment workers that screen clients for our program. It is a very rare occasion that we are all in the office at the same time. As a result, we constantly rely on emails between fellow home visitors, as well as supervisors. In fact, it is our main form of communication. I have my work email on my phone and am able to check them and respond to them throughout the day while out in the field.
I do believe that there should be a certain formality to emails that are sent. I will admit that an email that I would send to a fellow home visitor would probably look differently than an email sent to a supervisor, or even an associate at another agency. I try my best to make it a habit to always include a salutation and a closing in all of my emails, even if they are less formal. I believe that this makes an email more respectful. I think of it this way: I would never make a phone call, just state my message and hang up the phone. I would surely say hello and end the conversation appropriately. As far as text abbreviations being used in emails, I also think that it depends on who you are addressing in your email. I do not believe that text abbreviations have their place in professional emails. I think that they show a lack of respect. In reality, it does not take that long to type “i don’t know” as opposed to idk.
I think in the world of smart phones, tablets, laptops, etc., e-communication will continue to grow as a standard form of communication. I think that we will see an increase in the acceptability of electronic communications for various aspects of the business world. I am currently an elementary education major and think that there are many avenues where e-communication will continue to grow as new technologies become available. I think back to when I was in elementary, which was long, long ago, and all the changes that have come about since then. Parents being able to check their child’s progress, homework assignments and memos from teachers online is something that was definitely not possible when I was a younger. I think that the ability to do this makes parents more involved and more aware throughout the school year, as opposed to just being notified at the end of a grading period. All in all, I strongly believe that e-communication will continue to expand and at some point will be the main way of communication.
Hope everyone is having a good week!
Debbie
I think that this is a very relavent topic. I am 20 years old and I hav trouble sending e-mails and using the computer. I think that e-mail writing and all computer messaging should be taught to children. I think this could be a great and realistic addition to the childs education. We worry about writing letters and using paper; however, now and continuing into the future technology will continue to grow and employers will look had how someone can handle and work a computer and do it in a respectable manor.
I think there should be a formality to e-mail. I know that my e-mails to family members will look different than those to my empoyer; however, I love the exampe of how on the phone to anyone you would not just hang up without saying good-bye. This class has really helped me to expand the way I talk in a formal way. This class should be started in high school, so that we do not have adults who are “txting” in their e-mails.
This was a very good reflective question and I think that everyone’s post’s are very insightful and helpful. This puts a spin on education and communication as a whole for the future. We need to be realistic to the technological advancements and start making changes.
All the best,
Kari
Hello class,
What an important topic!!! Communication in all feilds is key to good outcomes for the staff and the employer you work for. Now because the world has gotten so small-everyone travels and speak to one another- we needed a faster way to communicate: e-communication. I think e-communication is very handy when it comes to long distances, or if a person is just busy. In nursing, the tranfer of medical records by fax or by other means of communication, may hold treatment for the patient because the health care professionals cannot do anything without knowing previous health history. With the advanced e-communication, patient files can be sent within minutes, increasing the quality of time to perform care.
Although people do not meet face-to-face due to e-communication, I think it is still important to have matters when sending anything through e-communication. Having matters means, saying hello and goodbye, along with be respectful. Most people will not say something in front of someone’s face, but behind a computer is a totally different story. But here’s the thing: what if you have to meet that person or meet your boss because of something you wrote and sent? I don’t think people realize that just because you did not say it, just wrote it, you still have the consequnces like before.
When communicating, I think people need to use proper grammer because this is the business world! From my own experince, sometimes when writing back and forth with some of my professors, I didn’t understand what they were saying because they did “texting language.”
Hopefully in the future, e-communication will be one of the major ways to communicate, but I think because of problems that will happen, employers will have policies of how to write through e-communication.
Have a great week,
Weronika
Hello class,
I believe that even though professionals are busy and are writing e-mails all day, the e-mails should still be somewhat formal. The messages should contain a salutation and a closing. This allows the e-mail to be a little more personal. When a customer recieves an e-mail from a business professional that has used the salutaion and closing, the customer will feel as though the professional takes the time and cares about the customer.
I also think that text abbreviations are not appropriate in business e-mails. This looks unprofessional. I believe that abbreviations are fine when e-mail friends or family but not in a business situation.
In the future, I think that e-communication will continue to grow and change. My profession as a dental hygienest will probably still use e-communication. I believe I will rely on e-mails to communicate with my associates and boss. Who knows.. e-mails may eventually be the new way to send patients information about their appointment.
Have a good day,
Kelly
Hello guys,
I have always thought that no matter how formal a message is or isn’t, you should ALWAYS include a salutation and closing. How formal the message is depends on the person receiving the message. I don’t think that the salutation and closing should only be used in formal writing because I believe it is proper to always greet someone and say goodbye as well.
It is never to use text abbreviation in messages. Using text abbreviation shows lazyness and is not professional in any sense. I don’t even believe it is appropriate to use text abbreviation in an e-mail to a family member or friend. Text abbreviations should be left for in cell phone uses.
I think that the same standards will hold 20 years from now; however, the standards could also become stricter as education requirements increase as well.
Have a great Easter,
Cristina Toma
Hello class,
It is important to write e-mails in a professional manner. Recently, there was a huge ordeal at my friend’s work dealing with inappropriate e-mail messages. My friend’s colleague actually ended up getting fired over these messages. This shows the importance of keeping your e-mails professional and work related.
When writing professional e-mails you should use a salutation and closing when appropriate. You should use salutation and closings when e-mailing any person outside of your company, a supervisor or boss, or any person of importance. It is not necessary to use a salutation and closing if you are e-mailing with a co-worker back and forth all day.
Also, it is inappropriate to use text abbreviations or slang when writing e-mails. Text abbreviations and slang are too informal, even when e-mailing co-workers. You want to keep your e-mails strictly work related and straight to the point.
In twenty years, messages will probably still have to be formal, but formality will be less stressed. I can also see text abbreviations becoming more appropriate over time. In the future, e-mails could replace phone calls completely. Technology has changed so much over the last twenty years; it is hard to tell how it will be like twenty years from now.
Talk to you soon,
Brittany Komenda
Hello Class,
In the professional world, e-communication is the link between people in the worlplace. In today”s world, business professionals heavily rely on e-mails as part of their communication tools. I believe that any e-mail sent in the professional world should include a salutation and closing. It is consistent, professional and respectful toward the recepient. There is definitely a difference in writing style in terms to whom the e-mail is intended to, but it should never include abbreviations. It takes about the same time to spell a word out versus using abbreviations.
In my line of work, e-mails are sent on a daily basis. Whether it is a policy change, memos for upcoming events, or just simple thank you note, it is what keeps up informed and updated on the lates information. Depending on the shift, you might not come in contact with your superior until the next staff meeting,. To ensure everyone/s on the same page, e-mails keep us in the same cirle of information.
Technology has advanced so drastically in the past few decades and will continue to excell at even a higher rate. I believe, 20 years from now, e-communication will movie-like virtual simulations. Look at the new Iphone 4g. You can ask the phone any question and it responds. In the future, the possibilites are limitless
Thanks and Happy Easter,
Daniel Prentoski
Hello Class,
I completly agree with Daniel’s post.
I come from a business that is spread out all over the world. On a weekly basis I have to interface with people in different countries as well as all over the world. WIthout the ability to send emails, this type of business could not exsist today.
As for the question of how formal a communication should be, well that depends. No matter how formal you try to be, a person becomes comfortable. Not only me but the different people I work with. When you become comfortable with a person you tend to drop the formalities. I see this everyday. When first emailing a customer back and forth, there are always the formalities. But after a time, when the relationship is built things change. You tend to use the persons first name, you more often than not, sign the email with just your name and not your name and title and contact info. Please do not get me wrong, building the relationship to that point is very important. I believe these changes come with trust. Really, it becomes a point where you follow what the other person is doing. And no this is not the correct way, but rather the way things tend to happen. This is why I believe a class such as this is so important! It not only teaches you the correct way to interface, but also gives examples from other students about the way things are in big business.
As for standards, this is also another question that depends on the enviroment and education of the people coming into the work force. As I said above, the business tends to follow what the customer does. If more people write proper, then more will respond the same way. People are becoming more tech savy everyday. In 20 years, who can really say what kind of crazy technolgy will be out there. Two decade ago no one believed that emails and computers would be such a big part of everyday life. A cell phone was something only the extremly rich had. So to even guess what is coming in the next two decades is very hard.
Regards,
Larry
Good afternoon class,
This is a complex question for me to answer. I feel that there are many if’s and but’s that could be incorporated into this answer. I won’t, however, go on for too long!
First, I will address the question of formality in messaging. I do believe that in most cases there should be a basic formality to a message. If you would have asked me before this class, I may have answered differently. I have learned, though, that a message is just like speaking to a person. You wouldn’t just walk directly up to someone, or call someone and start your sentence. You would say, “Hello, Good morning, Happy Friday,” or however you would like to greet them. Greeting a person before speaking is a necessity. I believe the same goes for a closing; it’s just as easy and polite to say goodbye as it is to say hello. As for abbreviations, I would definitely say you should leave them out of a professional message. Unless, it is a universal abreviation that everyone uses within the company. An exception to the rule, because I think there are always exceptions, would be if you had a co-worker who you worked with longer, maybe. If you were just dropping a quick line to them, that may be acceptable, but even then, you could just pick up the phone.
As for the second question, in twenty years we will not have the same technology. I do not think so, no way! I believe we will still have computers, sure, but they will be so much more advanced. I cannot predict the future, but if you look back twenty years I can sure tell you we are doing much better than we were in 1992. Actually in 1992, Microsoft Works was launched, do you know what that was…..I just barely remember. So yeah, I can confidently say that in twenty years we will be doing bigger and better things with technology!
Have a good day,
Mollie
Hello everyone!
I do not believe that I go a single day without writing some sort of formal e-mail to someone. If it is not one of my professors here at school, it is one of my colleagues or managers at work. Writing an e-mail is the most convenient way to get ahold and communicate something with someone. I have my work e-mail, along with my personal and school e-mail, all forwarded to my inbox on my phone so I can always know if someone is trying to get ahold of me. E-mail is a huge part of how I communicate with everyone!
When it comes to the formality of the writing, I strongly believe that a salutation and closing is necessary for an e-mail. I like the example another student above used about how we wouldn’t just call someone, state the message, and then hang up. That would be rude! So no matter what the message is, a salutation and closing should be used, in my opinion.
I believe that 20 years in the future, e-communication could be substantially more used! I work in a hospital, and most of the things such as discharge papers, prescriptions, and so on are handed to patients on paper. But who knows what the future could hold! Maybe prescriptions are sent directly to pharmacies, or patients papers e-mailed directly to their computers, phones, and tablets. I think a lot of the standards could change, and e-mail and e-communication could become much more widely used!
Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!
Christine
Hello Class,
I feel that commuincation through e-mail messages are growing rapidly. Before computers and e-mails, we hand wrote messages and sent everything through the mail. Now we do everything online through a computer and communicate over e-mails.
E-mails should be written fairly formally. Having e-mails written formally allows them to be more personal and a little bit more professional. I feel that the messages you send out personally should be sent how you want them to be recieved. Such as if it was just an e-mail to a friend checking up on them compared to a e-mail being sent to someone professionally is all in how you write it. There should be no abbreviations and everything should be spelled out. There are certain exceptions, but very rarely should they be abbrevated. If you have access to a full keyboard then take the extra ten seconds to spell it all out. There should always be a closing and salutaiton included in e-mailes and any form of messages as a matter of fact.
20 years from now, I am sure some how some way e-mails will be more advanced. I believe that there is no way that these standards will be lowered, but things will improve. Just like 20 years ago, look how much we have improved. So why would I figure 20 years from now things would be lowered or not like they are. They will improve to our standards and how we the people set them.
Hope your Easter went good.
Paige
Hi class,
I believe yes there should be salutation and closing in e-communication. When sending out mail no matter who you are sending it too should always be a formal message. Especially in the work place. You need to make sure mail is recieved by the right person in the event you need a response. And know your e-mail can be read by others, and retrieve by using you ISP. So keep it professional.
I work where there are hundreds of e-mail messages sent and recieved all day everyday. I feel that in a work environment we should always keep it professional no matter how short or how long the e-mail is. I believe if we did not keep it professional there will be someone who would deviate away from keeping the line of e-communication professional.
And no there should not be any abbreviation or text message form in sending e-mail. I deffentially disagree with this. Because certain text message have me confused. Some times I don’t know what the world some of these text message are saying. Text messaging form can imply the wrong message, because there are so many words with different meaning. So no text message form in the work place, keep this on your leisure time.
I believe that e-communication will be different in the next 20 years due to the technology world. E-communication will be enhanced to different standards and less difficult to learn to people who don’t e-mail or text message and still send letters in the mail like twenty years ago. I think that you are going to have to learn all of these different ways of communicating because the world is built around this now. Or else you will not be able to communicate with the outside world.
Hope you had a good holiday.
Felecia Whittler
Hello Class,
I know that the business world has changed alot. It seems that has gotten faster than what it was 20 years ago. A lot of people travel now and do most of their communicating through email. Even though a person might be receiving and sending emails all day long, I still thing that they should contain a salutation and a closing. I know if I was a customer and recieved an email that had a salutation and closing, it would make me think that the person sending it puts a lot more thought into what they are doing. It just makes it more personal to the customer or fellow employee.
Test abbreviations I feel are not appropriate for emails; expecially a buisness email. If I would have recieved an email with abreviations in it, my first thought would be lazy. That person is in a hurry and just doesn’t feel they need to take the time to write words out.
Twenty years from now I feel that emails will still be used. Just maybe we won’t be typing them. They have phones now that when you talk, it texts for you. I think that is how it will be in the future. They will just elimimate the keyboard. No one will have to worry about the wrong punctuation being used again. The computer will do it all for you, when you talk.
Have a great week,
Andrea Salazar
Good afternoon class,
Being in a business world involves being formal most of the time. It’s part of what makes the business world professional. However, there are some aspects that can be slacked off at times. When composing an e-mail to someone for the first time, you should include a salutation and closing. If you are communicating with a high ranked employee you should keep the salutation and closing throughout every message. However, if you are communicating between another employee, you can take out the salutation and closing after a few messages. If you aren’t sure whethere it’s expected or not, always add it.
Since being part of a business involves formal writings, there should be no abbreviations. However, if there is an abbreviation that is used within the company then it could be used. Composing a message to your boss using text abbreviations is informal and inappropriate. If you could use text abbreviation you might as well just text your boss what you want to tell them. However, companies are all ran differently. Some are stricter than others and don’t have a strong communication policy.
If you are a few years into the job and you start slacking while writing, it might bite you back in a few years. Just becasue you have been there a while and are comfortable, doesn’t mean everything is set and stone. If the company goes under and you have to search for a new job and start typing like you did at your old job, you could get in some trouble. Being safe and always writing formally is a good idea.
Have a good weekend,
Jessica Schiessle
Hi classmates,
Of all the things I have learned in this class, the one skill I value the most is how to write an e-mail message professionally. Nothing, except for the content of the message, can be more than important than how it is visually presented. Think about it. What is the first thing you notice when you open an e-mail? What is the first thing you notice when you’re talking to a person face to face? Whatever may be the type of communication outlet being used, the speaker should try to follow the same formality they would use if communicating to the receiver face to face. If I would be embarrassed to address my boss in pajamas or any other lazy apparel, I would also not communicate to them in the same unprofessional matter in an e-mail message. In my opinion, if your working environment is very lay back and cozy than yea why not excluded the salutation and closing in your e-mails. Yet, if you are working in a professional, well-respected environment and hope to form a personal connection with your receiver while communicating through an e-mail a salutation and closing should be included. As for abbreviations, if you are unsure the receiver knows the meaning of the abbreviation then do not use it. It will only cause problems.
I am currently in pursuit to becoming an Elementary School Teacher, and speaking from experience in the few years I have been in school there have already been major technological advances in education. Nevertheless, in reference to the question if the standards we use to communicate will change in 20 years from now in my profession? Yes, maybe the technology we might use will change; but we will all still be human. I acknowledge it might come across as a silly thought, but still holds to be true. We will all still need to form that personal connection when speaking to another person and still hopefully care enough to be respectful and professional. In other words, the way we communicate might be different; but we will still have the same human emotional qualities we hold today.
Hope everyone enjoys their weekend.
Karina
Hi Class,
In a professional setting, I believe that any form of written communication should be formal. A salutation or a closing should always be included to ensure the message is complete. It would seem inappropriate to hang up on your employer without some kind of closing over the phone, so you should follow the same guidelines for email.
Shortened messages or words in an email to friends or family are acceptable, but with colleagues or superiors it may come off the wrong way. Writing out what you mean is always the best way to make sure that the message you are sending is the message that gets interpreted.
In the future, e-communication will continue to become more important in every profession. I would hope that there will be certain standards that will be held when using forms of e-communication in the future. In my specific profession, many hospitals and doctor’s offices are already going paperless. The e-communication for nurses will probably continue to become more important on a daily basis when reporting patient status, as well as communicating with superiors and other staff in regards to specific patients.
Enjoy your weekend,
Sarah
Hello Class
I think the formality of professional e-mails all depend on who they are being sent to. For example, an e-mail sent to a client should definitely be more formal and professional than one sent to a co-worker. An e-mail sent to a co-worker that one doesn’t know very well would be more formal than an e-mail sent to a co-worker that one is friendly with and talks to on a daily basis. I do believer, however, that all e-mails should include a salutation and a closing. Formal e-mails should use proper salutations, such as dear, and proper closings, such as sincerely. Informal emails sent to your friendly co-worker should at least state their name in the beginning and your name at the end. This is important because if you accidentally send the e-mail to the wrong person they will know right away when it’s not their name in the salutation. Though, they will probably read it anyway. The closing stating your name is important as a reminder to the reader of who sent the e-mail; by the time they get to the end they might have forgotten who it was from.
Text abbreviations are along the same lines. They are okay to use with co-workers you are friendly with but should be avoided with more formal e-mails. One just has to be 100% positive the reader knows what the abbreviation means. It would be embarrassing to get an e-mail back from them asking what you meant. In a formal e-mail, text abbreviations may make the reader think you are too laid-back or lazy. This is not a good thing in a professional business arrangement and should be avoided.
The standards of today will not be the same standards 20 years from now, because technology will change. When technology changes, standards change. It is the same as when written letters were changed to e-mails; with the updated technology, the standards have to update.
E-communication is relied on heavily in the medical field. It would not surprise me if one day, far in the future, one would not actually have to go to the doctor’s office to see the doctor, but they would communicate through computers using some program that allows them to see each other.
As technology updates all the time, people, especially those in the professional world, need to keep up with it. Technology makes things easier and faster.
Have a great weekend.
Shelbee Peterson
E-communication is one of the fastest ways to send a message. Whether it may be through social media, email, blogs, or instant message people are able to get messages across to thousands of people at the same time. Today, there are a lot of professions that use email as a form of communication. These emails usually contain important information pertaining to business matters or issues. Therefore, I believe it is important to use formal writing when composing business related emails.
It is very important to include a salutation and a closing when writing business related emails. It is important to keep the message on subject and straight to point. However, text abbreviations are not acceptable and should not be use when composing business emails. Not everyone is familiar with text abbreviations, so if you want to send an important message it is important that the receiver understands the message.
In the future, I believe that e-communication will continue to grow. Businesses and companies will rely more heavily on email and other forms of e- communications than they do today. When looking back twenty years and comparing the technological advances today, I have no idea of what is to come in the next twenty years. I do know that technology is growing and advancing everyday.
Have a great day,
Fabiene
Hello Class!
This is an interesting question. I think about how the world changes everyday, and it always has me guessing “what’s next?” Being a student in 2012, I think there should always be a salutation and a closing in an e-mail. However, when I think about it, I could very well see us gradually begin to not use salutations and closings. After all, when we text each other, we don’t include a salutation or a closing. An e-mail is kind of like a big, formal text message. If we begin to rely so much on e-mail as we do text, who knows what it will be like in 20 or so years. For the time being, I think e-mails should remain formal and professional.
I don’t think we should ever use abbreviations with e-communication. I think it’s all right with hand written letters to use abbreviations for words like “appointment”. Keyboard typing doesn’t take up as much time or room, so what’s the harm in spelling out the whole word?
I think technology and e-communication will be very advanced in up-coming years. I think computer classes should be offered to children at early years in small doses. They’re so good at figuring out our cell phones already! Yet I do not think they should substitute cursive writing for typing classes. In order for children to keep up with the advanced standards of our society, they’ll need to know a lot about everything.
I am entering the field of social work with a focus in geriatrics. While I probably will never e-mail my elderly patients within the next ten years, I may be e-mailing the company who I work for. After the baby boom generation gets older, many more of them will know how to operate a computer. Who knows what will become easiest for them, depending on their prior job or situation? It is always to keep yourself up to date so you can relate to more people.
I haven’t written very many formal e-mails, but I bet people who do get used to always writing formally. Maybe in the future we will be more lenient when it comes down to writing back and forth, but I hope that the decency and properness never goes away.
Have a good weekend,
Lauren Sergent
Hi Class,
When writing e-mails in your profession, I do believe that they should be professionally written. Depending on who the e-mail is going to, makes a difference on how professionally written it should be. When writing a manager or someone from another company text abbreviations should not be used.
I think as time goes on the standards will not hold. Everything has already changed from 20 years ago, so 20 years from now it will be even more different. I’m not sure exactly what changes I will be seeing in my profession, since I’m not quite sure what my profession is going to be!
Take care,
Jasalin Lamar
Hello Class,
This is a very interesting question. E-communication is used almost everywhere for most types of communication between professionals. I believe that every e-mail sent should be formal if you are working in a professional field. Every e-mail should have a salutation and closing. I understand that when people say that some messages can be informal when you are sending them to a person you know really well. The problem is that you are at work and you have to act professional at your work. That means all your messages have to be professional and serious. There are social networking sites that you can abbreviate words and write anything you want, but in a professional setting you have to act professional in every type of communication.
Have a nice day,
Naumce Prentoski
Hi Class,
I feel that as a professional, it is always important to maintain a certain look when you are working. When it comes to sending e-mails I think that they should be formal. They should always be formal and professional because you never know who may see what your sending. An e-mail can be sent around the world within minutes and I don’t think any professional would want their name attached to so mess.
At first I didn’t think about the fact that even e-mails needed to have a salutation and a closing. After taking this class, I realized that it is very important. It is always proper to address who you are writing to and to give a proper departing. It seems as if it makes it more cordial.
As far as using text abbreviations when writing e-mails, I don’t think that it is a great idea. It is not a great idea because everyone may not understand what you are abbreviating. What is abbreviated could mean one thing and the reader could take it as meaning something else. This could possibly be dangerous, because, say if an action needs to taken on something and the person either does the wrong thing or just can do it at all, because they don’t get it.
As far as e-communications in the future goes, I think the possibilities are endless. Who really knows what changes will occur? I think that the basic standards will stick, like including a salutation and closing, because you will always need to address who you are writing to.
Working as a dental hygienist, I’m not too sure how e-communications will affect my job, seeing as though e-mail is not used that often in a dentist office. But I just never know because technology changes so much and there is always something new on the scene.
Enjoy you week!
Sparkle
Hi Class,
I believe that when sending emails concerning your career they should be professional. They should at least include a salutation and closing and a well-constructed body. Even if it is a short message it should still be appealing to the eye. I don’t think people should use text abbreviations in email messages that have to do with their profession. A text abbreviation is meant for just that, texting. If you are texting for your job then the text should be held up to the same professional standards as an email. I think it could come across as rude and/or lazy to use text abbreviation to a colleague or superior.
Personally, I think this standard is fading, and fading fast. People are becoming so comfortable with having the communication at their fingertips and are not taking the time to really think about and compose what they are communicating. People are getting lazy. It’s one thing to talk/message in a relaxed format with friends and family, but I believe anything that has to do with you as a professional should be approached in a professional manner.
The lack of face to face communication is almost disturbing. This is a topic that came up in my interview. He said he truly believes that if his superior saw his face more often that it would annoy her. She would much rather just get an email from him than to see him in person or talk over the phone. I understand professionals are busy people, but like another classmate mentioned, we are humans and have that want to form personal connections when speaking with someone. E-communication has made great strides in the field of education, with parents being able to check on their child’s progress and memos from teachers online, but nothing substitutes a parent-teacher conference about a students achievement and/or issues. Communication will continue to grow at a rapid rate, but I hope people learn to use it for the growth of our society, rather than the demise of it.
Have a great week!
Stephanie
Hello!
When busy professionals compose e-mail messages, they should always be formal. Extreme measures like correcting the margins and font size are not necessary, but a salutation and closing are needed for every message. Keeping the messages somewhat formal will keep things professional and ensure that the topic at hand is the only thing discussed. Staying focused is important for a busy professional to do. Is it not okay (in my opinion, of course) to use text abbreviations in messages because those instantly make a conversation casual, and in the business world, everything should be professional and formal.
In 20 years, the business world will hold the same standards, perhaps stricter ones.
The only changes I can think of would be that companies would provide smartphones so that everyone has the capability to email wherever they are. I think teachers will have to communicate daily with parents with e-mail messages to ensure children’s educational success.
Have a great evening,
Sarah Brown
Hello Class,
I’m honestly a bit scared to see what the future holds with e-mail communication. I do believe e-mails should contain a greeting and solutation, especially in a professional situation. The abbrevations are childish, and show laziness. I don’t even like to use them with my friends. Showing that you can completely spell out a word shows professionalism, and to tell the truth, I don’t think the abbreviations save you that much time.
I do believe that e-mails should be kept to a minimum with information. However, you can still manage to do that while maintaining a professional approach.
Thank you,
Amber Manzella
Hello Class,
Email messages should include a salutation and closing. It allows for connection with the reader. Although e-mails are less formal, they respresents you and your company. Emails messages should not contain text abbreviations because they are business documents. The book states that contractions can be used in e-mails, but I would spell out the words. Today, radiographers use e-mail communication on a minimial level. In 20 years, maybe the computer will alow radiographers to take x-ray images via the internet. The patients can be imaged from the comfort of their own home.
Thank you,
Serina Garcia
Hi class,
I agree that the future with e-communication seems quite scary. I feel that when sending and email to a co-worker, you can seem less formal than you would if you were sending an email to a client. I do agree that a salutation and closing are a good idea and makes any email seem more professional. I think that every word should be written out in an email and using abbreviations seems less professional. I feel that the same standards will carry over into the future and there will probably be another couple of “new standards” that will be added to the current ones. Who knows what the future will hold, we shall see!!
Hope everyone has a great week!!
Alex Hora
Hello class,
This is a great question. It really makes me think. I have been writing e-mail messages for years. Some formal, and some not so formal. This class has helped me to realize that all of my e-mail should be formal.
Throughout my different career paths, I have changed levels of informality in my e-communications. This class has taught me that I need to stick with one way. I believe that messages should contain a salutation and a closing; they keep the message professional and organized. Writing e-mail has been a trial and error process for me throughout the years. It would be very beneficial if everyone had the opportunity to take a class on how to format e-mail correctly; it certainly would have been beneficial to me.
Text abbreviations seem alright in text messages. I have not often used them in e-mail, however; I have now chosen to eliminate them in e-mail use all together. They do not seem professional enough for me. Sometimes, a text abbreviation may be misunderstood. This may cause problems. It also may seem unprofessional to the receiver, even if it is understood. Writing out the whole word or statement shows more time and care has been considered.
The business wold today compared to 20 years into the future is almost unimaginable to me. 20 years ago, I was not even aware of e-mail, text messages, or even the internet. I can only imagine what the next 20 years will bring us. I am sure the standards will change, but hopefully, we will continue to value being formal. I know technology will continue to grow. In the banking industry, it seems as though things are changing and growing daily. In fact, we are texting people to let them know what their account balances are, when transactions are made, and when there are questions about their account. Within the last month, we are opening checking accounts without physical check books. I know e-communications will continue to grown and we will continue to adapt to the growth.
This question is interesting. I feel like I cannot even answer it directly. I do feel that e-communication will dominate communication in the future.
Hope everyone had a great weekend!
Sincerely,
Abby
Hello Class,
Sorry my posting is a day late but I completely forgot about this blog post! This is a very important topic to consider since e-communication is beginning to dominate society. Nobody seems to call each other anymore because it is easier to shoot a person a text message. It is no longer customary to send snail mail because email is so much quicker and more efficient. With all of this in mind, the next question is can I be sloppy and informal in my emails?
My answer to this is simple: it all depends on the nature of the message. If you are sending it to a friend, sure abbreviations and “text tallk” is fine. However, when it comes to business emails, there should never be an instance where an informal email is sent. Work emails should always be professional and always have a salutation and closing. They should also have correct grammar and formatting.
When it comes to the future, who knows if these standards will still hold up because no one knows what technology will be like. It could be possible that all communication is done via mind reading by then! We may not even need emails or text messaging!
Best Wishes,
Jennifer Aloia
What type of e-communication will I use or familiar with?