YOUR TELECOMMUNICATIONS IMAGE
by Cyndi Maxey, CSP

How you use your telecommunications tools says a lot about you, and if you’re an association management professional, your telecommunications should say “excellence”! Technology brings innovation, not just new ways to do the same old thing. Today’s association professionals must know not only how to use technology with excellence but also how to select the appropriate telecommunications tool to send a caring, credible image to members, associate members, vendors, and visitors.

Choosing a tool

Your choice of tools communicates to the receiver how immediate and personal the message is. A telephone call, for example, asks for the most immediate, personal response. Often, though, a telephone call transfers to voicemail, becoming less personal and immediate in the process.

E-mail (electronic mail) messages, growing rapidly in number, are usually not considered as immediate or personal as telephone calls, unless you are in the midst of a current e-mail conversation. Don’t make the assumption that the receiver checks e-mail on a daily basis. Some users are online all day; others check in periodically as their job demands.

The fax (facsimile) provides a fast means for receivers to view documents that aren’t in your system. Faxed messages usually do not carry the expectation of a quick response, unless you let the receiver know up front. For example, you may be asking for a signature or completion of a form with a deadline.

It’s a good idea to return a message using the same medium initiated by the sender. For example, if you receive an e-mail message, respond in e-mail. If that’s not possible, explain to the sender that you did receive the message (in e-mail, for example) and why you’re responding with a telephone call. Often an e-mail exchange will progress to the point that a personal telephone call is needed to summarize, make decisions, or discuss emotional topics.

Handling overload

For people who began their business careers with only a telephone, the variety of telecommunications choices can be especially daunting. According to a July 2, 1997 Dallas Morning News article titled, ”Message Madness,” new technology is adding to the volume of communication because people tend to bundle – to send the same message in more than one form to ensure its arrival. The result is a potential productivity drain from technologies that were designed to make tasks easier.

If you are like 71% of the managers, professionals, and support staff responding to a recent Gallup poll, you are feeling overwhelmed by the volume of messages from all sources. David DeLong, research fellow at Ernst & Young’s Boston Center for Business Innovation cites a story of a chief financial officer who had 2,000 e-mails waiting when he returned from vacation. He deleted them all. That’s laughable, but imagine 2,000 of your association’s contacts not receiving any response!

You’ve probably heard the time management rule that you should touch a piece of paper only once. You can apply it to e-mail, too. Generally, reading e-mail three times a day is realistic. Many busy professionals read and answer e-mail twice – in the early morning and early evening. Some ask coworkers or assistants to respond, especially when they’re out for long periods. Some choose to keep up with e-mail even while on vacation in order to delegate essential tasks. Whatever the choice, how you send and respond to e-mail are a big part of your telecommunications image.

Cellular Phone Etiquette

We are entering the age of being consistently “wired” and most business people now carry cellular phones. While they are wonderful tools for convenience and safety, it’s easy to form bad habits with a telephone that’s so accessible.

Some reminders–

Avoid making calls without permission during formal meetings. A meeting costs time and money. Calls should be placed only with the agreement of all present or if there is an emergency.
Use the same rule in social situations. Some people feel that pulling out a phone is a mark of status and connection. It’s the year 2000; cellular service is accessible to many people today. Remember the Golden Rule. How do you feel when someone’s cellular phone gets more attention than you do?
If your phone rings while talking to someone in person, excuse yourself before answering it.
Use appropriate volume. It’s distracting to be around someone talking loudly on a cellular phone. Recently, I was behind someone in a grocery store check out line who was talking animatedly to a friend about her date the night before. Also, elevators are not private places, yet many business people use their phones the minute they get on.

Fax and E-mail Basics

Fax and e-mail communications allow timely, important information to be sent quickly and fairly cheaply. E-mail was one of the original uses of the Internet and is still its most popular use.

Some reminders–

Use them as tools designed to help accomplish tasks and convey information. That is the purpose of their design.
Alert the receiver as to the general purpose of the fax or e-mail. Use the “Subject” or “Regarding” feature of your fax or e-mail to summarize the general purpose. Keep it current. It’s not as meaningful to receive an e-mail message with an outdated subject indicated.
Don’t use either tool to avoid talking to a real person. (See the Telecommunications Pet Peeve list.)
Neither is private. E-mail messages are susceptible to discovery in a court action and should not be judged as less formal in this respect. Deleting an e-mail message does not mean the message is deleted from the system. Additional copies of the message might be found at other locations in the system, including the sender’s.
Avoid offensive language or jokes about race, sex, or sexual orientation. This seems obvious, but many people engage in this behavior daily; many lose their jobs as a result. Be concise and clear about the call back or fax back procedure. Lately, in my office, we’ve had a lot of success with a “fax-back” sheet that asks potential customers to indicate their topic interests. The form is very short and easy to read; they can respond in less than sixty seconds. Since fewer people are faxing messages now that e-mail is so popular, we think it gets attention because it’s different.

E-Mail Etiquette

E-mail is written communication. E-mail etiquette encompasses what is written, how it is written, and when. E-mail adheres to many of the rules of paragraph or memo-writing. Also, because e-mail makes an instant answer possible, it makes it seem required.

Some reminders–

Answer ASAP - within 24 - 48 hours. A month in e-mail feels like 20 years. A day feels like a week.
Be more compact than a full-page letter. Most people don’t thoroughly read anything much longer than a memo, anyway. Communication research shows that upper levels of management think their messages downward are more understood than they actually are. This applies to e-mail, too.
Don’t forget punctuation, capitalization, and spelling. Are you familiar with the popular American poet, e.e. cummings? His unique lower case writing style worked well for poetry, but is not appropriate for your client e-mail. How many e-mails have you received with poor spelling and grammar? How many have you sent with poor spelling and grammar? Don’t fall prey to this easy e-mail habit. It sends what communication theorists call a meta-message or “message around a message.” The meta-message is that you don’t care enough to proofread.
Respond to the sender’s questions when returning e-mail. Isn’t it frustrating when you purposefully ask a question via e-mail only to have it ignored? You then have to resubmit the question in the next letter.
Use a greeting and a salutation. They are friendlier. Even inter-office memos sound better with a “Dear Bill,” and a “Thanks, Sue.” For member contact communication, the greeting and closing set an important tone for the message. You can even write your message first, adding the greeting and close last.
Never use e-mail to reprimand. In a recent workshop, I was surprised to discover that the company president, who was in attendance, admitted sending e-mail reprimands. He shared that he just didn’t think about it being inappropriate. At least he was honest! When people receive an e-mail reprimand, they don’t know what to do with it. They don’t know how to respond or if they should respond at all. Feelings become exaggerated and often morale is worsened.
Ask member associations to give you their preferred e-mail address. They may or may not want to receive notices from you at the workplace.
Remember e-mail “lays it on the line” and is written word. There is a finality about an e-mail message.
Never use e-mail to send sensitive information. Including a confidentiality clause is not a bad idea. An e-mail policy should be clear, communicated, and enforced throughout your association. As with any employment policy, current employees should sign an acknowledgement that they agree to abide by the policy.

As associations and organizations examine how telecommunications is affecting their image and productivity, they find they must travel the creative, experimental road. Using a legal advisor is good, and so is getting a lot of employee and member input. For example, a large Chicago-based payroll services organization recently instated a telecommunications task force to help employees make decisions and solve problems surrounding their use of technology. So far, it’s the most dynamic task force in place - with constant requests from departments to help them with projects like e-mail templates so departments can work together better. Working together better - that’s the true benefit of effective telecommunications - increased productivity and successful business relationships. It’s a great reason for you to keep your telecommunications image up to date and excellent.

Telecommunications Pet Peeves

E-mail reprimands.
Hiding behind voicemail.
Not answering e-mail in a timely manner.
Forwarding e-mail jokes and letter.
Writing e-mail in ALL CAPS.
Cellular phones and pagers ringing in meetings.
Robotic or silly voice mail greeting messages.
Saying your phone number too fast on voicemail.
Copying too many people on a message.
Sending attachments that are too long to download quickly.

Cyndi Maxey (Maxey Creative Inc., Chicago, IL) is a speaker, trainer, coach, and co-author of the business communication tips anthology, The Communication Coach. Contact Cyndi at 773/561-6252 or at www.cyndimaxey.com.