COMMUNICATION 101 by Dennis Mahagin
There's no question about it: E Mail has arrived. According to a research group
studying technology trends, by the year 2005, one third of all electronic
billing will be carried out via e mail routes; and devices like the
"Blackberry" (a palm-sized, mobile wireless device designed exclusively for
sending and retrieving e mail) will no doubt inevitably be scaled down to
micro-size and incorporated into household appliances and/or items of
clothing-- so that sometime in the not-distant future you will be checking your
Inbox from under a band-aid-sized fanny pack velcro snap, shoe sole, or the
brim of your favorite baseball cap. There are even companies who will now pay
you $$ to read, and send, E Mails!
http://www.zwallet.com/index.html?user=artfor
The E Mail now stands poised to replace the "cold call" as one of the most
widely applicable and effective business tools of the 21st century. Herein lies
the caveat: Technology such as this forces upon us a new communication style,
summed up below for the purpose of keeping your vital business e mail
communications from being mouse-pulled to the nearest Trash icon by a deluged
and easily-distracted reader. Think of the acronym, T.I.T.E.-- for tight
writing-- to burn these basic principles into your brainpan database.
Some Ballpark rules to ponder:
GET PERSONAL -- Engage back-up e mail accounts for sent-and-received messages
of the FFA (Free For All) Links and Autoresponder variety, freeing up your main
mailbox for "quality time" correspondence, wherein you'll generate the bulk of
your bona fide, "personal" contacts, two or three of which will be worth way
more, over the long haul, than a hundred anonymous, automated hits that are
divorced from your direct influence and mean very little outside a
multi-level-marketing (MLM) context, which of course has its place but is
handled by robots and, by default ! , is outside the scope of this discussion.
Which leads us right into:
BAD FORM -- If your message, sent by human - to human, reeks even remotely of a
form letter, odds are it will be discarded, half-read or ignored completely,
unless you're giving away autographed copies of Elvis Presley's last
prescription refill ! Use templates and macros to ease the process of multiple
mailings, but try as best you can to "personalize" each message, (especially as
concerns the Title and Body of the e mail) and those few minutes of extra work
will pay off huge dividends. Nothing turns a reader off more than the stale
tone and "voicemail-menu-cold" qualities of a form letter.
USE WHITE SPACE -- Break up your message with liberal usage of the spacebar,
both horizontally and vertically, i.e.-- between sentences like this; and
between paragraphs
like this. It's just easier on overworked eyes period . Now for the main course
of study :
1. [ T ] Title:
An often-underestimated but crucial part of your message. It must have a hook
that makes the reader curious enough to double-click on it. Virus - mongers
have been intimately aware of, and adept at this technique for years. Nothing
gets read until it's opened. If someone referred you to the person receiving
your e mail, include that name as "mutual friend" in the title bar. If there is
a benefit to be conveyed by your message, try to sum it up in a title that
grabs the reader's interest immediately.
By way of example-- 1) Bad Title: "Hello Potential Customer John X !"; 2) Good
Title: "Website Traffic Booster Recommended by Mutual Friend Joe Y !"
2. [ I ] Introduction
In a paragraph consisting of no more than 3 sentences, start your message by
clearly and succintly telling your reader who you are , and why you're writing.
If you must "toot your own horn" here, do it very lightly. There is plenty of
time later (in future communications) for the reader to find out all about your
background, qualifications, and inherently fine personal traits! Right off the
bat, like a major league relief pitcher "setting the plate" for his best pitch,
in the intro you are quickly working the reader into a malleable state of mind
to receive the next step, wherein you:
3. [ T ] Tell the Tale
To the extent that, in steps 1 and 2, you've made a promise to deliver a pitch,
or set up a scenario of sorts, here is the litmus test for how well you deliver
on that promise. Say what you need to say in strong, specific terms, and be as
brief as possible without damaging the thrust of your intent. Create a sense of
urgency by conveying an easily-understood benefit to the reader, and follow up
with reasons why you are the person best suited, in the here and now, to bestow
such a benefit upon the reader. Have you ever heard someone tell a joke really
well? The trick is in getting quickly and smoothly to the punchline, then
delivering it with an even tone and straight face, right before:
4. [ E ] Ending
Believe it or not, this is where most "communicators" get hung up. You can nail
the first three steps like a seasoned pro, but not capping off your e - message
in a timely fashion can be a surefire way to see it "fragged."
The reader must be left with a taste of curiosity lingering on the roof of his
or her mouth, that can only be quenched by-- you guessed it!-- responding to
your message. No matter how eloquent you may indeed be, the old adage "less is
more" could not be more appropos than at this juncture. If you cannot "tell the
tale" in 75 words (100 max.) delete the copy and start again.
You will be rewarded with a swelling address book, successful link exchanges by
the score, and a rare skill indispensable for navigating the rough cyber-seas
of communication-- tight writing.
About the Author
Dennis Mahagin promotes and develops content for websites, writes articles,
fiction and poetry for publication on the Web, and puts together grant
applications in his spare time. http://www.artforstudios.com/
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