One of the easiest and most efficient ways to make sure your email message is read, AND understood, is to follow this rule: Main Point First.
What this means is that when you place your main point, assignment, or request within the first two lines of an email, you can get your reader focused on exactly what you want right from the get-go.
With 70% of all email message readers skimming messages, it becomes strategic to write your message so that the main point or request is read and unerstood. The way to do this, is by putting that main point where people won’t miss it. In the FIRST line of the message!
It is interesting to note that when I share this tip with others, they all say they do it. But they don’t! Take a survey of the next 10 email messages you receive. Is the main point in the first line? My bet is that you’ll be lucky to have one out of 10 with the main point in that first line…
Our natural tendency as writers is to build up to a conclusion. Sounds reasonable. It just doesn’t work with email or business letter writing in general. The more buried the m ain point is, the more likely it will be missed or its importance overlooked.
So, the next time you write an email message, before you send it, ask yourself whether the main point is first. If it is not-easy-cut and paste that main point to the front. You’ll be surprised at the results.
From my friends at Basex, the research firm:
Thanks to the various flaws common to most search tools, 50% of all searches fail. The good news is that those failures are obvious and recognized by the person doing the search. The bad news is that 50% of the searches people believe succeeded actually failed in some way, but this was not readily apparent to the person doing the search. As a result, that person uses information that may be out of date, not the best response for what he was looking for, or is simply incorrect. (We call this the 50/50 Rule of Search.)
Some people have actually enjoyed the information overload break created by traveling in an airplane.
The skies are not safe anymore! At least from information overload.
I was checking the wiki on AIRCELL, and found that at least eight airlines are installing or plan to install the ability for broadband connections while in the air. See the full WIKI for complete information.
Here are some of them:
On August 1, 2007, American Airlines partnered with Aircell to offer broadband on American’s flights. On September 13, 2007, Virgin America partnered with Aircell to add broadband capabilities to their flights.
On January 22, 2008, American Airlines completed the first aircraft installation of the Aircell Internet broadband connection at American’s Kansas City maintenance base. The airline plans to install and test the broadband technology in 2008 on all 15 of its Boeing 767-200 aircraft. The technology will provide customers an Internet connection, virtual private network (VPN) access and email capabilities.
On February 29, 2008, Aircell unveiled the product name as Gogo Inflight Internet.
On August 5, 2008, Delta Airlines announced it was installing Aircell’s Gogo Inflight system on all of its airplanes over the subsequent year.
On August 20, 2008, Aircell’s Gogo going went live on American Airlines. Aircell’s Gogo will be available to customers as a fee-based service in all cabins. Aircell will charge $12.95 on flights more than three hours, which include American’s Boeing 767-200 flights. Each paid Gogo session includes full Internet access.
On May 12, 2009, AirTran Airways announced it will install Aircell’s Gogo Inflight System on all of its airplanes by late July 2009.
And just a few days ago, July 23, US Aiways announced that it will install internet capabilities available to passengers on Airbus A321 aircraft starting in 2010 when flying over the U.S. mainland.
So much for that info overload break that some of us actually enjoy!
Harry loves email. It is fast, inexpensive, and he can add anyone and everyone who might have even a smidge of interest in his topic or project, and it doesn’t cost him a dime! So he does.
He has group lists, he has a huge database of… everyone. And he uses it.
Although Harry thinks this practice doesn’t cost anything, it does. Everytime a recipient has to open an unnecessary email, it costs the company money. And most of them will respond to Harry, so it costs Harry more time.
Harry’s Antidote: Copy ONLY those people who really need to receive the information.
Excerpted from Inbox Detox, Acanthus Publishing, 2009
