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Top 26 Most Important Rules of Email Etiquette

By Heinz Tschabitscher, About.com

The rules of email etiquette are not "rules" in the sense that I will come after you if you don't follow them. They are guidelines that help avoid mistakes (like offending someone when you don't mean to) and misunderstandings (like being offended when you're not meant to). These core rules of email etiquette help us communicate better via email.

11. Do Let People Know Their Mail Has Been Received - Email Etiquette Tip

Did the spam filter eat my message? Spare others this nagging question and let them know you got their email.

12. Ask Before You Send Huge Attachments - Email Etiquette Tip

Don't clog email systems without permission.

13. Talk About One Subject per Email Message Only - Email Etiquette Tip

Help make the world less confusing. Try to talk about one subject per message only. For another subject, start a new email.

14. Punctuation Matters; in Emails Too - Email Etiquette Tip

Comma, colon, hyphen and semicolon — all exist for a reason: they make it easier to understand the intended meaning of a sentence. Don't make life more difficult and possibly less interesting for the recipients of your emails. Pay some — though not too pedantically much — attention to punctuation.

15. Use Acronyms Sparingly - Email Etiquette Tip

DYK? Not everybody knows every acronym, and they don't save that much time anyway.

16. Resize Pictures to Handy Proportions Before Inserting Them in Emails

When your photos look good in your email, you look good, too! Here's how to make sure your images are not larger than screens and mailboxes by resizing them in style — online and for free.

17. Writing in All Caps is Like Shouting - Email Etiquette Tip

Don't shout in your emails (and all caps is so difficult to read).

18. Be Careful with Irony in Emails - Email Etiquette Tip

No, really! I mean it. Honestly!

19. Catch Typos by Printing Your Emails - Email Etiquette Tip

You can often find typos or misplaced commas neither your spell checker nor you yourself catch when proofreading on the screen.

20. How to Avoid Embarrassing Emails - Email Etiquette Tip

Avoid embarrassing emails by sending them to yourself only (by default).

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