GUEST POST by Kathy O'Brien, JaffePR: Stop drinking out of my water glass!

Table etiquette makes a critical first impression, so here is a quick lesson on how to navigate the tableware at a business luncheon.

Kathy O'Brien

***After you read this post, be sure to visit me at my new                                       home here.***

My colleague Terry Isner and I attended the PR News Platinum Awards ceremony in New York City earlier this week and were proud to take away an Honorable Mention win in the media relations category – a category that included PR teams representing Dunkin’ Donuts, Hormel Foods and Samsung, among others. This is the event of the season for the international PR community and it’s a great chance to network and rub elbows with the who’s who in the industry at a high-powered luncheon.

As is customary with these types of soirées, and many other law firm networking luncheons, social events, retreats and legal award ceremonies, the tables were already set to save time and limit interruptions from the wait staff during the presentations.

Sending E-mail Made Simple

E-mail has dramatically increased the speed of communication. Present day, people expect instant replies, which has forced us into hastily crafted responses, rash decisions and sometimes poor judgment calls. Taking the time to employ some old school wisdom, common sense, and logic to your e-mail will automatically filter out and eliminate many such potential errors.

Here are Fourteen Tips for Excellent E-mail:

• Keep it brief. Your reader will mentally check out, neglect to read until it's too late, or even delete what could be a very important message if it's too long. Make no more than three points or ask three questions in any e-mail. Use the amount of screen you can see as a guide when crafting an email. If someone can read your e-mail in under one minute, you're most likely to get and keep their attention, as well as get a response.
• Include the original text with your reply. That way, if you do use a one-word response (not advised), the original sender (and now recipient) will know to what you're referring.
• Have "in writing" standards. Use proper grammar, punctuation and spelling. Remember, you never know who will be the ultimate recipient of your e-mail and you always want to be seen in the best light.
• DON'T YELL. No-one likes to be yelled at, and ALL CAPS gives a sense that you're YELLING.
• Fresh topics need a fresh e-mail. It can be confusing if you reply to an old e-mail with a new subject. If you must, delete all of the old text and then compose your new message.
• Make your subject line clear and captivating. What is the subject of your e-mail? Why should the recipient open it and read it right now? Rev up those creative juices when composing to ensure the recipient will be compelled to read and respond right away.
• Know when to use CC and BCC. Copy only those who absolutely need to be copied. When broadcasting to more than three (yes, 3) people, use BCC to avoid blasting everyone's e-mail address to everyone else on the list (this, in turn, will prevent a host of other potential challenges).
• Add a greeting. Include at least a "Hi, Susan," at the beginning. The best e-mails I've seen have the date at the top. It just adds that extra bit of professionalism.
  
• Have a signature. I have lost count of the number of times I've had to search for someone's phone number or address because it wasn't included in their email. Unless the recipient is your mom or best friend, they won't have your information memorized. Alleviate the need for someone to "track you down" and provide the information they need each and every time you reach out to them.
  
• Market mindfully. If you use e-mail to send e-zines or e-newsletters, be brief, to the point, and add instant value to your reader. Raise your hand if you get 200 e-mails every single day (me, too). I want to read pertinent, informative and valuable e-mails. All of the others are deleted. Aren't you the same way?
• Reply in a timely manner. Don't say you're too busy, everyone's too busy. Take one minute to reply, rather than making the sender wait for your response. It is entirely within your right to respond with, "Thank you, I'm not interested at this time." Just as it's important to return phone calls within 24-48 hours, the same holds true with e-mail. If you must set aside 30-45 minute each day to respond to e-mails, then do just that.
• Be mindful of your tone. Be as polite as your possibly can. When in doubt, read your message out loud and if there's any room for doubt about your tone, change your words, syntax and possibly your punctuation.
• (Almost) Never use "reply all": At the very least, use "reply all" sparingly and only when you're completely sure that everyone on the original recipient list has an interest in, and/or needs to receive your response.
• Don't hide behind e-mail. If you have something important to say, have the courage to say it over the phone or in person. It is considered passive-aggressive and unprofessional to send your "true feelings" in writing over e-mail. I also advise against using profanity. You just never know who will eventually see your email!
• Anger is one letter short of danger. Would you want the email you're about to send to be seen by your parents, best friend, children, boss, be printed on the front page of your local paper or highlighted on CNN? If the answer is no, compose away ... go ahead and get all of those negative thoughts and feelings out ... and then hit "delete!"

Using the tips outlined above give you an edge, quite possibly just the edge you'll need to get that new client, keep your clients satisfied, and make the right impression at just the right time.

Give Good Voicemail

What's the difference between a great voicemail message and one that's lacking (and therefore stands less of a chance of getting returned right away, if at all)? It comes down to whether you "gave good voicemail" ... or not! Wouldn't it be great if there were official voicemail rules people had to follow? Here are some of the most effective ideas I've found on leaving effective messages, avoid wasting the time of the recipient - and having a better chance of getting your call returned!

1. Start (and end) each message with your name and number. This makes it easy for the recipient to replay the message and capture your number, without having to listen to it all again. Do this until you are absolutely sure they have your number memorized or in their database (and how would you know that?). In other words, people are accessing their messages from places other than their offices, so always leave your contact information with every message. You can speed up the return of your call with this simple step.

2. Prepare your message, in advance. What exactly do you want to say? Jot down a few notes prior to calling so you will remember everything you need your listener to know (and allow them to prepare properly before calling you back).

3. Brevity is bliss. Make each message one minute long or less. Have more to say? Give the recipient an overview of what you'd like to discuss, and ask them to return your call. Sending a brief email is also another great alternative.

4. In addition to your name and number, leave an actual message. Give them a clue as to why they need to call you back (including what information you need), when you're available and the level of urgency of your call. These are especially important if you're not well-acquainted. Otherwise the recipient may delay the return call because they don't have all needed information, or worse, they might delete your message thinking you're a telemarketer.

5. Smile. This will enhance your tone, and without any other non-verbal cues (such as face and body language), your tone is all you have to communicate with.

6. Match the volume and tonality of the recipient. A quick and effective way to create rapport is to match your recipient's outgoing message. If they sound quiet and shy, so should you. If they are ebullient and full of enthusiasm, well, fire it up!

7. Include your availability. Phone tag can be frustrating, and one of the best ways to avoid it is to advise your listener when you can best be reached in the next couple of days. Another alternative is to schedule a phone meeting through their assistant or via email.

Including these seven steps in your email practice will increase your productivity and elevate your standing as a true professional. Share this with your business contacts, they'll appreciate your help and you will all be on the same page!

P is for Pay

A friend of mine called regarding an awkward situation she encountered, and I'm pretty sure you've encountered it at some point in your life or career also.

She was invited to a luncheon that included an introduction by a peer to their boss. When the check came, it sat uncomfortably on the table for what seemed like an eternity. The "inviter" made no move to suggest they were going to pay. My friend, being schooled in proper etiquette, was under the assumption that the person who invited her would be picking up the check. However, since it had been sitting there, she thought perhaps she might be expected to pay, and she offered to pay. The check was then picked up by the boss, not even the person who arranged the lunch!

Here are some guidelines for taking the awkward out of this situation:

• If you invite someone to lunch, coffee or drinks, you are expected to pay. If the event is not hosted, make sure that's clear while you're doing the inviting.
• They may offer to pay. This is because they are polite. Pay anyway. Insist on paying anyway. Tell them they can invite you next time and they can pay (be sure to offer to pay then, too, because you're also polite).
• The Business Etiquette lady has some things to say on the subject. Click here for her take.

Tip: arrive before they do and hand your credit card to your server. You'll be signing the check by the time they realize its arrived, and they will admire your stealth!

To Your Success!