Have you ever taken the time to carefully choose the right words in sending a well-thought-out email, only to receive a one-liner in response? A brief response can form an immediate reaction, one that is frustrating and confusing to the recipient.
When you think of rapport it’s usually connected with an interpersonal situation where you carry on a good conversation using both your verbal and non-verbal cues of communicating. It is much easier to tell when a person is actively engaged in a conversation by seeing their reactions and observing their tone. However, communicating through email requires a different set of rapport-building skills.
When employees average up to 120 emails a day, it’s no wonder that email fatigue sets in after a while. Even with the best intentions, rapid fire responses can lead to misunderstandings. The manner in which you answer and respond to emails is often an extension of your communication style.
Brief email responses can easily lead to misinterpretation and give the reader plenty of opportunities to fill in the rest of the story. Keep in mind that while you may feel comfortable replying with a short one-liner response to an employee who took the time to communicate with you, it could be leaving the employee with a dismissive message.
Time is money and the less time spent with emails, the more you have for other tasks. However, it pays to be sensitive toward your communication style especially if you are in a management role. The angst and misunderstanding created by one- or two-word responses can cost a tremendous amount of time in wasted energy by employees or colleagues trying to guess the intention and tone.
Emailing is not the only form of communication that creates misinterpretation; texting and instant messaging are all effective ways to confuse receivers and as time moves on, they will play a greater role in the workplace.
Here are some suggestions for building email rapport:
• Observe the style of communication and mimic with your responses. If the sender is brief and concise with his or her content, then respond that way. Matching the sender’s style is a cue worth remembering.
• Read the email thoroughly and make sure you answered all the questions asked. The way you respond ultimately leads to building relationships.
• Limit the amount of topics and questions in one email; staying with one question has a greater chance of response instead of multiple topics.
• With 60 percent of communication being non-verbal, consider what you want to convey without the benefit of weighing the non-verbal cues.
• When in doubt while responding to problems, consider picking up the phone and talking through issues that are cumbersome.
• Communicating behind a screen can diminish your social skills. A good rule of thumb: If you wouldn’t say your response in person, think twice about emailing it to them.
What are your thoughts about building digital rapport?
