Your Staff Not Reading Internal Emails? Perhaps You Should Spice It Up.
By PaperStreet on December 27, 2013 in PaperStreet
At PaperStreet we embrace our inner child and regularly partake in jokes and sarcasm. We admit that our philosophy is modern, and enjoy making the workplace a fun atmosphere.
Making Internal Emails Stand Out
Just like any company, the staff at PaperStreet receives a lot of emails in one day. The types of emails that get the least amount of attention are the internal emails about lunch arrangements, parking problems and general scheduling of monthly meetings. If it is coming from in-house, sometimes it is hard to elicit the response you need from your co-workers.
Try spicing it up.
Straight from PaperStreet’s Inbox
Chelsea, our Assistant Extraordinaire, has mastered internal emails and as a result gets the response she needs from the PaperStreet staff. Her approach works.
Check it out.
Her email makes you laugh and the witty message is more likely to be remembered than your standard, “clean out the fridge” email.
Crafting the Perfect Message to Co-Workers
Here are some tips for effectively emailing your co-workers about internal office affairs.
- Effective Subject Line: Make your subject line interesting, something not related to business. A unique headline will help your email standout from the daily business messages.
- Short and sweet: Keep it short, put the facts up front and mix in a little humor.
- Establish credibility: The best method is to have all internal communication via email come from one person. That way your staff will learn to expect this specific kind of information from the established point person and all questions will be answered from the same source.
- Humor: We recommend a little humor in your interoffice emails, especially if the correspondence is because of an upcoming special event (holidays, birthdays, retirement). Of course, you should be careful to keep the humor in line with your office atmosphere (no cursing or crude jokes unless that is the norm for your work place).
- Photos and / or smileys: It is pretty hard to ignore a photo. If you have the time and capabilities, incorporate photos into your messages. You can custom design a flyer or add in a random photo for added silliness. Perhaps you are sending a thank you message for attending the holiday party. Why not include a photo of the holiday party? I guarantee, if nothing else, your staff will stop to look at themselves in the photo.
As I mentioned, over the top greetings, obnoxious salutations and references to movies and viral videos are the norm in the PaperStreet office. Make sure that your email fits your workplace culture (violating those norms is not a good idea).
A simple smiley face or play on words can set your email apart from the hundreds your staff is used to receiving on a daily basis. A little tweak is all you need to increase your “open” rate and get the response you need.
