I have had several experiences lately with people being very aggressive or negative by email and email newsletters. By aggressive, I mean downright rude and not necessarily directly to me, but the effect on their business (negatively) can be astounding. Here is where I come down on this issue:
E-Mail Aggression
I recently had an e-mail aggressor. Someone, who I know personally and professionally, decided that she wanted something she wasn’t getting and she wanted it for free. Now, it could be that she was told she deserved it or it could be that she needed it and money is tight (knowing the situation, I vote for the latter) but a really rude email came to me demanding services for free on something she thought she deserved and wasn’t included in her contract. What was most interesting about this is that I offered it more than once and even suggested she take the offer for this particular item, but she didn’t want to pay for it and declined the product multiple times (all by email, of which I have record).
The point isn’t about the situation, but more the aggressive and rude tone of the initial email. To everyone out there, let me remind you of a few things to consider before sending an email:
1. Would you say what you just wrote in your email in person? Or would you tone it down and sugar coat it a little? Because, relationships are an art and even if you are mad, you kill more flies with honey than with vinegar.
2. What are your chances of getting what you want based on the tone and words in your email? If you like to vent by email, kind of like drunk dialing, maybe you should call the person on the phone so that you can control your urge to say things you shouldn’t.
3. Are you burning your bridges with this email? Are you making the person angry? Will you need this person in the future? Does this person control something important to you? Do you know this person or is this person in your circle of influence?
If you are mad or angry … write the email, read it and delete it. Then wait a day and call the person or start your email again. It will save you a lot of heartache later – especially in business.
E-Newsletters As A Way To Dis
I have stopped reading an e-newsletter recently. This is something I receive every few weeks (along with other business colleagues) and find the newsletter in bad taste. The person who writes the newsletter disses on people, talks down, makes fun of others and makes totally unnecessary comments. I have come to realize that this is the person’s life. It is how this person lives his life. It is how he does business and the people attracted to him accept and tolerate but I do not … I don’t see any reason to look for the bad in people, in fact I do the opposite.
I look for the best of someone and I really don’t appreciate all the negativity, so I stopped reading it, plain and simple.
But that isn’t the story … I was talking to a business colleague and we were talking about something unrelated. Suddenly the conversation turned and he expressed shock at the overall rudeness of this particular newsletter and it got me to thinking.
Maybe this person thinks he is being funny, smart, witty and possibly using the newsletter to elevate herself … but what he is doing is hurting his business online – plain and simple. Be very careful when you decide it is appropriate to throw rocks. Especially in the glass house of the internet.
Go Now Business Blog 