Survey reveals email habits of employees – and puts spotlight on need for standards
Almost all workers (91 per cent) say the people they work with can be passive-aggressive over email.
Almost half (46%) also said they can tell a coworker’s mood based on their greetings and sign-offs, finds a survey by Preply, a provider of language learning apps and e-learning platforms.
The problem may be because of what people are putting in their email messages: Around two-thirds (67 per cent) of Americans don’t even think about how they begin and end their emails, finds the survey of 1,005 Americans on Dec. 9, 2022.
And a large majority (76 per cent) consider the opening to be more important.
The most common ways workers start their emails are:
- “Hi [person’s name]”, (67 per cent)
- “Good morning/ afternoon/ evening [person’s name]”, (54 per cent)
- “Good morning/ afternoon/ evening,” (53 per cent)
- “Hello [person’s name]”, (48 per cent)
- “Hi”, (42 per cent)
“A welcoming tone is a great way to start those greeting emails – and have it just start out in a positive tone,” says Matt Zajechowski, director of media relations, at content marketing agency North Star Inbound, who writes for Preply.
“One thing specifically [to] avoid is just to not jump into the request. So if you're asking someone for appointments, ‘Where's the report…?’ we might want to set it up like, ‘Hello Jim, how's your morning?’ and ‘Hope things are going well’.”
The most common sign-offs are:
- “Thank you” (80 per cent)
- “Thanks” (71 per cent)
- “[Sender’s name]” (47 per cent)
- “Thanks in advance” (41 per cent)
- “Sincerely” (40 per cent)
“For a shorter way to end the email, ‘Sincerely’ and ‘Best’ with your name are some of the most common and respectful choices that we saw from our respondents,” says Zajechowski.
Employees aren't reporting malicious emails because of various reasons, according to a previous report.
Setting a standard
Emails are still one of our primary forms of communication, he says.
“Employers can set the [email] standard or a decorum in the workplace. Having an understanding of an email decorum, it's important for company culture, because the way we work things – specifically in emails and written messages – can be misinterpreted. This can cause confusion, issues with our colleagues, the people that we work with.”
By setting the expectations around emails, there's fewer chances that any forms of digital communication will be taken either negatively or out of context for the person who's on the receiving end, he says.
Employee engagement levels are falling worldwide, according to a previous report.
Setting an example
When it comes to emails coming from company leaders and managers, Zajechowski suggests that they make it as personal as possible.
Urgent matters, however, may be an exemption to the rules.
And leading by example is important for business leaders, he says.
“If you set a certain standard… it's good for employers to lead by example when they set these standards.
Employers must also seek employee feedback, he says.
“It's always good to reevaluate. These standards may change over time… So I would also solicit feedback… from your employees.
“That way, you can always be adapting and evolving so that the people in your company [who] are using these standards are happy and they don't feel pushed into using a standard that may be uncomfortable for them.”
One in five (20 per cent) Canadian workers believe that trust between employees and their employer has decreased compared to before the pandemic, according to a recent survey.
Emojis, exclamation points
Under half (42 per cent) of people say emojis are never appropriate in work emails, but that means over half (58 per cent) think they are sometimes OK, according to the Preply report.
“I think there are some playable instances – depending on who is on the other end and depending on your relationship with them – it could potentially be appropriate. But I think, by and large, have best practices, just to avoid it altogether,” says Zajechowski.
The same goes for exclamation points, as 48 per cent regularly re-read emails and remove exclamation points, while 25 per cent re-read emails and add them.
Nearly two in three (65 per cent) of respondents want people to stop using “Sent from my phone, please excuse typos.” More than half (51 per cent) say to stop using “Sent from iPhone” or similar.
