Situation: You send information to someone by email and then wonder if they ever received it because you never heard from them since you pressed “send.”  After a week, you forget that you even sent the email because so many things have piled up, until your boss asks you, “What ever happened with that email you sent to so and so?”  Gulp.

Lesson: Respond to emails within 24 hours, so the recipient knows that you got their message.  Even if you’re running short on time and are unable to answer their question or provide the information that they are requesting immediately, respond within 24 hours with a short acknowledgment that you received the email and let them know when you will be able to respond completely. If you’re the email sender, go into your sent file the next day and follow up politely with those from whom you are awaiting a response.

Situation: You receive an email that has been sent to a large group of recipients whose email addresses all appear in the “To” section.  You are annoyed to see that your competitor is on the list.

Lesson: When sending email to a group of people, include only your email address in the “To” section and all of the recipients’ email addresses in the “Bcc,” or blind carbon copy, area.  That way, everyone’s email address as well as business dealings with you remains private.

Situation: You receive an email from someone in all lower case letters, with little or improper punctuation, no greeting or farewell salutations, and half of the words missing.  You strain your eyes and your brain, but you can barely make out the meaning of the message, and you wonder how the person ever survived this long in the business world.

Lesson: Of course you don’t have to refer to the “Chicago Manual of Style” every time you write an email, but take the same care in writing an email message as you would composing a letter.  Start off with a polite greeting and end with an appropriate good bye.  Double check your spelling.  The recipient will be glad you did, and you and your business will be perceived as high quality, respectful, and easy to understand.

Situation: You meet someone new at a meeting and send them an “it was nice to meet you” email afterwards.  The next day, you receive from your new contact no less than 12 forwards, including a several chain letters, jokes, and 101 tips on how to use Coca Cola and dryer sheets to clean your house.

Lesson: Sending out an occasional humorous email to well-known business associates is fine (as long as the humor is appropriate and non-offensive), but never add business associates’ email addresses to your personal email lists, and avoid sending “junk mail” altogether.

Situation: You request product information from a new vendor. A company representative emails you back with the information and says that you can call him anytime to find out more details, but he forgets to give you his phone number.

Lesson: Create an email signature and set it to appear on all of your email correspondences. The signature should include your first and last name, title, company, and all of your contact information (mailing address, phone numbers, fax number, email address, website address, etc.).  You never know when a contact will need this information, and the easier it is to find, the easier it is for them to reach you and in turn, for you to make your next business deal.

Practice these lessons consistently. When in doubt, err on the side of being more conservative. Your daily emails will be sure to boost your overall PR.

1. Email Signature – Create an email signature that is included in all of your email messages. Your email signature should include your name, title, and all of your contact information. And when we say all, we mean all the ways to contact your business, including any social media (Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, etc.) avenues your business uses to communicate with customers. Make sure all that your email addresses and all web addresses in your signature are hyperlinked, so that anyone can click on the link and be automatically directed to that site.
2. Contact Info on Every Website Page – Sure, every business website has a Contact Us page. But,  from any other page on your site, that adds one more click your customer has to take to find this information. We recommend placing your contact information (again, email and web addresses in hyperlink) on every page of your website. It doesn’t have to be big and take up a lot of space. Small font on the bottom of the page is fine. You just want to be sure that once an individual is convinced to do business with you, they don’t have to look much further to contact you. Bonus: As an added benefit, multiple listings of keywords such as your city name or state name on your website can help with your search engine optimization (SEO).
3. Map it! -  In the Contact Us section of your website, have a link to any online map service so that customers can click on it to see where you are located, add in their own location to map out driving directions, and then print it up to use on the road.
4. Business Hours – Business hours are often overlooked as critical information for consumers to know. Business hours should also be on every page of your website, prominently listed on your social media sites and profiles, and on any other place that your contact information appears. Bonus: Posting your hours on your daily timeline on social media sites from time to time is an excellent reminder for current customers and info for potential customers.
5. All Printed Materials – Sure, we all know to include contact information on brochures and similarly marketing materials, but what about printed materials that don’t normally leave your location, such as menus for restaurants or in-store signage (in dressing rooms, at the cash register, etc.) for retail companies.  Business hours and website addresses are great for these pieces.
6. Voicemail – Voicemail is another great place to leave your contact information, especially your business hours, email address, and website address. Listing other ways for people to contact you will help reduce the messages and inquiries left on your voicemail for you to return.
7. More on Hyperlinking – We’ve talked several times about hyperlinking above, and we can’t stress enough how powerful a tool this is. Whenever possible hyperlink. In email messages, electronic documents, estimates, websites, blogs, social media, and more. Hyperlinking also enhances SEO.

Implement these tips and whoever is looking for you will surely find you. This is the first step to making your next sale.