5 Slack and Email Etiquettes you should follow

Hello folks,

In the corporate world, effective communication extends beyond face-to-face meetings. Platforms like Slack, Teams, and email are indispensable tools for daily discussions, documentation, and the exchange of important details. As these mediums form the backbone of our professional interactions, it is crucial to adhere to certain etiquettes to ensure clear, respectful, and efficient communication. In this article, we'll explore five essential Slack and email etiquettes that you should follow to enhance your professional correspondence and foster a productive work environment.

1. Write sentences in one message

Ask anyone, and you’ll find that fragmented messages are a common pet peeve. Many people send messages like this:

Hey

I was hoping we could catch up

Are you free?

This disjointed approach can be frustrating and disrupt the flow of conversation. Instead, aim to consolidate your thoughts into a single, coherent message:

Hello, I was hoping we could catch up. Are you available for a call to discuss the task at hand?

Following up on the same point, if the message you’re trying to convey is text-heavy, it’s essential to use appropriate punctuation and break it down into paragraphs. This enhances readability and ensures your message is clear. For those who might not know, in most chat applications, pressing the Enter key sends the message, but you can press Shift + Enter to create a new line. Here’s how a text-heavy message should be formatted:

Hey there John, I was going through the notes of the meeting we had yesterday and had some doubts I was hoping you could clarify: 1. Point 1 ; Question on Point 1 and so on

2. Structure Conversations into Threads

While the concept of threads might be familiar to many who use platforms like Slack or Discord, it's worth emphasizing their importance. When engaging in discussions within a channel (group), consider organizing conversations into threads. This practice not only helps maintain clarity but also facilitates easy reference and collaboration.

Personally, I find it beneficial to kick off a new discussion by posting a message with a clear title, such as "<Discussion Topic> ??", and then keeping all related dialogue within that thread. This approach streamlines communication and ensures that if you ever need to revisit the conversation, you can quickly locate the thread within the channel's contents.

3. Stay Vigilant in Keeping Things Updated

In remote work scenarios, maintaining updated information is crucial. Whether it's updating your Slack status before stepping away for lunch or promptly acknowledging received messages, these small actions contribute significantly to keeping everyone in the loop. While managing numerous channels and threads can be challenging, leveraging your personal direct messages (DMs) can serve as an effective storage space for tracking all ongoing conversations.

Being proactive in these tasks not only ensures smooth communication but also demonstrates your commitment to staying organized and responsive in a remote work environment.

4. Utilise Canvases

Canvases in Slack are invaluable for organizing tasks, ideas, and information collaboratively. Teams can use Canvases to visually map out project timelines, brainstorm solutions, and document processes in a structured yet flexible manner. With tools for drawing, text, and image insertion. This is far better a solution than sending information in the form of messages on the channel and then pinning them to the conversation ????♂?.

5. Respect the Timezone difference

When sending a message, scheduling emails or meetings be mindful of timezone differences when working remotely or with a global team. Being mindful of time zones fosters a respectful and inclusive work environment, where everyone's schedule and preferences are taken into account.

Both Slack and Email apps nowadays provide message scheduling features so you can write up that report or status update and schedule it to be sent later.

I hope you learned something of value from this article. Try to implement them in your team and let