Posted on Wed, Apr 07, 2010
By Jeremy Willinger / Part 1
Etiquette is the foundation of successful, personal interactions. But when engaged in these interactions, what happens when one party has a disability? In this scenario, there are special rules of etiquette that need to be followed to ensure a respectful and fruitful relationship. With one in five Americans having a disability of some sort, these rules are more relevant than ever.
The number one rule of etiquette when dealing with a person with a disability is that just because someone has a disability does not automatically mean they are in need of help. While the courtesy of holding a door for someone in a wheelchair probably goes without saying, the vast majority of adults with disabilities should be treated as independent individuals.
When addressing a person with a disability, avoid words like “handicapped,” “retarded,” or “crippled.” More so, it is insensitive and hurtful to say “disabled people” as opposed to “persons with a disability.” If the person with a disability has an aide or helper, do not address them when speaking (as if they served as interpreter!) — focus your attention and speech on the person with a disability, and do not ask about the disability itself.
If they ask for your assistance, offer it graciously and without undue fuss or argument. It takes courage to ask for help and is a sign of harmonious etiquette to respond in kind. Try not to finish their sentences if they are slow in speaking, as patience is a sign of proper etiquette and shows respect toward the speaker. If you are having a hard time understanding their words, asking them to repeat their statements is not in bad form.
To be continued.
Posted on Fri, Jan 01, 2010
by Jeremy Willinger
While designing and launching an effective social media platform is an exciting venture for any business, it should be approached cautiously, mindful of the rules of social media etiquette. Such awareness can actually help define your brand online, while also increasing the business’s bottom line.
In presenting a brand’s online identity, businesses have to relinquish a certain measure of control over how content can be accessed and reviewed, but the business should control the conversation. This oversight should stay within the realm of established business etiquette (such as keeping language inoffensive), and conform to the laws of social media etiquette, as in avoiding over-posting.
The script should stay true to the values the company was founded on. Business etiquette for social media extends far beyond tasteful, non-risqué profile pictures to the more subtle imperative of preserving the authenticity that customers expect. Online buzz is generated when people feel that the company is being true to its established brand identity -- or serious about a recent reinvention.
It is important to launch your social media website with content that is currently available. Videos, photos, events, and other material should be available for users and soon-to-be group members, fans, etc. One tip is that you do not have to accept every friend request if you decide not to. When navigating social media sites, be careful to research any preexisting groups that promote/discuss your business. If yours is a popular company, many times existing fans will take it upon themselves to create a page on Facebook. Conversely, if someone has an unfavorable view of your business, they might create a fake Twitter feed, or one with an unkind title. In this situation, a prompt note to the group or page administrators or Twitter users asking them to put up a disclaimer indicating that this isn’t the official page is proper business etiquette.
Social media is not a passive environment. Once your company is established in social media, it must stay in contact with those who have aligned themselves with your business. Proper social media etiquette for contacting people is much like the rules for personal emailing: Try not to bombard, think before sending or posting, and realize the value of time. Do followers need company tweets every 10 minutes? Only if it is the greatest product launch in the history of the company, and even then tweets should be spaced out appropriately.
One benefit of social media is its constant access to customers. This is both a blessing and a curse, because with the ability to inform fans, followers, and friends of new developments and content, these same individuals expect a shortened response time to their queries and complaints. Proper social media etiquette is to respond to any inquiry in a very timely fashion. Many times, people who hear back from a company soon after tweeting a complaint will document their positive experience with that business. This makes social media etiquette a great tool for establishing positive brand association.
This positivity should also inform the tone a business takes in the social media sphere. Brands should convey an attitude frequently assumed in many social and business settings: solicitous and engaging. When users post comments, cast disgruntled votes, or make public their displeasure, good social media etiquette honors all input to smooth feathers and obviate potential problems. Businesses must also consider that what they say is in the public domain: when responding to a posting on your company Facebook wall, to a Twitter follower, or to a LinkedIn message, for example, know that everyone will see it and that it can be reposted other places without a business being aware.
For any service or product, social media is an arena that can pay off when used correctly. In many ways, when a person engages a company, organization, or individual through Facebook (et al), they are already loyal -- the job of the business is to enhance that relationship. This relationship must stay professional, even in the world of social media.
Posted on Mon, Dec 07, 2009
By Jeremy Willinger
Email is, for better or worse, a necessary tool for conducting business in today’s economy. Yet how many times have we received messages with misspelled words, terse replies, or no response at all to an important issue? Perhaps even more disastrous are the same flaws when they mar our email communications in business. Though email has supplanted all other modes of correspondence, we treat it as a second-rate form of communication.
This is a mistake that has long needed correction. Knowing that the rules of business culture extends to email in many different scenarios can ease your climb up the corporate ladder, or, in this economy, at least help to ensure continual employment.
While business etiquette conveys respect, a positive attitude, and a willingness to serve others, business email etiquette bypasses face-to-face interaction but still presents an opportunity to showcase the talent, eloquence, and skill that helped you land a job in the first place.
Using proper grammar and punctuation is a fundamental way to broadcast professionalism and intelligence. Email also calls for a proper form of address to all parties, with the right tone, concise clarity, and an appropriate sign-off at its conclusion. Thinking about the negative impressions sparked by a poorly written email should make us very deliberate in what we choose to send to our associates. This caveat applies equally to the many channels through which we access our email: from work, home, and on the road. Therefore, keeping emails as clear and courteous as possible is a responsibility each of us bears.
Mindful emailing also safeguards against potential problems. Companies frequently monitor email communication, and any email can automatically be retrieved long after it has been deleted or forgotten in your inbox. Emails are also admissible evidence in trials and terminations; they also serve as a digital footprint in all that we do. In other words, there is no such thing as a private or truly confidential email.
Proper email etiquette not only demands constant awareness of what we type, but how our words could be misconstrued. There is no extenuating circumstance or moment of madness that justifies expressing yourself sarcastically, or with quixotic “cuteness!” The best way to communicate digitally at work is to be direct and accommodating. The contemporary adage about not saying anything via email that you would not say in person certainly applies.
Email, while appropriate for scheduling meetings and marketing promotions and other nuts-and-bolts applications, should never replace a written note for personal expressions of thanks or condolence, or for formal announcements of births, weddings, and party invitations. It goes almost without saying that handwritten notes should be reciprocated in kind. And as with handwritten exchanges, there are rules of business email etiquette for turnaround times. With our ubiquitous access to email, we should respond to emails within 24-48 hours of receiving a message. Failure to respond promptly brands you as rude or disorganized.
Correct business etiquette demands that we acknowledge emails in a thoughtfully clear and concise manner by understanding the content and recognizing the tone of our writing - prior to sending. Only then will our business email be the productive and useful tool it was intended to be.