Email Etiquette Tips for the Small Business Owner

For the small business owner who is consumed with running and working at their own business, balancing their own books, maintaining and training employees, and servicing customers, email may be very far down the list of priorities.

If you are going to use email as an effective way to communicate with your current customers, and want to retain their business, there are some basic email etiquette tips that you should follow.

Take the time to follow these tips to best utilize the communication tool of email without the risk of annoying your customer base.

7 Email Marketing Tips for Small Business Owners

Email Etiquette Tips for the Small Business Owner: 1. Permission-Based List

The e-mail list you use to send out notices about the business should be based on email addresses which were received directly from the customers themselves.

Do not purchase lists of local email addresses and blindside people will potentially ill-obtained email addresses.

This tactic can backfire on you and turn current and potential customers away from your small business. People do not take kindly to unsolicited emails.

Email Etiquette Tips for the Small Business Owner: 2. Use the BCC

The biggest mistake small business owners make when sending out emails to their clientele is to forget to BCC the addresses. Using the BCC protects the privacy of your customers' email addresses. When the BCC is not used, everyone you send an email to will see the email addresses of your other customers. Some people are very sensitive about unauthorized distribution of their email address, even when it was unintentional.

Email Etiquette Tips for the Small Business Owner: 3. Spell Check

Spell check and every single email you send out of your business. After you have use the spell check, proof read the email. When possible, have another employee proofread the email as well. Even if the email is short, it needs to be checked.

Email Etiquette Tips for the Small Business Owner: 4. Get it Right the First Time