Okay...so I have started my Graduate program in Instructional Technology. Yeah!! And part of our instruction was that we are to use proper "netiquette." I quote from our handbook, "Return e-mails in a timely manner." So my question to all of you is, what is considered a "timely manner" in order to be considerate and proper? I know that in the past I have been accused of dying or falling off the end of the earth because it has taken me a month or more to respond to an email, so I figure that wasn't my best netiquette. But to be truly considerate, what is required...a response within 24 hours or perhaps 48 hours? Am I telling a person, hey you don't mean squat to me if I don't respond to you within three days? I feel bad when I have taken a long time to respond to some of my friends and family. It's not that they don't mean much to me, it's just that sometimes I get really busy (like working 100 hours in a week and a half's period of time) and I just can't get around to responding quickly. Is there a proper way to say, "Hey I'll get back with you in the next...I don't know...two weeks or so?" Wouldn't that seem rude too?
I guess I would ask the same question of "Textiquette." What is considered proper response time there? Is it rude to wait 24 hours to respond? I know that I often begin to wonder after a few hours if I haven't received a return text, and I know the other person is a texter. Also, how about responding to someone's voice message? (Would that be Voice Messagingiquette?) All these new fangled technologies require that we use proper etiquette, so I guess it would be a good idea to know what the common consensus is of what is proper.
7 comments:
It depends on the nature of the email. For business, (at least where I work) within twenty minutes would be a timely response, but you shouldn't get really peaved until it's been at least a day.
If it's so important that you get anxious about a response, then a simple phone call can get you the information you need.
So how about in the world of friends and family? Is a "timely response" 24 hours?
I'm actually glad I'm going into technology...it means I'll be looking at my email everyday, so I can answer more promptly.
Among friends and family email and texting are casual communicative devices. You should respond when you can (I'd give you as much as three days on a weekend), but they have no right to get angry with you as long as you have a phone number.
I see a phone call as much more urgent, and ignoring a voicemail for more than a day (depending, of course, upon its contents) is tantamount to ignoring a person in person. ('Course, there are some people you might want to do that to anyway).
Well I'd definately fail a phonequette/voice-mailtequette course, but I'm okay with that. In my opinion, responding to one of these forms of communication in the non-business world is REALLY dependant on what the message was that was conveyed.
In my opinion, a "Hey, I just wanted to chat" or a "Hey we're gonna go do something tonight & we wanted to invite you" message are ignorable. I know many people feel otherwise, but those types of messages are really just relaying some piece of info, and don't really warrant a response. The info was relayed. Good 'nuff.
Now if the message is asking a question that NEEDS a response, I'd say within 24-48 hours...unless it's a more timely type of question.
There should be messagingaquette! I think that leaving a message like "Call me, I want to talk to you about something" is terrible!! I don't want to just call somebody to talk about something that I have no idea what it is. Throw me a freakin' bone here! If it's something important, tell me what that something is so I know it's actually important. Yeesh.
In the business world, however, I think responding to emails ASAP is HUGELY important, especially in the tech field. I gotta say, though, I'm not sure about where Thad works, but at MY work, I FREQUENTLY have sent business-related questions that needed responses that never came. It's EXTREMELY annoying.
...and once again I've written a novella. Honestly not my intention!
I shall enter into this conversation becuase I think that it is funny that the three of you are talking about it. All of you have some interesting track records with communication. :)I try and respond to everything in a timely manner which does create some anxiety in my life. I don't respond back to texts or phone messages when I know that the person will be going to sleep. But if the computer is on I frequently have long conversations with Kendra after eleven. Though at times Thad will maybe respond to IM's and then jump of the net like a grasshopper on a hot stove. I chalk that up to his springey nature. And there is the void of Jared's world. Where nothing is responded to. But I have to say that Jared's face to face communication is deeply satisfying and thus his technical communication silence is permissable. So is face to face the best way--are we moving away from that? Writing is so subjective--a sarcastic comment may be taken as seriousness even among close friends who have known each other for years. Like this post--the intended tone for my audience and genre is fond and amused, there is a possibility it could be taken otherwise. I think with all things that an once of charity can grease the hinges of our technical communiques and life will be better. A timely response thus become relative to the intended audience. And thus my novella ends.
I think you are all hilarious, and I have thoroughly enjoyed reading all your input...although I have none of my own :)
none that is new, that is...I agree with Jared and Thaddeus and Kendra and Alisha -- all of you
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