[Reader-list] Foibles sign-offs

[Nehal Gandhi]

Foibles sign-offs 

http://jobsadvice.guardian.co.uk/officehours/story/0,14369,1237932,00.html

Diana Cambridge 
Monday June 14, 2004
The Guardian 

Why does it take me longer to decide on a sign-off to
an email than it does to write the email? Yours what?
Sincerely, hopefully, faithfully, truly, in haste, or
just "yours"? Kind regards or regards ? Love and
kisses, if you have a joking relationship? Then
there's best - wishes, luck, regards, or just "best"?
Is it best to put just your name? Kind regards seems
to be the usual sign off in business, though it's
flowery and most likely untrue. 
"If you get an email without some note of esteem or
whatever at the end, it does look terse and
impersonal," says Ben, a recruitment interviewer. "So
I always put something, though it's just a matter of
form." 

If you're a cake decorator, the dedicated ones always
sign themselves "yours in sugar". Trust me - I used to
work for a cake magazine. So that makes it easy for
them - the rest of us still have to think about it. 

Should you put kisses after your signature to people
you don't know, haven't met and are dealing with on a
business basis? It depends on the industry - what
might be OK in creative media is less so in utilities
or security. 

Most people don't mind this sign-off from a woman they
don't know and who doesn't know them, though they
probably still find it surprising. But it's more
disconcerting coming from an unknown man. 

Roguish, arch sign-offs are always a turn-off. Avoid
"over to you!" or adding the phrase "you guys" ("best
to you guys over there!") to anything. Terrible things
like "over and out", "roger", "keep the faith" or even
" keep your eye on the prize" still crop up. And "keep
smiling" has been known to drive previously
unflappable models of decorum into homicidal furies. 

I was taken aback by an email from a Famous Person,
can't say who, when I asked for her address. She
emailed back "2 Posh Street, Oxford. Fast!" I could
almost smell her irritation. Well, we're all busy -
she could have saved precious time by not adding the
redundant adjective. Never try to give an impression
of your fantastically busy life by your sign-off
unless you want to show off. 

It doesn't take much longer to type "yours" than "yrs"
or "regards" rather than "regs". "Cheers!" is beyond
the pale - though I often use it if want to sound
confident and, well, cheerful. 

If you want to be honest, "yours wearily" or "yours
pointlessly" would be more like it - but never be
sarcastic by email. Anything written down is taken
more seriously by people than the things they hear.
They can't hear your tone of voice which might be
amused, jokey, affectionate - not mocking, cold and
critical, as they imagine it. 

Respect the recipient's space, says Susan St Maur,
author of Powerwriting (Prentice Hall Business, £12
99). "Knock before you enter, then be the perfect
guest, remember to say please and thank you. Leave
before you've worn out your welcome," she says. So
don't use words in your email that you wouldn't use in
person. 

Sometimes, the shortest exchange can be the most
effective, like this one, said to be between Victor
Hugo and his publisher after The Hunchback of Notre
Dame was published and easily adaptable to our
electronic age. 

Dear Paul 
? 
Victor 

And the reply: 

Dear Victor 
! 
Paul. 

So you see - you don't necessarily need a sign-off at
all. 

Sign-off language 

· If you mix typefaces and use a lot of icons in your
sign-off, you risk coming across as unstable and
immature. 

· Underlining or putting things in caps too often can
have a similar effect.

· Don't abbreviate the words in sign-offs. 

· If signing by hand, your signature should be
legible. 

· A big signature is always better than a little one. 

· Vary your sign-off occasionally so that your
communications don't seem routine to recipients. 

· Not to have a sign-off is OK as long as you include
"thanks".





		
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