Office Signature Files

Should you have a different signature file for internal communications versus more formal e-mails with customers, partners and associates?  Most definitely!  Your coworkers do not need your phone number, contact information or alphabet soup designations in every communication they exchange with you — they already know all that.

What I think happens is most use their one signature file with all their contact information appended to every e-mail they send. Either they are too lazy to choose another signature file to reflect who they are communicating with and the intended tone, don’t know how to setup multiple sig files in their e-mail programs (use the Help feature), or more than likely they don’t know they have the option of using multiple signature files.

I’ve had folks e-mail me to correct me that when using Hotmail or other free services you don’t have the choice of using multiple signature files.  Well, all I can say is you get what you pay for and… what the heck are you doing using a free service for your business e-mail?

For those who are sig-config challenged, here’s one way to have multiple signature files at your beck and call.  Start a new document in your Word Processing program.  Then have all your signature file variations within this file.  Save As, “sigs” and save it to your Desktop.  This way as you are writing e-mails, regardless of what program or site you are on, you can easily open that document and simply cut-n-paste the most apropos sig file for the communication at hand! If you think about it, you can have a signature file for every situation and type of contact.

At last count, I have over 100 different signature files that I use on a regular basis! Of course having over 10 sites of my own contributes to that volume.   I choose which one to use when completing each e-mail to reflect the level of formality based on who I am communicating with.

Eudora, the e-mail program I’ve used from the start, makes switching sig files very easy with a drop down box in every e-mail.   I have wacky, fun, professional and very serious signature files to choose from. Some have my favorite quotes, while others promote my product du jour. There is no limit to the number of signature files you can create and use. Go for it!

Some More Info for You:

1. Degrees in Signature Files
2. Daily Signature Files Use Guidelines
3. Eco-Sigs: Signature Files Going Green?
4. “Babysitter” Signature Files?
5. Including Your Signature in Your Signature?