Who hasn’t looked at their inbox and wondered how to reduce the quantity of emails that land there? Reviewing and responding to emails takes a lot of time. That’s why it is so important to have in place a system that helps to keep your email activities organized.
Or how about those emails, without the basics of email etiquette with a one-word response. Causing you to wonder what part of your email that response was referring to.
You then have to send another email asking for clarification. All because the sender did not down-edit so you would know what comment of yours they were specifically resounding to. Dinging your efficiency.
This brings us to a question from a site visitor. One that is based in the desire to be efficient but may be misinterpreted.
A site visitor emailed that in his quest to become more efficient and reduce the email volume in his inbox, he wanted to include “No Need for Reply” in his email or Subject: line. This was his way of letting the other side know that they didn’t have to spend time replying because, in his view, a reply is not necessary.
Good idea or not?
Is this approach effective or is there a better way to attain his stated goal? It would depend on why you are using that statement.
This is a tactic that I would deploy very selectively and carefully. You want to make sure you are not perceived as someone who is dictating or not open to replies. Especially if the recipients may have a comment or opinion that is different from yours.
The one situation that would be safe would be if you are stating information that folks need to know. Such as meeting dates and times. In this case “no need to reply” is probably a safe choice.
The thing is just because you feel there is no reason for a reply does not mean the recipient will feel the same. Some could perceive “no need for a reply” as a way of stating you are not interested in their input, opinion or point of view.
A Different Approach
What I suggest you do, if you feel you need to head-off unnecessary replies is to use different phraseology. At the end of your email before your closing you could include “…no reply is necessary, just wanted to keep you in the loop.”
This approach doesn’t appear to shut down any questions or comments others may have. However, you know these words at the end of your emails can easily be ignored, right?
You want to make sure that your intent is not to stifle conversation. Rather, if the recipient feels they have something they want you to be aware of they feel comfortable doing so.
Have a question you would like me to post about?
Just ask!