Netiquette, or email etiquette, is about the manners we use on the Internet. Cyberspace has its own culture and has developed its own rules. Without knowing the etiquette of the network, you could make some social mistakes or offend someone inadvertently.

The rules of netiquette are based on common sense and respect, but since email is so fast, we often forget that we are still using a written form of communication.

Netiquette or email etiquette The 10 best rules are:

1. Imagine your message on a billboard. Anything you submit can be forwarded, saved, and printed by people it was never designed for. Never send anything that reflects negatively on you or anyone else.

2. Remember that company emails are the property of the company. Emails sent from your workplace can be monitored by people other than the sender and the reader, and are technically the property of the company.

3. Avoid offensive comments. Anything obscene, defamatory, offensive or racist does not belong in a company email, not even as a joke.

4. Keep your message fresh. Emails can be easily misinterpreted because we don’t have the tone of voice or body language to give us more clues. The use of multiple points of explanation, emoticons, and capitalized words can be interpreted as emotional language.

5. Be careful about forwarding messages. If you are not sure whether the original sender wants to forward the message, do not do so.

6. Don’t expect an immediate response. Emails can be sent quickly, but they may not be read by the recipient right away.

7. Don’t sacrifice precision for efficiency. Don’t send sloppy, unedited emails. Experts say that for every grammar error in an email, there are an average of three spelling errors. While the odd spelling mistake is overlooked, when your readers have to interrupt communication to decipher a word or message, you’ll look sloppy, if not illiterate, at best. In the worst case, they may stop reading.

8. Include the message thread. Keep the original message for a record of your conversation. However, when you send a new message to the same person, start a new thread with a new subject line.

9. Do not write all UPPER CASES. It is perceived as a SCREAM. However, do not write only with lowercase letters, as this is perceived as lazy, as it makes reading difficult for people.

10. Write clear and organized messages, with a subject line that provides enough information for the reader to archive and find later.

I encourage you to use these network etiquette tips and rules when sending email.