Email Search Optimization for Better Email Etiquette
Recent research indicates that people typically waste 15-30 minutes daily searching for information. Much of this information obscurity is due to obscurely written and organized emails. In this post I’d like to explore an important contributor to this problem.
It’s happened to all of us at some point. We’ve received an email like this:
Now emails like this can be timely and helpful. Sometimes we just need important info fast and we don’t care the form it comes. But then the wheels of time turn…
Soon the email becomes an obscure blip amongst the thousands and is no longer viewable among the most recent ten. We find ourselves needing to refer back to it, but it’s too buried to browse for. So instead we do a search. Since the sender didn’t mention the nature of the information, just something lame like: “Ok here it is! LOLZ!” we don’t find it by subject. Next we search by client. Since the original sender didn’t mention who they represent, we also find nothing. So we search by sender but again, since the email was forwarded from someone else on our team… nothing. Now, the point of this article may have become apparent to you, but before show my hand entirely, I want to bring in an important lesson from SEO.
Keyword/Keyphrase Optimization in SEO
Anyone who knows something about SEO will tell you that one of the most important things you can do to get content in front of eyes is to figure out who you want viewing it, figure out what phrases they might use in a search engine to discover it, and then make sure those phrases appear in your content. This most basic SEO principle will increase the likelihood that users you want seeing your page will see it. This technique is called keyword or keyphrase optimization and those who ignore it do so either because they are ignorant of its advantages or, due to virility or fame (like if Sarah Palin started an NRA watchdog blog) they just don’t need to.
ESO
I’d like to borrow this principle and submit that everyone, regardless of our line of work, regardless of how often and in what manner we email, should make use of it. And I’d like to title this principle, email search optimization or ESO*.
* An Andy-licious acronym which is sure to become widely adopted 
ESO is all about manners. It’s about respect and having good email etiquette. It’s about making establishing habits of communication that are going to help our loved ones, coworkers, clients, and congressmen have better access to information. After all, a huge part of success in our day is all about having the right kind of access to the right kind of information at the right time.
ESO is pretty simple. It includes the following principles:
Informative Subject Lines
Instead of “Ok, here it is! LOLZ!” we might write “Information about x for client y” so that a search about the information’s topic or the client’s name will yield results.
Descriptive Message Body
Don’t use generalities in the message body. Instead of “that thing I told you I’d get to you” you might write “This is x document that addresses problem y”. Again, this helps give context to emails that will no doubt later be quickly glanced over to find specific information.
Don’t Email Thread Hijack
A personal pet peeve of mine and among the top ten all time most annoying email practices ever invented… Well… Here’s the example:
You get the idea. When starting a completely new email thread regarding an independent topic, it’s best for the sanity of those who live and die by email to start a new topic. I have been absolutely amazed at the number of professionals in the business world who feel that their time is so valuable that it’s best if they find an email by the person they need to email and simply reply to it, giving little or no regard to the subject of that email. This can be even worse than the first example for finding information since information is then deceivingly buried in a misleading email thread topic and initial discussion chain. This is, effectively, the witness protection program for information. And when it happens to me I end it fast by “replying” to the email with a new subject line. Which actually should be another principle…
End Email Thread Hijacking by Replying With an Appropriate Subject Lines
See above.
Conclusion
Whether or not the world accepts ESO as a new web meme, lets all do our part to make the land of email a better and safer place for us… nay! For the children!
Andy Branch is a project manager/producer at