I got an email the other day. It read,
“i want 2 advert my biz on ur site. can u help?”
The person who sent this email did not sign her name, give me her business name . . . nothing. What you see is what I got! Real professional, huh?
Unfortunately emails like this are not as uncommon as you might think. I get them more often than I’d care to, and they irritate the heck out of me. They want me to be professional and help them in some way but they don’t feel it’s important enough to present themselves in a positive, professional manner. It always makes me wonder how they could possibly put the required attention into their business to make it successful.
Kids, and a lot of adults, will abbreviate and use shortcuts when they IM each other. JTLYK, I do it myself at times when I’m IMing with friends. (For those of you not up on the IM acronyms, JTLYK is ‘just to let you know’ and IM is ‘instant message’). Acronyms and chat speak are fine for a casual online conversation with friends, but IMO (in my opinion) they have no place in a professional email! None whatsoever!
A lot of pet sitters complain that people don’t take them seriously because they don’t have a ‘real job.’ They work hard and support themselves financially, yet they feel they don’t get the respect they deserve – and then they write an email like that! Granted, some people do tend to think of pet sitting as something less than a career, and pet sitters as being uneducated, but, why encourage their stereotype of pet sitters by looking like an idiot?!
Trying to overcome the low opinion some people have of those who take care of pets for a living, is all the more reason for pet sitters to present themselves in a professional manner. And frankly, emails like the one above are certainly not the way to go about it! They send a message to the reader that the person writing it really doesn’t care about what they’re doing – and they aren’t concerned with having a professional appearance. Rather than setting themselves up for success, they just add one more obstacle to overcome – as if there aren’t enough!
So come on, if you’re a pet care ‘professional’ and you send business related emails with acronyms, no capitalization, and don’t include your name . . . STOP! Learn how to write a proper email when you’re corresponding with someone on a business matter. You’ll be doing yourself, other pet care providers, and the industry as a whole, a huge favor.
Technorati Tags: professionalism, pet care business
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Very well stated. This is one of my irritations too. People don’t seem to realize how stupid they present themselves when they use IM-speak to total strangers. I’ll admit to being a kind of grammar Nazi (and by the way, you write very well and present yourself very professionally. I can’t imagine that your clients would not see you as a professional unless they are total dweebs.)
This is a great post Therese. I’ve actually thought when I’ve received emails like that, that it was from a kid playing a prank. I’d never think anyone running a business would try and present themselves like that. I’m glad you blogged this because then maybe some will cop a clue.
I’m not a pet sitter now, but I have been. It IS up to us to present ourselves professionally in order that others will take us seriously. It is always up to us and our responsibility, not anyone else.
Jan & Kim . . . thank you both.
I can only hope some of the people who write like this do see my blog and take it to heart !
Therese — great post! I get these ALL THE TIME. that and the “I’m going to start a dog-walking business, do you have any advice?” That’s my particular favorite! Yep, I have LOTS of advice, so I usually ask that they respond with some really specific questions to see if they have done anything to prepare to run a business or they just think they are going to make some quick cash. (yeah, right)
Best,
Peggie
You’re right, Peggie – it is hard to give advice when there’s no specific question. For general “do you have any advice” questions, I encourage them to read, read, and then read some more – and talk to other pet sitters. And, of course, like you, I let them know I can answer specific questions if they have them. Some people don’t know enough about the industry to have specific questions though – that’s why they need to do the reading and research.