Emojis in Business Communication – YES or NO?
Slobodan Jovicinac
Project management, Product management, Cross-functional approach | ECBA | PSPO 1
I just love emoticons. Can’t help it. Hardly any of my communication ends without at least one smiley. People I correspond with know (and expect) it. It’s not that I’m some kind of a joker or even a visual type – I simply try to compensate for the lack of physical contact by sending symbols to express emotions through digital communication. Oh, and to save me a bunch of time, too.
Emoji can save you many, may, many typed characters. They definitely provide a greater emotional context but at the same time, they can quickly be misused.
For starters, emojis are not even universal. Individuals bring their own personal experience to how they interpret an emoji. In other words, a lot can be lost in translation very easily. And in business, that is the last thing you’d want to happen.
When I started using emoticons, many of my colleagues told me to always be on the safe side, and to remember avoiding them when talking to my boss, customers and new colleagues (or generally people I didn't know very well). I would add older people to this list, as they too might be uncomfortable with emojis, or not even understand the meaning of such.
But if you are really keen on promoting the casual work interactions, then you really need to know your audience. And they should know you as well. The other day, I sent an instant message to a co-worker I have been working with for a while now. I was in a hurry and left out the usual smiley at the end. Just quickly typed the message and rushed out of the office. When I came back I had 12 unread messages from that person. The first one was:
“What? No smiley today?”
And the rest was just an upsurge of that. At first, she thought I simply forgot. She patiently waited for it to appear. When it didn’t, she just kept on like she wanted to get to the bottom of such an unusual behavior. The last message was:
“Did I do something wrong?!? Why won’t you answer me?!?”
And, then it hit me. As much as convenient and charming, emojis can be a devil’s trap as well. Not just when you send them to the wrong person, but when you don’t send them to the right person. (As it was in my case.) Being the “one with the smileys”, the first time I failed to send one, it was misinterpreted as some kind of situation. Apparently.
Maybe it would be for the best if I simply never started mixing the fun-shortcut-expressions with business communication.
What are the guidelines about using emoji or emoticons in business communication? If you asked me a few weeks ago, I would have known the answer. But I am not so sure anymore...
Any thoughts on this?
Global Digital Marketing | Multi-Channel Campaigns | Product & Brand
5yIt's a really interesting discussion. I use a lot of emojis, even to talk with third-parties and stakeholders. However, it is really important to know your audience - it is not necessarily a matter of hierarchy, but of personality. For some people, emojis might be a sign of weakness / childish behavior and this in a negotiation, for instance, can be harmful. However, on the other side, emojis can also be strategically used to bring discussions to an informal / lighter level - that can get deals to be agreed in a faster way. In daily interactions with peers, I think it is a very powerful tool to establish relationships and, consequently, get things done easier. However, they should reflect your own personality, otherwise people might take them as fake interactions.
Director Performance Advertising at Peak Ace AG
5yI’m just like you! I use smileys a lot and I really try reducing it sometimes but it’s just a habit really and I think it makes my client relationships (at least feel) more personal :) I’m not the best writer so I think the smileys help me bring across a message in the way that I want to. I’ve heard about quite a few studies that say it’s actually good to use them but as the comments show not everyone likes it! I’d generally say if the client does it I do it too :)
Co-Founder SME-SMARTMARKETING
5yIt's very unprofessional to use them in business communications. They are quite clearly designed to appeal to ten year olds and, unless those are your customers or suppliers, avoid them. They're probably just about okay when you're writing to someone with whom you have a personal relationship as well as a business one. In time, a range of emoticons especially for business will no doubt be developed, at which time it may be acceptable to use them. I sincerely hope not!
Freelance
5yNo way Jose. It’s not very professional.
Guaranteed Notary
5yThere is a time and a place for emoticons - rarely - if ever should they be used in business, with very few exceptions. It's too easy to be misunderstood using words and sentences!