W3globalRefer Search Submit

8 Rules To Follow In Your Professional Chats

Posted on February 25th, 2021

Instant messaging is a good and easy way to communicate efficiently and streamline your work process effortlessly. These two reasons have been the foundation of why instant messaging apps have gained popularity in day-to-day business operations. Coordinating projects has become easy and, productivity has skyrocketed with these applications. However, despite these messaging applications becoming part and parcel of our work culture, many do not follow group chat etiquette rules. And this leads to delay in work delivery and leads to deteriorated relationships within the members.

To avoid these unwanted situations, let us look at basic rules to follow in instant messaging apps and group chats for work so that the professional environment is good.

  1. Ensure Your Avatar And Screen Name Are Appropriate For Work:

    2. The avatar and screen name that looks befitting for your personal messaging and chat applications may not always go good with your professional messaging apps. What looks best for your family and friends may not look the same for co-workers. Your display picture, your status and the memes you use for your personal accounts can sometimes be offensive for the sheer fact that your professional colleagues are not the same as your family and friends. They expect a different culture. In this wake, always be sure that your picture, status and other stuff you use for work chats are neat and clean.

  2. Start Each Chat With A Greeting:

    3. Starting every talk with your colleagues with a greeting is the best way you can show your professionalism. This act should be followed without fail when you must chat with persons of other teams. Do not straight away bring up the issue of concern. First, introduce yourself and then get into the real matter. This way, you will align yourself with them no matter how new they are to you. Also, do not forget to ask if the time is good to chat or not.

  3. Be Clear And Crisp:

    4. Never drag the things unless really needed. The core idea behind any instant messaging app is to keep it short. If you feel there is a lot to convey, leave behind the chat app and send an email. Instant messages should always be short, clear and straight to the point of discussion. Keep these in mind and follow them without fail when you are in a group chat. A concern that goes beyond 5 minutes should always find its way to a call or email.

  4. Do Not Use IM When You Are Upset:

    5. We are all humans and, negative emotions such as anger and hatred are common but showing them off on your colleagues is not common. If forced to chat with co-workers while you are upset or angry, give a pause and message carefully. Messaging in a raged mood may bring in troubles for you and your relation with the other. Besides, it may also make you repent for the message once you cool down. Follow this pause methods both for your superiors and subordinates.

    As a thumb rule, don’t use words that you would not like to speak out loudly. In case you use such words, chances are that you will damage your image and also that of your team. Also, make use of capital letters carefully as using capital letters is nothing but shouting or expressing your disconcert with something. Would you yell at someone in the office? No, right? So, why should you shout in messaging apps?

  5. Be Patient For Responses:

    6. Communicating directly on phones is different from communicating on messaging apps. When conversing through calls, the other person is literally present for you. But, the same isn’t the case with IM apps, who knows, the other person may not be in a position to see and reply instantaneously so, be patient and wait for a reply from the other end.

    Stay away from sending tons of messages. In case the other person doesn’t reply even after a while, try out other means of communication.

  6. Look Out For Status Availability Settings:

    7. A few people indirectly convey their availability through status so, look out for them. Respect their status especially, if it is ‘’away’’ or ‘’busy’’. Wait for the status message to change to ‘’available’’. Sending messages without valuing the status means you are disturbing their busy schedule or interfering with their work.

  7. Be Polite:

    8. Civility is the best asset for all of us. Being polite towards your co-workers says that you respect humans as they are. Being polite even though the other may not be, cultivates culture in the other person too. As human beings, being rude is easy but, for a change, try to be polite.

  8. Use Proper Grammar:

    9. Proper grammar may not always be needed when you chat with friends and family members, but it is not the case with your office mates. Keep 100 eyes on the spelling and grammar. Double-check, triple check and check till you are sure that there are no grammar or spelling mistakes.

    Using slang or abbreviation may not always be a good etiquette so, use them cautiously. Always keep in mind that you are talking to your office peers and not childhood peers when you wish to use slang.

These are the basic rules to follow while you group chat or instant message. Ensure you follow these basics every time you reach out to a professional IM app.

Tags: Insta messaging rules for work, group chat etiquette at work, messaging app rules for work, work group chat rules to follow, professional group chat rules

Recent Blogs