Thursday, June 26, 1997

Be considerate when broadcasting faxes

By ANN HUMPHRIES / Knight-Ridder Newspapers

Learn the etiquette of broadcasting business news by fax.

For its senders, broadcasting information by fax, e-mail and voice mail often streamlines work and improves responsiveness to customers and employees. It helps you network and keep people informed and included. But the amateurish use or abuse of broadcast technology can penalize, rather than promote, your reputation and effectiveness.

Rives Cheney, publisher of The Pryor Report in Clemson, S.C., said: "Fielding broadcasts by fax or any other way is just a cost of doing business. We review what we receive, keep what we need and dispose of the rest. We ask politely to be removed from broadcasts which waste the sender's time and our resources. People who rage about fax broadcasts need to find something more worthwhile to fight."

Broadcasting information by fax can be effective. To make the information palatable to the receiver, follow these tips:

-- Keep your message short. Try to keep information to one page and go easy on graphics so as not to waste the recipient's toner or paper.

-- Verify names and fax numbers. People change jobs, and many area codes and telephone numbers have changed. Also, there could be a misprint that causes you to dial an unsuspecting person who can't tell you to stop.

Although alerting senders to the change is an inconvenience and costs a phone call or fax back, this option is better than continuing to receive irrelevant information.

-- Check your spelling and grammar. In your haste, you may send errors, which scream that your convenience prevails over the receiver's.

-- Personalize as much as possible. In your space for notes, customize your message and sign your name.

-- Give receivers a way out. For example, say somewhere in your broadcast: "We respect your fax. If you'd prefer not to receive information this way or if we've sent this to the wrong person or place, please let us know." Preferably, provide an 800 or 888 number for recipients to use.

-- Be aware that there are legal implications and that you aren't to send a broadcast to someone with whom you don't have a previous business connection.

Be respectful of people's time and resources and especially their fax machines.