Not Martha
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modern etiquette, like regular etiquette, eludes me

Yesterday Kottke linked to this article on the NYTimes which talks about how people sign off emails, with “best” being generally regarded as a brush off. I’m horrified, I use it all the time and certainly not as a brush off. I find “sincerely” too formal, and “warmest regards” seems awkward for me so, maybe I’ll use “best wishes” for a while? Or “regards”?

· comments [9] · 11-29-2006 · categories:misc ·

9 responses so far ↓

  • 1 Phil's Blogservations // Dec 2, 2006 at 7:00 pm

    Signing Your Emails…

    Ever read an article in a high-profile publication that implies you’ve been doing something totally wrong for, like, fifteen years?…

  • 2 Heather // Dec 2, 2006 at 11:03 pm

    I’m big on “Cheers” to close work emails, and “Rock” to close personal ones. But that’s because I’m hardly formal.

  • 3 Sarah // Dec 3, 2006 at 1:07 am

    I use “Regards” or “Kind regards” at work.

  • 4 Kate // Dec 4, 2006 at 5:38 am

    Aaaaggg! I’ve been “best”-ing my e-mail sign offs for years!!! I hate “cheers” unless I know the person is British–it just sounds so fake to me coming from an American.

  • 5 May // Dec 4, 2006 at 10:16 am

    I often use “Take care”.

  • 6 Letty // Dec 4, 2006 at 9:36 pm

    Don’t sweat it girl. I’ve been using ‘best’ for a long time and the last thing I regard it as is a brush off. The others (sincerely, regards…) are too stuffy for my taste. They’re being kooky and you know—consider that it was probably some sleep-deprived, slightly hungover intern that wrote that bit of swill in order to “help out” for the day.
    Best,
    ^_^

  • 7 Squisita // Dec 5, 2006 at 4:54 pm

    “Yours very truly” is really popular where I work and I don’t know what to make of it. “Yours” alone seems romantic. “Yours truly” seems redundant, since it is often used alone to mean “me.” I usually close with “Thanks,” because there’s usually something to be grateful for, if only, “Thanks for your time.”

  • 8 mfm // Dec 8, 2006 at 10:32 am

    yeah, i agree that “best” is ok. i don’t think i would use it the first time i ever emailed someone, but i’m usually emailing with coworkers who don’t use salutations or closings at all, just like in the NYT article.
    i sometimes use “All best” if i want to be a bit warmer. i use “Thanks much” if i am sticking someone with a task and expect it to be done.

  • 9 Randal Oliver // Nov 12, 2008 at 4:13 pm

    dk2tn5zfh2nnplp6

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