Like proper manners, or knowing how to drive, here are some things in the online world you just need to know:
1. EMAIL
– Have a good signature file that tells who you are, how to find you, and entices people to click through to your web address. All in 4 lines or less.
– How to make good subject headers. So when your email is one of 500 in an “IN” box, it will say exactly what is contained inside, from the other person’s point of view.
– How to quote someone’s email message back to them. Or not.
– How to subscribe to, post messages to, and unsubscribe from to a mailing list.
– Manners. Spelling. Punctuation. How to turn off your caps lock key, and not use 25 exclamation points in a row.
– How to communicate personality through these typewriter keys.
– Separate sentences into paragraphs. Reading a computer screen is different from reading a book. There’s no paper to waste – leave plenty of space.
2. DATABASE SKILLS
– Know how to work your “address book” program. How to find people, sort, print, add, remove, change, and do bigger find commands (how to find all guitarists in the 818 area code)
– Keep it nice and clean and updated. Keep street address separated from the city, state, zip, country. Don’t be sloppy in these early stages.
– Assume you ARE going to get more popular and soon your little address book will need to sort thousands of people.
– If you get really fancy, track each contact you have with someone: each call, email, visit. It comes in handy when someone from a year ago calls you up saying, “It’s George! Remember?”
3 . WEB SKILLS
– Know how to make an MP3, and how to upload it to a website.
– Sort your bookmarks/favorites into categories/folders so you can find things later.