Either people don't know what reply all is, or social networks have
convinced them that broadcasting is the only legitimate form of
communication. The handy tool is used so much that the thinking seems to
be, "Why tell one person 'thx' when you could deliver that message to
dozens of people simultaneously?"
Well, I can think of two reasons: First, replying all at the wrong
time can be rude because the sender may not have wanted all responses to
be visible to everyone. Second, it's pretty boring to spend the whole
day deleting monosyllabic responses to something that never even applied
to you in the first place.
This is not to say that there is never a time when "reply all" should be used -- it's just that time is not all the time.
There are a few basic ground rules for when to use reply all. In
general, if your response will cause other people to do something
different then yes, reply all. If your response will have absolutely no
effect on other people and is "thanks" or "ok" then no, don't reply all.
In personal communication, reply all should be used for group invites
with 10 or fewer people and on discussion threads where at least 70
percent of recipients are actively participating. At work, reply all
should be used when you have something valuable to add to the
conversation or when you disagree with whatever is being proposed. In
general, agreement with a work email is assumed, so an email saying you
agree doesn't really need to be a reply at all.
Pro Tip: If you use Gmail, you can use the mute button to silence
redundant replies from people who haven't mastered the art of when not
to reply all. If you no longer want to see new replies to a thread just
click on the message, then click "Mute" under the "More options" button
in the Gmail tool bar. Incoming messages on this thread will still be
archived with the conversation but will not show up as a new message. If
you want to find these conversations later just search for "is:muted."
Read through the following scenarios to see when to "reply one" and when to reply all.
Scenario: A colleague got a new job and sends a farewell email to the whole office. Do you reply all?
No.There is no conceivable reason why anyone but the person who is
leaving would want to see your response, since the only person it has
anything to do with is the person who is leaving.
Scenario: Your friend invites you and five friends to dinner on Friday. Do you reply all?
Yes. Help out your nice friend who is trying to organize a
get-together with you and the rest of your group by responding publicly
-- it'll help people to coordinate and is likely to solicit RSVPs more
quickly. If I don't see that other people have responded to an email
invite, I tend to either forget about the invitation altogether or just
take my sweet time RSVP'ing because that's what it looks like everyone
else is doing. Replying all is a good way to remind people that their
presence continues to be requested at this fun event you are trying to
help them have fun at.
Scenario: Your friend invites you to his huge 30th birthday party. Reply all?
Yes, you should go. No, do not reply all. Your presence at a huge
party is completely inconsequential to everyone except the host. Reply
singular on this one.
Scenario: You're Bcc'd. Reply all?
No. Why? You can't. The Bcc'd are second class citizens not trusted with the ability to reply all.
Scenario: You receive a work email containing a
rhetorical question or straight up statement to which the only
conceivable response is "ok."
Please no. Your silence here is your assent in this scenario, even
though your assent isn't even required since no one is honestly asking
you whether this is okay. Stay quiet.
Scenario: Someone sends a company-wide email asking
for nominations for the city's best make out bar. Reply all with your
recommendation?
Yes. Email threads exist because when they're fun they're fun, but
only participate if you have something meaningful to add. It's your call
on whether what you want to write is meaningful, but a good general
rule is if you have to sit there racking your brain for a clever
response, you shouldn't be replying to that thread. Save your replies
for conversations that really speak to you. Reply all is like anything
else: with every use it decreases in value.
Scenario: You're on an email thread that no longer
applies to 70 percent of the recipients because they're not going to
dinner, participating in the blood drive or hoping to make out with
someone they work with. Reply all?
No. Have a heart and remove the non-responders from the list.
Remember, it's only by removing the dead leaves that you allow the bush
to flourish.
