For years, emoji use has risen at speed across the world. Now, as well as infiltrating most of our social conversations, they’ve slipped into the lexicon of professional work language. As a sign of the times, in 2014 17 July was determined to be World Emoji Day to celebrate emojis in all their glory. But does this somewhat colloquial form of communication have a role in the modern workplace? Is the way we speak to each other at work becoming more informal? The workplace is a minefield of protocol and office politics but with these lessons, you can make sure your emoji etiquette is on point.
Keep emojis restricted to chatter
When it comes to emoji use at work, the general consensus is that it is OK to use them in an informal setting. Indeed, lots of global companies such as Google, Buzzfeed and eBay are embracing casual communication, using software such as WhatsApp, Google Messenger and Slack to cut down on the number of emails. This switch is intended to make the sharing of information easier between colleagues and teams. It’s also possible for anyone in the company to see what each other is doing, rather than hiding progress, feedback and questions in the various inboxes of the decision makers. It’s often in these informal settings that emojis are sent back and forth and there is a more relaxed feeling to the conversations going on.
Think about seniority
The old adage “dress for the job you want, not the job you’ve got” still rings true, and the same could be said for how you communicate at work. It’s probably not the best idea to send your boss, an investor or a big client, an email littered with emojis, even if they do tell a compelling story about how your project is going. They may consider them flippant. But it can be an effective communication tool when speaking to colleagues at a similar level as you – at times, you may find they help develop closer relationships. An email that may be misconstrued as being negative could be saved with a thumbs up emoji, for example. Or if colleagues speak English as a second or third language, smileys can help lessen the formality of professional communication.
Using emojis to build brand awareness
Thousands of companies are embracing emojis as their way of communicating with their customers, particularly in newsletters and social media posts. Emojis stick out in an inbox full of promotional mail, so think more creatively about how you write your subject lines. ASOS uses emojis in all of its notifications, which works because it’s talking to their followers in the language they want to see and helps grab their attention. Dominos have taken this one step further and launched an option to order by emoji. So it can be a great tool for bringing you closer to your customers. If you own a fleet company, for example, sending a notification of road closures or delays using the road sign emoji will help them to immediately see it’s an urgent notification.
Content on this page is paid for and provided by Kia Fleet sponsor of the Guardian Small Business Network Accessing Expertise hub.
