[Commerce Class Notes] on Advantages And Disadvantages of Email Pdf for Exam

Communication is vital for any company and there are a few rules one must follow when using something as effective and instant as email. As technology has become more readily available, and businesses expand further, more and more companies and firms use email as their primary source of conveying instructions, information and ideas. 

 

However, with the convenience of such communication, one can find that there are many advantages and disadvantages of email that need to be understood before one can successfully use emails to their greatest potential. There are various advantages of email. For every carefully worded business email, there are hundreds of spam emails that many would prefer to do without. There are a few specific advantages and disadvantages of using email in business communication

 

What are the Advantages of Email? 

The main reason email is so popular is that it is easy to set up an account and even easier to maintain it. This ease of use makes it possible for anyone with a basic understanding of technology to operate it. An email account will also organise all incoming and outgoing correspondence which makes it much more manageable.

The best part about email is its instantaneous nature. While there was a time when emails were not as prompt. However, that time has long passed. Today we enjoy some of the fastest correspondence. It cuts down on the use of paper for communication and allows one the ability to reply to an email or to forward it at will. 

The key reason email was effective because of the sheer amount of time that could be saved by merely sending one as compared to other forms of correspondence. Today, emails are virtually instantaneous. Even with the advent of new forms of communication, emails are still one of the fastest modes of communication limited only by human promptness. 

While some businesses may need to buy an email server, they are usually quite inexpensive. While some businesses will need to purchase an affordable email server, most personal email accounts can be obtained without so much as a penny being spent.

As we mentioned before, not all emails are useful. A majority of emails sent today can be attributed to spam which tends to fill up an inbox with largely unnecessary information. 

Given that emails are a large part of most business communications, such forms of communication must be secure to minimise the leaking of information. Popular email servers invest a considerable sum to keep their services from being hacked.

Despite the convenience of using emails for effective communication, the disadvantages of using email in business communication must not be overlooked. There are a few areas where it isn’t as effective or valuable. 

 

Disadvantages of Email

While emails are a great way to communicate, they are not exactly the most ideal when communication is concerned. Sometimes it’s important to have in-person communication to convey certain instructions or ideas effectively. Email cannot be a substitute for such times. 

While it is acceptable for people to voice different ideas and positions via email, it is also possible that certain key pieces of information in any email could be misunderstood. This issue will only compound itself if no follow-up is carried out. 

While the email is known for near-instantaneous transmission of a message, it can also result in a significant loss of time because most employees will have to spend a majority of their time sorting through emails from different branches. It only gets worse as one moves higher up on the corporate ladder.

 

Origination and History of Email

The Internet email service that has become an important part of today’s world, can be found back in the early days of ARPANET, with specifications for encrypting email messages being published as early as 1973. (RFC 561). A basic email sent in the early 1970s looks comparable to one sent today. 

 

Ray Tomlinson is the person who is credited with inventing networked email; in 1971, he created the first system that allowed users on separate hosts on the ARPANET to send mail to others, using the @ sign to link the user name to a destination server. By the mid of 1970, this was the form that widely came to be known as email. Email at that time was most likely used by “computer geeks” in certain fields such as in the field of engineering and science.