Feel like reading and writing emails take up way too much of your time? You’re not imagining it. It turns out, the average employee spends nearly 11 hours a week crafting emails. An extensive survey involving 8,000 small business employees, equally distributed between the United States and the United Kingdom, has unveiled some other concerning email statistics. On average, these workers send out 112 emails per week, investing just over five and a half minutes on each one. However, the respondents feel that only 36 percent of their emails are genuinely read and comprehended.
Here are some more interesting email stats from this survey:
- 62% claim that their inquiries often go unanswered
- 51% have found their names misspelled in responses
- 49% continue to receive questions they’ve already addressed
Participants in the survey also acknowledge their own shortcomings in email etiquette. A notable 57% confess to shying away from emails that surpass eight sentences in length. Furthermore, they tend to routinely ignore or delete emails primarily based on their subject lines approximately eight times a day. This lack of attention carries consequences, as 45% of respondents have reported missing crucial events, such as meetings or deadlines, due to overlooked emails.
Is email out of date?
The study, led by Slack and carried out by OnePoll, looked into the world of email communication. A significant 46% of respondents consider email to be an outdated form of communication. Their dissatisfaction arises from various common inbox grievances, including:
- Emails mistakenly marked as spam (53%)
- Aflood of irrelevant messages (50%)
- Difficulties in interpreting the tone (47%)
- A perceived pressure to maintain formality (45%)
Generational disparities in these perspectives are apparent. Notably, younger participants experience a greater sense of pressure to maintain formal communication. Also, younger generations harbor stronger convictions that emails are frequently a time-consuming endeavor.
Related: Is It Harder to Get Hired After Owning Your Own Business?
Ali Rayl, SVP Product Management at Slack, who serves as the spokesperson, remarks, “Employees invest nearly 11 hours per week in composing emails, many of which go unnoticed or are misunderstood. Email as a means of communication no longer aligns with the dynamics of today’s workplace.” She adds, “Adopting more efficient communication methods can pave the way for more meaningful and productive tasks.”
A significant number of participants believe that their organizations have held onto email primarily due to its cost-effectiveness (55%) and its deep-seated tradition (53%). More than half of the respondents, regardless of their generational background, share a sense of being burdened with mundane tasks related to email correspondence.
The survey also delves into the realm of artificial intelligence (AI) tools. More than 40% of respondents believe AI has the potential to enhance their productivity, while only nine percent anticipate a negative impact. The primary appeal of AI lies in its ability to provide instant responses (50%), followed closely by the desire to stay competitive (47%) and the opportunity to eliminate repetitive tasks (47%).