… received an email from my bank.

The “from” field was: alerts

No bank name, no person’s name … just the word “alerts” (it wasn’t even capitalized).

Inside the email it began with: Dear ,

Were I the Invisible Man, this might be an appropriate greeting.

Of course, maybe my bank, the people with more of my personal information on file than pretty much any other institution on earth, doesn’t know my first name.

The point is, if you’re unsure what constitutes “good form” in email, social media or whatever, hire somebody who is. Looking like an amateur in one area carries over into the way others view you overall.