Some people might agree that using email is like using fire: both are clearly and undoubtedly useful. Both can be a means of communication. When used correctly, both can yield some incredibly impressive results. However, they both share one common drawback too: one wrong move can rapidly turn the situation into a disaster that knows no bounds.

Okay, okay… So maybe it sounds a little melodramatic, but let’s face it - email certainly can be a double-edged sword. Most everything in the digital age has the capacity to spread like wildfire in the blink of an eye (or a click of the mouse). When the emailing task at hand might call for a little discretion, the BCC (which stands for Blind Carbon Copy, by the way) feature becomes a valuable tool.

Many of us already know how to use BCC and what it is, but may be unsure as to why a person would want to use it and when. Here are three situations where you should probably consider making use of the BCC feature:

To Respect the Privacy of Your Recipients

There will be times when you might have to send e-mail messages that contain potentially sensitive or personal addresses for the recipients. Not everyone wants their email address broadcast out to a bunch of people that don’t know. As a practice of common courtesy, error on the side of caution and use BCC. This way, both the number of people receiving the email and their identities will remain a secret.  

To Keep the Correspondence to a Third Party a Secret

Perhaps you need to keep one person in the loop, but you want to keep it on the down-low from another recipient. For example, if your boss wants to be kept up to date on a deal with a new client, but you don’t want that client to feel like the conversation is being monitored. BCC would allow your boss to keep tabs on things discreetly. Whatever your specific reason may be, BCC is the best and simplest option to get the job done.

To Stop the "Reply To All" Madness

Nobody enjoys having messages pile up in their inbox because of too many people hitting the “REPLY TO ALL” button. Few things are as annoying as getting one email after another from people you don’t know, talking about something you don’t care about.

Whether it is for a work-related email or just an invitation sent out to family and friends, there is an easy way to prevent this headache. All you have to do is simply enter the names of some or all of your recipients in the BCC field before you send out your email.

TL;DR: To Keep It Classy

Using BCC is a great way to protect the privacy of both recipients and senders of email. It is easy to remember, convenient to use and can ensure that your e-mail remains safe. Why BCC is so helpful, it could even stand for, “Being Classy with Correspondence!”

To get even more out of your email experience, take Shift for a test drive today. You’ll never want to manage your email without it again.