Gmail is one of the most popular email services in the world. It is loved not only for its pleasant interface, convenient settings, and security but also for various additional features.
Google tools help out a lot when you need to parse work correspondence, add important meetings to your calendar, or make a to-do list for the day. If you don’t know that all this can be done without leaving the mail tab, then read on – today, we are talking about five little-known but very useful features hidden in your Gmail account.
For correspondence
Let’s start with the essential, that is, with the mail. First of all, you need to do three things.
Enable unsend messages. If at least once you send a letter to the wrong person (with whom you don’t happen), then you understand why we write about this feature in the first place. The next time you mix up an address, quickly press “Cancel” and breathe deeply.
Install the Boomerang app. Did you hear? A very useful thing, especially if you are a creative and not very organized person. What is it for? To remind you of unread messages, send emails at scheduled times, and send reminders to those who haven’t replied to you. Keeping everything in your head is impossible, and there is no need, so get yourself such an assistant, and life will become a little easier.
Enable “Response Templates” in “Labs.” Does it happen that you have to answer the same question or write the same letters to different people? Simplify your task – make templates for typical messages and use them if necessary. If you are writing to colleagues or customers, it is better to adjust the text manually, but it takes much less time when there is a ready-made template.
For business
If you’re a business or freelancer, consider moving your email to yours. What will it give? Let’s imagine that your company is called Early Bird. Instead of one earlybird@gmail.com address, you can create several at once: info@earlybird.com, support@earlybird.com, billing@earlybird.com, etc. It looks more professional; clients think that you have a solid firm with separate divisions, and you maintain order in business and work communications. And all these thanks to the mail on your domain.
For communication
If you can’t make a phone call, use Google Hangouts and have a video call. You can call colleagues who work remotely or answer customer questions in real-time. If you want, arrange a video conference with several participants at once if you need to discuss something together. Just before you start, don’t forget to install the free plugin.
For self-organization
You may have many productivity apps, but if you’re not well organized, they won’t help you. Don’t despair; let’s see what Google has to offer! And he offers a great solution for those drowning in a pile of new letters every day. Customize your inbox so that groups and importance categorize messages. Then create labels and tag emails with them. Labels, by the way, can be made in color – many people like it and find it convenient. Now, when the incoming flow is under control, you can make a list of tasks, set target dates, and start execution.
For everything else: Google Drive instead of MS Office
Remember, before we downloaded and bought special programs for working with texts, tables, and presentations? Today, that’s all in the past because anyone with Gmail can open Google Drive and start any document. Conveniently, you are not “tied” to a specific computer and can work on a task from different devices. Another plus of Google Drive is that it’s great for collaboration. To start a shared file, you need to click the “Share” button and enter the email address. He will have access to the document and be able to make changes and leave comments. This is much better than sending texts and tables by mail, risking getting confused in versions.
