From replying to commonly asked questions, sending reminders for upcoming meetings, or emailing your team a note about end-of-month tasks, as a business owner, you likely find yourself sending the same emails over and over.
This not only makes you feel like a broken record, but it’s not a good use of your time!
Instead of typing out new emails each and every time for these repetitive messages in Gmail, I’ve found a few tricks to streamline the process.
Here are 4 ways to save time writing emails in Gmail:
1. Use the Gmail Templates Feature
In Gmail, there’s a “Templates” feature that allows you to save frequently written messages so you can quickly turn them into new emails.
For instance, if you regularly send meeting reminders to clients, you can save that standard language as a template. When you need to send out your next reminder email, you can select this template, customize the message if necessary, and press send, or schedule send if you’re planning ahead.
To use the “Templates” feature, you’ll first need to ensure it’s enabled in your Gmail account. From a desktop browser, click on the “Settings” button, or cog icon, in the top right corner of your Gmail account. Click the “See all settings” button, then select the “Advanced” tab, and there you should see the “Templates” feature with options to “enable” and “disable” it.
Once you have the “Template” feature enabled, you’ll be able to create up to 50 templates and easily access them from Gmail’s message composer. This article in the Google Workspace Learning Center includes detailed instructions on how to create, insert, and delete templates.
Other examples of emails you might want to turn into templates include monthly account statements, weekly reminder emails to complete timecards, notifications that photos are ready for viewing, and order confirmation messages. It will save you from wasting time writing redundant emails and will also speed up your response time.
2. Automatic Replies with Filters
If you find yourself frequently sending the same standard response, for instance, a confirmation that someone’s job application or inquiry has been received, you can use Gmail’s filters and templates features to automatically respond to those specific emails.
First, make sure your standard response has been turned into a template in Gmail (See “Use the Templates Feature” section above for more details). Then, create a filter that searches for those specific emails, and then you’ll want to choose the “Send template” option and select your standard response template.
Once you’ve created this filter, any time an email comes in matching the parameters you set, the sender will automatically receive that standard response.
Not only is this great customer service, but it also eliminates the task of you manually sending the emails.
3. Draft Message in Google Docs
When you’re working with an assistant or other team members who all need access to the same email templates, it can be helpful to save frequently written emails as “Building blocks” in a shared Google Doc.
The “Email draft” building block allows you to convert messages drafted in Google Docs into drafted emails in Gmail with the click of a button. For more information on Google Docs Building Blocks, check out my blog post 5 Google Docs Features to Help You Be More Productive.
While this might initially seem like an extra step, or like it would be easier to use the “Templates” feature in Gmail, these “Building blocks” ensure a consistent brand language no matter who sends the email, plus, you can guarantee everyone is using the most up-to-date templates.
This can also be a great way to draft longer, more detailed emails that you might need to come back to.
4. Setup Zapier Automations
If you send emails on a regular basis that require some customization, I recommend setting up Zapier automations. With Zapier, you can set up Zaps, or automations, to automatically draft or send emails whenever certain parameters are met.
For instance, every time a new consultation is booked in Calendly, Zapier will automatically draft a reminder email in my Gmail account that’s addressed to the recipient’s email, and adds their name and appointment time to the message.
This saves me the time of drafting each new email and also allows me the opportunity to further personalize the message (in case it’s someone I know or have already been in contact with) and schedule it to send from Gmail exactly 24 business hours before our consultation.
As you can see, you don’t have to give up quality customer service in order to save time and streamline your repetitive messages.
Depending on the email you’re writing, the audience you’re sending it to, and the amount of customization you’re looking for, you can choose any or all of these time-saving tips.
In fact, I use a combination of these methods to help me save time in Gmail, speed up my response time, and maintain high-quality customer service!
For help setting up custom templates, filters, and Zapier automations, schedule a Discovery Call with me to get started.
For more tips to help you grow and scale your business and spend less time running it, be sure to subscribe to my email list and follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.