Is Email Weighing You Down?
Recently, there was an interesting exchange on twitter between some friends of mine, Taryn, Eric, and Cathy… regarding email management. Because of the haphazard nature of twitter, I didn’t get the whole conversation but my conclusion was that someone was having a hard time managing their email box.
It is a problem we all have, especially since the Internet has become this content rich environment where we all subscribe to blogs, newsletters, and coupon lists from our favorite merchants. On top of that, we must sort through customer email, vendor email, partner email… and of course we all fight our spam battles. Oh, and let’s not forget those Linkedin emails… that is a category all by itself!
So what are some ways we can effectively manage our email? Here are some suggestions to help keep your inbox under control:
- Only check email a few times a day. Turn off mobile alerts and turn off your email client if you are working on something more important. Don’t let email become a distraction. Email is important, yes… but it is just email. Don’t let it eat up your time. Checking it at scheduled times will leave you time to stay on top of it, and offer you plenty of opportunity to respond timely to important matters.
- Use one email client (I use Microsoft Outlook) and make sure it is synced with any mobile devices or other computers that you use. Have all your different email accounts filter into that one program.
- Immediately delete stuff you know you will never do anything with. Have you ever received a great offer from somewhere like Staples but it is something you know you will not be in the market for anytime soon? I have. And as much as I’m temped to hang onto that email, I just delete it. Oh, and of course delete the spam too. I’m a big fan of the delete button.
- Respond to the most important messages immediately, during your scheduled email time.
- Create separate folders for the most important aspects of your business. I keep folders for each of my insurance carriers, folders for customers, and folders for prospects. I also keep folders for networking opportunities and new partnerships. Instead of letting your new email sit in your inbox, flag it for follow up and move it to a folder. Out of sight out of mind.
- Follow up on flagged items. Just because you are moving your items out of sight doesn’t mean they are not important. Stay on top of those items – but again, if something is just not that important – delete it.
- And the Linkedin emails? Just turn those notifications off!
The reason that this has worked well for me is that it normally leaves my primary inbox with no more than thirty messages in it at any given time. It is much less overwhelming and because I have my items sorted in folders, it allows me to be more efficient with my email response time. It also makes items easier to find if I have to come back to them later. Procrastination is often the result of feeling overwhelmed, and having a good email strategy will help tremendously.
Photo Credit: Bueny
Chris Jordan is an independent insurance agent in Atlanta. He specializes in auto, home, life, and business insurance . As an independent agent, he can place your policy with a number of different carriers! His promise is to offer you a level of service you have never seen before!
