Learning to stay on top of the barrage of emails and daily tasks at work will save you time and help you increase your business. That much is obvious, right? Well it’s easier said than done. As a marketing and communications firm, we help others manage their messaging, branding and communication. And, with a full-scale print production plant, we run hundreds of print orders through our production plant, every day. In order to help our own clients succeed it’s crucial that we stay on top of our own communications—managing emails, calls, texts, and project communications.
Last week in our company meeting, Jeff Alexander delivered some helpful hints for managing our email inboxes so that we can manage time and customers in a more effective manner. We hope these 5 helpful tips will help you boost productivity and ROI for your business.
1. Know your project deadlines before opening your inbox in the morning
For most of us, we check our emails first thing when we sit down at our desks. However, you waste valuable time when you get sucked into projects or correspondence that don’t rank high on your priority list. I like to keep a list by my desk (yes, a written reminder does help me) of my most immediate deadlines. When I get to my desk I always check that list first to make sure that I am getting to emails concerning those high-priority projects before I check anything else.
2. Respond promptly but not immediately
You know those clients or customers who send you loads of emails, with questions and follow ups? You might be able to manage one or two of those clients, but what happens when you grow your business and you get fifteen of those clients? If you’re constantly trying to give clients an immediate response, you’re doing yourself a disservice. Understand that while responding promptly is essential, responding immediately isn’t. Set your client’s expectations right the first time, letting them know you will respond to all emails within a certain amount of time, and that you’ll be aware of certain projects that may require immediate response. Managing client expectations will ultimately help you manage your inbox.
3. Set automatic sorting or responding options
If you’re using an email service like Outlook, you can program automated responses and sorting. For instance, I receive email alerts every time something is published to the Alexander’s blog, so I’ve set up a system that recognizes the senders email address, automatically removes those emails from my inbox, and then places them in a specific folder. This way, less important emails aren’t clogging up my inbox. When I have more time, I can still return to those auto-sorted emails. Auto-responders are also extremely helpful. Say you’ll be away from your email for more than a few hours, you might want to set an auto-response message requesting that clients text or call you in case of urgency, otherwise, they can expect to hear from you the next day.
4. Save articles, surveys and videos for later
While I’d like to give props to marketers for creating attractive content delivered right to my email inbox, I also realize that articles, surveys, videos and other content too often derail me from being productive. That quick check of the email can turn into an hour long time waste if you don’t save some of that content for later. Have a system in check where you can sort or mark interesting content and return back to it.
5. Understand that not everything can be solved with emails
There are times when your project needs to be managed over the phone, or in-person. Recognize when those projects are at your desk, and bypass email correspondence to save time and unnecessary back-and-forth correspondence.
If you need help managing your marketing or print projects, contact us. We’d love to help.
