Email is one on the most valuable timesaving tools
available in the business world today. Imagine if every
time you had to get a message to a client, supplier or
employee, you had to pick-up the phone or meet with them in
person. The lost hours could be astronomical. Thankfully
email allows us to save the time potentially lost to the
chit-chat and idle gossip that can occur as a result of
talking on the phone or in person. But as much time as
email can save for some, it is a major distraction that
actually causes the loss of concentration and time for
others.
Let's face it, with email being such a quick and simple
form of communication, most people don't think twice about
responding to emails as they arrive or sending a "quick"
note on just about anything. But, all those "quick" notes
can quickly add up. If you find that way too much time in
your day is being lost to email, the following tips may
help you regain the precious time that was meant to be
saved by email.
1. Set a schedule to read and respond to emails. For most
business owners or employees, reading and responding to
your emails at scheduled times at the beginning, middle and
end of the day will prevent the loss of concentration that
can be caused by responding to email as it arrives. For
some, it's vital to check emails almost constantly
throughout the day. If this is the case for you, only
respond to the most urgent emails, and reply to the less
pressing ones during your scheduled email response times.
2. Set up an email organizational system. You can program
your email to automatically sort itself for you based on
certain conditions such as, the sender or the title. Some
email programs such as MS Outlook will even let you color
code your email, to allow you to sort them more efficiently
and differentiate between important and non-urgent emails.
3. Set-up an autoresponder for general client inquiries.
An autoresponder will automatically respond to emails sent
to it. This means you can respond to frequently asked
questions automatically while for other inquiries, you can
let the client know that their message has been received
and give them a time frame in which you will respond to
their inquiry.
4. Don't be afraid not to respond to friends sending you
chain emails or jokes. If you don't have time to read them
and/or respond, just delete. Most people won't be offended
by not receiving a "ha ha, very funny" email in return.
5. If you have an Administrative Assistant, allow them to
sort your email and send general responses to the less
important ones. An Assistant can also check your email
throughout the day and notify you of anything that needs to
be responded to urgently. Exchange servers facilitate this
timesaving method. If an Assistant isn't feasible for you
due to space or monetary considerations, you could consider
delegating this task to a Virtual Assistant.
6. If a considerable amount of your time is being wasted
sorting through junk mail, if possible, heighten your email
security. If this is not possible, performing a simple
internet search for "stop spam" should give you a selection
of programs designed to decrease or eliminate spam.
Email was developed to be a timesaving device. Don't let
it run your business day by making you less efficient. By
simply organizing your email and setting specific times to
respond to it, you can gain back the time that was
initially meant to be saved by email.
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Kelly Sims is a Virtual Assistant and President of
Virtually There VA Services. To find out more about
virtual assistance and how using a Virtual Assistant can
simplify your life, visit her website at =>
http://www.virtuallythereva.com . While you're there,
don't forget to sign up for her free monthly newsletter
providing useful information that enhances and simplifies
the lives of busy entrepreneurs.
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