This week at VAnetworking.com, another virtual assistant posted about optimizing Gmail. Boy, I use Gmail quite a bit. The accounts are easy to set up; I like the ‘thread’ format for replying, forwarding, etc.
I’ve set up a couple accounts for clients so they could get the benefit of Google.apps., but, I hadn’t thought of the activity in terms of ‘optimizing’.
So, I started digging into Gmail to learn more. And, there is indeed more.
The email accounts have several options available in the settings department. I like the idea of being able to FORWARD the email to another account instead of having to set up the IPOP mixture. This isn’t new to me; I’ve done that since I first got Gmail.
Gmail labs has some interesting apps that work with FireFox or on their own. Now, I can access my Gmail offline (begins to resemble Outlook). I can set up an application that senses if I’ve left out a name when planning an email. There is another one that senses when I’ve added someone who SHOULDN’T included in the receiver list.
Instead of the typical ‘file folder’ format used by Outlook and many web-based email services, Gmail uses a system called Labels. It took me awhile to get used to that, but it works very well for organizing emails that you aren’t going to throw away. Now, there is an ‘app’ that lets me set filter rules to automatically label and sort some mail.
For collaboration projects, the Google Sites application (only available with a Google Apps account) offers a true wiki atmosphere where everyone on a team can see where the rest of the group are, plus add either new material or comment.
Instant collaboration enjoys the Gmail chat option. For indepth collaboration, that gmail account can connect to the Beta Google WAVE.
Google, with applications and Gmail, clearly intends to be a toolset that can appeal to the working computer addict who isn’t necessarily defined by the big name on the CLOUD application. Google has a price I can’t turn away from — cash can be useful, but isn’t necessary.
I intend to learn more about optimizing Gmail and the Google applications. They make sense to me in both action and price. Granted some of the desktop items aren’t as smooth as the BIG software suite, but they do work.
At Particularly Virtual and on @ Bar JD Virtual Professionals, I plan to keep an eye on this option for working online.
