Emails have undoubtedly provided us with one of the most convenient and fastest ways of sending and receiving important messages. However, in the business world, it is becoming overwhelming. There are billions of emails sent every day and irrespective of the number of people employed to manage emails, it will prove extremely difficult and could definitely hinder the general productivity and business operations of an organization.
This is where an effective email management system comes into play and for it to be successful, there are certain features that need to be present. Below are features that anyone should have in their choice of email management solution.
1. Comprehensive dashboard
An effective email manager should have a comprehensive dashboard where you have everything you need right at your fingertips. Probably most importantly, the dashboard should be able to list all pending emails that require your attention. This will increase the efficiency with which you respond to queries and even make the work easier for your employees.
The dashboard should at a minimum contain buttons to easily reply, forward, and delete emails and allow the user to create different files to sort emails into based on user, project, or topic. A comprehensive dashboard improves productivity by easily allowing the general management of email communication and offering everything you need to all on one screen.
2. Automatic responses and templates
An effective email management solution must have an option of sending automatic replies especially to emails sent when an employee is not available. For instance, if someone is not in the office or on vacation, it is crucial that the sender of the email is aware that the email was received and will be responded to at a later date.
Additionally, email solutions should also have capabilities that allow an employee to compose templates of letters that are used on a regular basis. This saves a lot of time as it allows an employee to avoid writing common letters, use a template with all needed information, but give the impression of personalized and individual responses.
3. Email routing
Email routing involves making a carbon copy of an original email based on rules specified by the user and then sent to additional recipients. Messages can be sent to the intended recipient or forwarded to a different user or destination. Every email goes through a filtering process to ensure that it is free of spam. The routing process makes another copy and ensures that your email goes to the right recipient.
Routing is a crucial option of an email client as it protects against emails that make contain malicious content or viruses. It is an effective method to keep track of important emails and ensure every employee is kept informed. Having routing processes in your email management client will allow you to stay ahead of the competition in terms of organization and efficiency.
4. Comprehensive History
The email management software that you choose to employ should have a comprehensive history of all the emails that you have either received or sent. The email manager should store important histories because it will enable you to determine whether someone’s query was responded to or not. An email client’s history should have a search option to allow an employee easy access to sent and received emails when needed.
Sometimes, people delete an email they think they no longer need but it is determined later that they do in fact require it. An effective email management solution will allow access to deleted items and usually allow access for an extended period based on perimeters in the email client.
