GMAIL TIPS

Listed below are a few GMAIL tips to keep you learning new things about your Gmail and help you use it in a more efficient, organized way.

• USE STARS TO INDICATE A GMAIL IS SPECIAL

Use stars to easily mark certain messages as important or indicate that you need to reply to them later. Try Superstars in Settings for more star options.

You can also choose to use multiple types of stars to indicate different types of messages. For example, you might use a green star for messages you want to read again and a red exclamation mark for messages that you need to follow up on.

Click the gear icon  in the upper right, then select Settings

1. On the General tab, find the "Stars" section and select the stars you'd like to have available
2. Click Save Changes

• ORGANIZE YOUR EMAIL WITH LABELS

  Labels do the work of folders, plus you can add more than one to a single message. Give important emails brightly colored labels, and you'll be able to scan your inbox and quickly find the good stuff.
  

• CLEAN UP YOUR INBOX USING "MOVE TO"-- it works just like folders

You can use the "Move to" button at the top of your inbox to easily move a message out of your inbox and add a label at the same time -- just as if you were moving it to a folder. If you have lots of labels, you can pick the one you want by typing the first couple characters and let auto-complete find the right one.

• SEARCH YOUR MAIL INSTEAD OF SORTING

Instead of sorting by date or sender, you can enter keywords in the Gmail search box to find the exact message you're looking for. It works just like Google search: if you're looking for a message that contains the word "bell schedule," simply type shopping in the search box and press the search button.

• ARCHIVE MESSAGES TO TIDY UP YOUR INBOX WITHOUT DELETING ANY MESSAGES

  Gmail gives you tons of free storage space so you can save everything you want. While messages in your trash get deleted after 30 days, archived messages are kept forever. Archiving messages moves them out of your inbox and into "All Mail" for safekeeping, so you can search for them later. It's like moving old email to a giant storage room that you never have to organize.  ALL MAIL is found on the left side of your window --usually under the MORE section.
  

• ADD AN EMAIL SIGNATURE TO YOUR MESSAGE

Sign off every message with a customized signature. You can add additional contact information, or even an image. You can add a signature in Settings.

How to create a signature:

1. Click the gear icon  in the upper right, then select Settings
2. Enter your new signature text in the box at the bottom of the page next to the Signature option
3. Click Save Changes

• SPICE UP YOUR INBOX WITH A THEME

Choose from over 30 options to personalize your inbox. Go to the Themes tab under Settings and pick from nature themes, themes that change with the weather, and many more.

To find themes:

1. Click the gear icon  in the upper right, then select Settings
2. Click Themes