Organization, Starting in Your Email

In a world of data overload you can start organizing your working day right in your email. See how we do it in this step-by-step guide.

Note: The instructions here are based on the use of an account through Google or hosted by Google. While the images may be different, the same general rules can be applied to any email provider.

step 1: know how you organize information

In Bookkeeping and Accounting everything is organized by client, but this may not be true in your industry. The first step is knowing how to group your emails in a manner that fits your business. Depending on who you serve, or what information is best used to organize your work you will want to think of a convention that will allow you to sub-categorize by as little or as much information as you need. 

STEP 2: SET up system labels 

While logged into your Google hosted email select settings>labels (you can also access this page from the menu on the left side of your inbox - under "Categories" is a link to "Manage Labels". You will then want to "Create a new label" for your "Parent" categories, as seen in STEP #1, I have "Work" and "Personal."

Once you have set up the "Parent" labels you will want to make the "Child" labels, as seen in STEP #1, I have "Clients" and "Company Administration." You will enter the label name and then select to "Nest label under" the parent label you previously created.

Repeat the same process when you create the "Grandchild" labels (example: "Client #1"), this time nesting them under the "Child" accounts (example: "Clients"). You can keep getting more specific if you would like - dividing by Jobs or Topics, etc. If you decide to organize more specifically be sure you are up to the task of maintaining those folders.

STep 3: organize your historical emails

This is the most painstaking part - but it only has to be done once! In order to take full advantage of the email organization you need your emails from the moment you opened your email (or started your business) to be labeled and filed. You can speed this process up by scanning your inbox by client or email address, selecting the box on the left and then assigning them to a folder (click on the folder icon and select from the labels you created in STEP #2. 

The goal is to have nothing in your inbox that you don't have to. One of the most satisfying things about organization is finishing something and then (hopefully) never having to look at it again. You should only have open-ended items in your inbox forever-more. When you come across something that needs follow-up you should leave it in your inbox.

STep 4: Tag the items in your inbox

When you tag emails you assign names from your labels list we created earlier. The idea of tagging is to organize what is still open in your inbox without yet filing them in the label folders. I find that the label color helps me to spot multiple items open with one client, even from different topics and email addresses faster. Easily tag your emails by checking the select box on the left of the email and then the tag icon from the folder menu above. To change the color of tags/labels hover over the label name in the navigation menu on the left of your inbox and click on the small arrow that appears next to the label name then "Label color."

STep 5: subject smarter

Now that your inbox is clean, and you can find all your emails by client, or job, or topic in your folders, the last (and maybe most important) step is emailing with organization in mind. When you open your email, and therefore when your clients or vendors open their emails, the first thing they will see of your communication is your subject line. In order to make your future self appreciate it I suggest starting with the client or job name and then one line about the topic of the email. This may seem obvious to some, but to others it could be more difficult to remember, or you may not have as much experience in email etiquette as others - either way your business partners (and you when they respond to your clean inbox) will appreciate it.

An organized email makes your working day less stressful and more productive. Maintaining this organization over-time will ensure that nothing falls through the cracks while allowing you to go over your older emails for information. Happy organizing!

Contact Willow Bookkeeping today to see what we can offer your business: