Google Apps for Business is now available to all businesses or organizations, regardless of size. It’s a free addition to your Google Cloud portfolio and can be set up quickly and easily. You can use it to create and manage documents, store data, and even reach out to customers with emails.
Why should you use Google Apps? Although it’s a fully functioning email client, the main purpose is to allow you to access your Google account anywhere, anytime, via a browser. Doing business from a mobile device? You can also use it to access your email from anywhere.
It’s a safe and secure way to store and share documents while connected to the internet. You can use the service to manage contacts, send and receive emails, and even set up automated tasks like those triggered by email campaigns. It is completely free, so there’s no risk of wasting your own time.
Let’s take a quick look at how you can put Google Apps to work for your email marketing.
Sign Up
To get started, all you need to do is log in to your Google account. From there, you can click the button labeled “Sign up for Google Apps” to get started creating an account for your business or organization.
You will then be presented with the option to create a new Google Doc or pick one from the list. You can also choose to have emails hosted by Google or, if you’re using an external email provider, have them sent to your Google account. For more complex organizations, you can have individual accounts for each employee.
Set Up A Document Listing
Once you have signed up for Google Apps and created a new document, you can start configuring it to meet your needs. The first thing you need to do is add a document menu to the top of the page. You can access this menu by clicking the little downwards-pointing arrow in the top right corner. Doing this will bring up a drop-down menu of your existing documents. To add a new document, click the “Add a document” button. A window will then pop-up where you can browse for a file or use the camera to scan a document and have it uploaded.
Make An Email List
Once you have a document list set up, you can move on to setting up automated emails. To do this, click on the “Settings” icon at the top of the Google Doc. In the drop-down menu, you can then select “Triggers and Actions”. Doing this will bring up a panel where you can set up email campaigns.
You can have emails sent to certain people when a certain event happens, such as a new order is placed, a comment is added to a document, or a meeting is finalized. You can also set them up to send out at a certain time or date. The possibilities are endless, and it’s a safe and secure way to grow your email list.
Create A Navigation Bar
If you’re looking for a single space to keep all your important business information, you can use the Google Doc’s “navigation bar”. To create one, click the “gear” icon in the top right corner, followed by clicking “Edit”. Doing this will bring up a small box where you can add a drop-down menu of your existing services like Google Drive, Gmail, and Calendar. If you run a travel business, you can also add a menu item for your travel agent or search engine that helps you find the best deals on flights and hotels. Once you have added all of your services, you can click “Done”.
The navigation bar is a great way for customers to find what they need quickly, and it lets you organize all of your business services in one place. Doing business online? Having all your services in one place makes it much easier to provide an exceptional customer experience. Even if you’re not taking advantage of all the features yet, it’s worth creating a navigation bar to help you find what you need when you need it.
Set Up Email Alerts
With the above-mentioned features set up, you can now begin to use Google Apps for email marketing. To do this, click the “Campaigns” tab and then click the “New” button to get started. Doing this will bring up a form where you can set up email alerts.
You can have certain emails sent to you based on criteria you establish, such as a customer being on a certain list or a sale being made to a specific person or group.
For instance, you can create an email alert for every new order placed and for every update made to a specific document. You can also set up rules to determine which emails get promoted and which ones stay in your inbox as well. For more complex organizations, you can have individual email alerts set up for different customers or groups of customers. This way, everyone gets what they need without having to sift through excessive amounts of email.
Use It In Your Emails
Once you have your email marketing set up, you can begin using Google Docs in your emails to provide a better customer experience. To do this, click inside your email and hit “CTRL + L” to open a Google Doc. If you’re on a mobile device, you can also open the document by simply clicking on it (in the browser window).
From there, you can click the “File” icon and then select “Download” to save the file in a convenient location. You can either view the contents of this file in the browser or click “Open” and begin typing to create a new document.
Google Docs allows for easy collaboration on any document or project. You can easily send other team members a copy of what you’re working on, and they can comment on specific parts or provide additional input. This provides you with a greater degree of transparency and potentially even saves you time and effort from re-creating the same document numerous times. If you’re seeking a collaborative tool to engage with customers, partners, and staff, then Google Docs is a must-try.
Take Advantage Of All The Features
Once you have all the above items set up, you can begin to take advantage of all the features Google Apps has to offer. To do this, click the “gear” icon in the top right corner followed by clicking “More options”. Doing this will bring up a small box where you can select which features you want to use. If you’re on a mobile device, you can also click “Menu” followed by “Settings” and then “App Settings” to access all the features.
You can use these features to organize your work and playlists, set up shortcuts to help you access important information faster, scan documents, make presentations, and much more. You can’t make a mistake with Google Apps and it’s certainly worth trying out even if you’re not entirely sure how you’ll use all the features yet.
At this point, you may be asking yourself “Is Google Apps worth it?” To answer this question, you need to look at how you plan to use it and what your expected results are. Do you just want to have a place to store documents or do you want to use the service for email marketing?
Each of these services has a specific purpose, and to know what each one is capable of, you need to look at how you plan to use it. If you plan to use the service for email marketing, then you should look at all the elements discussed above because they all have a role to play in getting you there. Once you’ve set up the basic structure of your account, you can begin using it for other tasks as well, like creating presentations or looking up phone numbers.
The bottom line is that whenever you have a choice, use the free version first to see how it performs. This way, you won’t be disappointed should you decide to upgrade later on. Just make sure you download the latest version before you begin using it because this will ensure you have all the necessary features.