How to avoid five big email headaches

How to avoid five big email headaches

A flexible, modern email system can really make your life easier. Advanced email clients combine your email, calendar, address book and file management tools to make it easier to find the messages and files you need.

Here are some of the ways an advanced email system can help you avoid the most time-consuming, headache-inducing aspects of email.

1. Finding and organising related files

We often store messages, documents and files relating to the same subject in different places. This means you need to waste time switching between different apps and windows to access them.

An advanced email system will help you keep all information about a particular subject in a single folder. You can assign categories to files and folders too, making it easier to identify what you need.

2. File loss and corruption

Most email systems store messages, attachments, calendar data and contacts within a single database file (in Microsoft Outlook, for example, data is stored in .pst files).

As the file grows in size, performance suffers. But more seriously, if it gets deleted or corrupted, you can lose everything. An advanced email client avoids this by processing and storing messages and documents as separate files in regular folders.

3. Data security and downtime

Even the very largest, most reputable email services can go down occasionally. This can leave you cut-off from crucial data.

An advanced email client will combine offline and online storage so that data is stored on your computer as well as on the email server. This means you can access it even if the email service goes down.

4. Switching between accounts

One big limitation of web-based email services like Google Mail is that it can be tricky to access more than one email account, address book or calendar without constantly logging in and out.

However, advanced email clients can connect to and work with several accounts at once, so you can use multiple mailboxes, calendars and address books more easily.

5. Getting support when you need it

Modern email applications have become increasingly more sophisticated. That’s a good thing, until you run into a problem. Then it can feel like you’re on your own — especially if you’re using a free service.

Switching to an advanced email client for which you pay a small amount each month should give you access to proper support channels, so you can search for help online or pick up the phone if you get stuck.

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This is a guest post from Vladimir Spirin, managing director at EverDesk.