Research conducted by the International Data Corporation states 28 percent of an average workweek is spent managing email. What was once a happy relationship with a technology that delivered messages in a matter of seconds is now a relationship that exist only out of necessity.
Email is important professionally and personally, but the time spent organizing, reading and responding to emails can be demanding and time consuming. Here’s a list of free Google Chrome plugins for Gmail designed to save time, increase efficiency and make managing your inbox less stress stressful.
Productivity
1. Boomerang: Schedule emails to be sent at a specific time or date, even if you’re not online at that time. With this Google Chrome plugin, You can track your messages to make sure you get a response and set reminders for an email after a specified number of days.
2. Gmail Offline: This tool allows you to use Gmail when you don’t have an Internet connection. Read and respond to mail offline and when you connect again, the composed emails are sent off.
3. Minimalist for Everything: Make Gmail less cluttered and recover valuable content space with this Google Chrome plugin by eliminating Google’s navigation bar to make it much simpler to use.
4. Assistant.to: This tool takes the hassle out of scheduling meetings. The Google Chrome plugin monitors your availability, can detect and convert varying time zones to eliminate confusion, and sends out notifications to both you and your recipient when a meeting has been scheduled, rescheduled, or cancelled.
5. Todoist: This plugin lets you convert emails into tasks, set task priorities, and sync tasks across numerous platforms.
6. Streak: This is CRM for your inbox, Streak’s mission is for you to “run your entire business from your inbox.” With this Google Chrome plugin, you can easily manage tons of emails with tools like tracking, templates for frequently written emails such as follow-ups, and quickly send out customized sales messages.
7. Gmail Snooze: The snooze button is no longer just for early Monday mornings. With this plugin, you can hit snooze on emails that you want to deal with later. A drop-down menu allows you to delay your message anywhere from five minutes to days later. When the time runs out, you’ll receive a reminder to follow up.
Communication
8. Checker Plus: This Google Chrome plugin allows you to get desktop notifications and go through emails without opening Gmail. Its ability to seamlessly support multiple accounts and its customizable settings make it one of Chrome’s highest-rated extensions.
9. Ginger: Avoid embarrassing spelling and grammar mistakes by installing this plugin. Potential errors are indicated with underlines, like in popular word processing applications such as Microsoft Word. By right-clicking on the marked words or phrases the user can select a suggested correction.
10. Google Dictionary: Never misuse words in an email again. With Google Dictionary, you can double-click on any word and its definition pops up.
11. Google Translate: This Google Chrome extension allows you to translate entire pages with a toolbar button. Use in email to detect different languages from your Chrome default, and have it translated automatically.
Privacy/Security
12. SecureGmail: This extension allows you to encrypt and decrypt emails you send in Gmail. By simply clicking a button. your email can become encrypted so no one but your intended recipient can read it.
13. UnrollMe: End the daily flood of unwanted messages. UnrollMe identifies all newsletters or mass emails from companies and allows you to put them into a single email and choose to either unsubscribe or to receive one daily email that summarizes the entire collection.
14. AdBlock Plus: This is one of the most popular ad-blockers online. Block intrusive adds and third party tracking with ease and make room for the important messages.
Advanced Tools
15. Rapportive: Maintaining multiple conversations or projects via email can get overwhelming and confusing. Always know who you’re writing to with this extension. Rapportive loads a sidebar next to each message, pulling details from social-networking sites. Think of it as a mini LinkedIn profile that allows you to add personal notes about messages.
16. HelloSign: Complete applications and deals faster by using legally binding e-signatures on documents that you receive as attachments in Gmail. The free accounts allow for three signed documents per month and the paid accounts are unlimited.
17. SideKick by Hubspot: With this extension, never again worry about whether your email was received. It allows you to see when, where, and how many times the recipient opened your email.
18. Awesome Screenshot: This Google Chrome plugin allows for capturing an entire web page or just part of it with the click of one button. Other features include adding comments, blurring sensitive information, and easy sharing.
19. WiseStamp: Create a memorable email signature with this Gmail plugin. Add creative photos, links to your websites, and icons for your social media profiles. You can even implement Google Analytics to maximize engagement and clicks on your signature.
Gmail’s One-Stop Shop
20. Gmelius: This extension offers many of what other extensions offer, but condensed into one. It helps protect privacy by detecting and blocking tracking attempts and making unsubscribing from mass newsletters easy. It also boosts productivity by scheduling email, turning emails to tasks, and allowing the creation of email templates. All of this can be accessed through the settings button within your Gmail inbox once it is downloaded.
When used effectively, email is a very useful – and necessary – tool for both personal and professional communication. Most people feel overwhelmed by their inbox and often ignore dozens of emails every day. Hopefully, some of these 20 Google Chrome plugins can help ease the anxiety you feel the next time you see that new mail notification.