FAQ: Email Efficiency

Once upon a time, I wrote an FAQ post I wasn’t sure anyone would find worth the reading. After all, I’m not an expert. (Though I am when it comes to coining fake words and mixing the perfect chocolate syrup : milk ratio.) But I do like to share what few tips I know have worked for me. After some solid feedback on the first installment of FAQ‘s, I thought I’d compile a list of tips on a topic we ALL struggle with: email and efficiency. Okay, in all actuality, I came up with a list of TWELVE tips for efficiency in general, but soon found that half of them had to do with answering emails. Go figure. :) So we’ll save the rest for a later time… But for now? On we go! Tips that I’ve found indispensable to maintaining sanity and efficiency while emailing:

1) Put some form of calendar/schedule on your website AND blog. If you are anything like me, emails have the capacity to consume literally five hours of your workday. And if anything is absolutely NOT efficient, it’s that! Adding a calendar of dates you’ve already booked or are unavailable for will weed out those brides your schedule simply can’t allow you to work with. And this means answering waaay fewer emails. Which is good for just about everybody. :)

2) Make entering a wedding date a requirement for your contact form. Before developing my new website and brand, I had a contact form that asked for the potential client’s name, email address, and message. While this generally worked, I quickly came to realize that I could not assume brides would give me the kind of information I needed from the onset. I.e., Half of the messages wouldn’t include the wedding date, which is absolutely essential for gauging my availability. Again, making this a requirement has proven efficient because I spend far less time answering date-related questions via email.

3) Remove your phone number from your website/blog/ads. I am fully aware that this may not be the answer for everybody. Plenty of people would much rather pick up a phone to chat than using any other method of communication. BUT, I am just not one of those girls. Except when it comes to my momma… I call her about three times a day. ;) What this decision came down to for me was this: I was tired of having to field through voicemails of scammers trying to sell me ink cartridges and credit card machines for small businesses; I am able to provide much more thorough information to potential clients when I am able to truly digest and THINK about it first; AND I want to retain information that is SEARCHABLE via email. I know this sounds like the opposite of efficiency because it’s encouraging MORE emails rather than phone calls, but if you’re implementing the rest of these tips, then it shouldn’t be much of an issue. :)

4) Keep template emails saved in your drafts folder. As photographers, we are required to answer all sorts of the same exact questions and emails on a daily basis: general inquiries; album design questions; and so on. Nearly all of the correspondence I keep with my brides has the same core structure and content because draft emails and copy/paste are two of my BEST friends. This is NOT to say you shouldn’t spice up each email with a little personality and content specific to the bride at hand. But efficiency sky rockets when you’re not trying to say the same thing you’ve said 10 times in a new way the 11th time around.

5) Never be more than a day behind on emails. I KNOW this may sound absolutely crazy to the majority of you. And once upon a time, it would have sounded equally as crazy to me. Of course your capacity to stick to this rule is primarily dependent on how many important, must-respond-to emails you get in one day. But I’ve found that if I can catch myself up at least once per day, I am far less stressed, far more efficient, and far more motivated to get ‘er done.

6) Delete/archive emails you don’t need to keep. Part of the reason I’m able to feel like catching up on emails is remotely possible is because I only keep those emails which actually MEAN something to me. I often delete OR archive those emails which take up visual space in my inbox. I do NOT need to respond to emails from the prince of Siberia or even Anthropologie for that matter. And so? I delete them. My inbox is thereafter comprised of ONLY those emails I need to keep at hand for future and important reference, AND those I need to respond to. It’s like magic, people. Magic.

I hope these tips are found helpful! I encourage you to share your thoughts in the comment section below, and by ALL means, share some email-efficiency tips of your own! :) Happy Wednesday!