Hi all -
I always send client e-mail via shootq to get the BCC field. However, what about the return e-mails? When they reply, what's the best way to get their responses into shootq for tracking?
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Hi Thomas
Are you on a Mac? If so here is what I do.
Whenever I have a new booking, the first thing I do is create a "Group" in my address book associated with each specific shoot. I add contact for each and every relationship that I have access to (i.e. mother of bride, father of bride, etc... ) For each contact within the associated group, I insure I enter that persons main email address along with any additional email address they may use to communicate with me in the future. I also make sure I include the specific shootQ email address associated with the shoot.
Next I create a smart email box in my Apple Mail app relating to the specific shoot.
Then I create a email rule that looks at all incoming emails and if it sees an incoming email which contains the email address of any relationship, or shoot member and I have the rule do 2 things. First I have it change the color of the email heading to a specific color that I have designated to associate that shoot. Next I have it forward a copy of that email to the shoot' inside ShootQ associated with the incoming email address. Since I have all of the contacts related to each specific shoot grouped in my Apple address book, it's easy to define the rule to forward a copy of the emil to shootQ simply by using the group located in the Address Book.
Additionally, I create a 2nd smart email box in Apple mail to keep track of all emails I send out to my clients from Apple Mail. Since all of the contacts associated with the individual shoots have the ShootQ address listed as one of their address, it's easy for me to send a BCC to ShootQ directly from inside Apple mail without having to look up the ShootQ email address since it shows up under their name as an alternate email address for that contact. The smart mail box then simply provides me with a quick list of all emails I have sent to anyone associated with any specific shoot while the color code for the heading of the email all match the as a group of emails sent.
Bottom line, any email I receive in Apple Mail, and any email i send from Apple mail related to any specific shoot ends up with a copy of that correspondence inside the ShootQ.
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Thanks Ron - I just set it up. This was VERY helpful.
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Your welcome Thomas, glad I could help.
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Ron,
What a cool way to approach the problem! Thanks for sharing this with the community :)
- Jonathan
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Not only is it cool approach, but since it's a mail rule and can be applied to everything in you rmailbox, when you apply the rule, all the old correspondence gets forwarded into shootq. It's takes a little more effort to get set up, but not much.
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There is one caution about setting this method up. When you make a new rule and save it, Mail asks if you want to apply your rules to messages in selected mailboxes? On the Info screen, it also says; "Applying rules to the selected mailboxes may change their contents. Active rules will always be applied to new messages."
If you select "Apply" it doesn't just run the NEW rule you just created, it runs all of your rules, again! In return, and rules you have setup in the past to forward a copy of a clients email to their Shoot will take place "AGAIN" creates 2 problems. You will get duplicate emails forwarded to your clients shoot, and if you have a lot of emails from clients (which you will over time) you risk using your maximum amount of emails you can send from your email server. I think my limit is 500 emails a day. I've been on the phone with the people at Apple (MobileMe) at least 2 times because all of a sudden I am not able to send out any emails, because I have exceded my daily limit, and thought there was something going wacky with my mail server. The people at Apple just kept telling me I had exceded my limit, and I would get more and more aggravated at them telling them they are wrong. After this happen 2 or 3 times, It finally hit me one day when I had added a new rule to mail, which had nothing to do with ShootQ or my clients, but I noticed Mail was sending mail from to my clients shoots.
So a word to the wise, if you use this method, make sure you disable any active rules you have set up to forward your clients emails to their shoots, before you click the "Apply" button, otherwise just make sure you hit the Don't Apply button to the question do you want to apply your rules to messages in selected mailboxes?
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Haha! Ron... I figured that out the hard way. Not because I got shut down, but because I looked at my correspondence and noticed that I had 2 or 3 or 4 duplicates all with a "FW:" in the subject. Ooops... ;-)
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Oh I'm sorry Thomas. I meant to post something about that here when I discovered it a while back, but it slipped my mind. I ran across the thread again today and I remembered the problems it cause me and stopped what I was working on to post about it. Are you still using this method, and just being careful when adding new rules? Are have you stopped this practice? I still use it because I also have the message header change to a specific color I've designated for that client, and I have Mail make a specific sound when I get new mail from a current client. I'm just careful when I make new rules.
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I still use it. It works great. I just don't hit "apply rule to inbox" or whatever it says. No worries. I discovered it pretty early on, so it doesn't cause much harm. The benefits far out weigh the issues.
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Good deal! I hope is hasn't cause any problems for anyone else.
I think ShootQ has a test program set up to automatically send a copy of any emails they send you (Correction, I should say when they reply to an email you have sent them from inside ShootQ.) if you have this option turned on. But again, this will only work if they are replying to a message you sent them from inside ShootQ. If you send them a message outside of ShootQ or if they initiate the initial email from their address book (or whatever) then a copy doesn't get sent to their shoot.
I ast one time had asked my clients to always include their 6 digit wedding date 02/10/21 in the subject line of any emails they send me, then I included that in my rules, but the client didn't ever remember to do that, so I stopped asking.
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