Most business owners could only wish for the day they wake up with an empty inbox. While it may be possible, it would take you a lot of time to scan through all of them. That is why when you have an online assistant, one of the tasks you can delegate is to have them check emails for you. That way, you can focus more on other, more pressing matters rather than just sit all day and read and sort email after email.
However, we also agree that your email is something that you should always protect, especially if it’s used for business, personal matters or a mix of both. If possible, you may want the access to yourself and that’s really understandable.
Then, how can your assistant manage your inbox without you worrying?
Providing your access information to organise your inbox may, at most times, seem like not a good idea. But at some point you just have to, especially when this task is eating up too much of your time.
You can take advantage of apps like Boxer and Inbox by Gmail that filters incoming mail before your assistant logs in. These can place newsletters and promotions in one folder so it’s easier to sort and delete. That way, more important emails will always appear on top as well.
If you’re using Outlook or Gmail, take advantage of their delegation feature, which lets you give limited access to your inbox. You can have it set up so your VA can open messages from certain people or groups. It also lets you give access to other features like schedules, appointments and calendars.
You can easily give permission to certain messages, while restricting more personal mails. Have it set up by using the built-in labels, flags and tags that your email provider has.
If you don’t want to share your email access to your VA, another option is to share folders from your inbox. Apps like Zimbra offer the option of sharing particular email folders from your mailbox that your VA can easily access. This way, your assistant knows which ones to read and work on right away.
If it is still a bit difficult for you to share your email with your VA, then the best solution would be to create a new, secondary email address that your VA will use when doing email management. You can forward emails that they need to work on, or bcc them whenever you send replies.
Probably the most important step you should take is to trust your VA in this particular task. It may be difficult at first, but once you get the hang of it, you will see that it can free up some space for you to complete other important tasks.
Without putting 100% trust and confidence in your VA when delegating your email, then it won’t matter whether you use these apps or follow these tips.
Additionally, remember to hire a VA who is not only highly skilled, but has a proven track record with previous clients. That would give you peace of mind, especially when they start reading and responding to your emails on your behalf.
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