Auto Organizing with Gmail

Several weeks ago, I mentioned Gmail Aliases and how one of the neat uses for them is to filter them in Gmail and send them automatically to a specific folder. From your emails I have received over those weeks many of you wanted to know how to do that as you could see good uses for that as well.

So first, keep those cards and letters coming…ok, actually emails. I love hearing from you with your questions and comments!

First, a very quick reminder of how to create a Gmail alias. Let us pretend my Gmail address is ron@gmail.com (in reality it is not). All you do is add “+” directly before the “@” symbol and most any characters after it before the “@” symbol. This creates a new email address for you to sign up on sites with if you wish. You could also give a special one to your relatives, too. Then when they email you, you can easily identify who sent it: a relative or online service, since they are possibly the only ones that know of the alias.

They are perceived by the world as different email addresses; not so with Google. If I create ron+articles@gmail.com from the original address in the previous paragraph, I will receive email to that alias. They will all arrive in my regular Gmail Inbox. Gmail does not see what follows the “+” symbol so those emails will go nonstop into your inbox, too. They will be easy to spot when they arrive since you will be able to see the “+whateveryounameit” in the sent email.

And, this is the statement that produced the most emails from you in the precious column – “…create a filter in Gmail that would move anything from that ‘alias’ to a ‘specific’ folder…”

You wanted to know how, so here it is. First, login to Gmail as usual. Click the Settings icon (a gear) in the upper right corner of your account. Then click the “Filters and Blocked Addresses” tab at the top of the Settings page. Click the link in the middle, “Create a new filter.” In the “TO” line type the alias and then click, “Create Filter.” Next, click the following two check boxes; “Skip the Inbox (Archive it)” and “Never send it to Spam.” One more to click “Apply the label.” Then click the dropdown next to it and either choose the folder you have created for the purpose, or “New Label” and name a label/folder you want. Finally, click “Create filter” in the lower right corner. It will open a screen showing that filter being added to the “The following filters are applied to all incoming mail.” list.  It may sound complicated but it really is not, just closely follow those directions.

Now anytime you receive an email to that alias, it will skip the inbox and go directly to your new folder.

Test it out and see how it works by sending an email to that alias you just created. Then look in the folder you designed to receive it and see. It will automatically put them in the correct folder every time. This is a very useful feature.

Please look below instructions with graphics.

Have fun automating Gmail.

	FIRST STEP Click the Settings icon, found on main Gmail page, which is a gear shown by the red arrow. Click “Filters and Blocked Addresses” tab at the top of the Settings page. Click the link in the middle, “Create a new filter.”
	SECOND STEP In the “TO” line type your new alias and then click, “Create Filter.”
	THIRD STEP Next, click the following two check boxes; “Skip the Inbox (Archive it)” and “Never send it to Spam.” One more to click “Apply the label.” Then click the dropdown, “Choose label…” next to it.
	LAST STEP Then either choose a folder you already have for this purpose – OR “New Label”” and name a label/folder you want. Click “Create” and finally, “Create filter.”