(C) 1999, Marty Foley

There are certain problems that can have a positive side: they may come as a by-product of the growth and success of your Internet business.

This article can help you cope with a very common growth pain: that of being swamped with email. Some of it may be junk, some of it helpful reading material, some of it important correspondence that you must reply to and/or file away for future reference. Problems in any of those areas can cost you dearly.

Here's the first tip on dealing with the email flood:

*Start with a good email program.

This is a foundation stone of efficient cyberbiz operations. Following are four top email programs that can help you automate your email operations, based on the collective opinions of many experienced cyberpreneurs:

1) Pegasus - <http://www.pegasus.usa.com>

2) Eudora Pro - <http://www.eudora.com>

3) MS Outlook - <http://www.microsoft.com/outlook/>

4) Mailloop - <http://www.mailloop.com>. (Originally designed
for bulk email, which is better to avoid, but has features useful for managing opt-in email lists. Costs just under US$400.00.)

*Learn and use the automation features of a good email program.

All the above programs help automate various email activities to one degree or another through features generally referred to as "filters." If you're not using an email program that has filtering capabilities, or if you have one but aren't taking full advantage of filters to automate much of your email operations, seriously consider it.

*Arrange well-organized email folders.

If too much email sits in the "In Box" of your email program, it can get overwhelming, and it's very easy to overlook the high-priority messages. You can reduce that by using filters to move certain messages to folders specifically set aside for them.

(With Pegasus, you can also set up a series of "Quick Folder" keys, which allow you to quickly copy or move messages to certain folders with just a couple of keystrokes.)

*Periodically assess your email flow.

Subscribing to too many email lists can also contribute to your email deluge. If overwhelmed, it's wise to periodically step back, assess which lists are delivering you the most value - and which aren't - and unsubscribe from those that don't make the grade.

To save time, you can temporarily move those you want to cancel to a folder named "To Unsubscribe," and cancel several at one time.

*Reduce spam.

This well-worn topic gets old sometimes, and there aren't any miracle solutions, but here are a couple of quick tips:

1) Use email filters to move spam (or potential spam) to a folder set aside for it.

Spam often (but not always) has an email address other than one of your own in the "TO" section of the message.

If you use a filter to delete all such messages outright, there's a chance you'll miss some important email. If you move it to an email folder set aside for it, then you can scan through it quickly on occasion and make judicious use of your Delete key. After a while you'll be able to accurately detect many spam messages without even opening them.

2) Be careful giving out your main email address(es).

Some people willingly hold people "hostage" to their email lists. It's frustrating (and sometimes seemingly impossible) to unsubscribe. That's certainly not a way to foster good business relationships, but it happens. (I'm not talking about other problems involved with leaving a list that aren't the fault of the list owner; that's another story.)

If you're a bit wary about giving out your main email address due to this or other problems, you can either set aside an "alias" address within your domain that you only use for situations like this (and use a filter to send those messages to a special email folder).

You can also use one of the many free email addresses available online that forwards messages to your main email account. If worse comes to worse and that address starts getting overwhelmed by spam, you can stop the flow by cancelling it. (Unfortunately this doesn't totally solve the problem but just transfers it to another server.)

Note: Some list owners prefer that you do not subscribe using a free email account, due to various issues.

Well, there you have it: Some practical tips for dealing with a common "growth pain" that often comes with Internet success. May these tips contribute toward your own Internet success story, while bringing some relief to a common "growth pain."

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