Google Mail - Setting up & Using Template Emails

By Melinda Waffle - December 06, 2019

There are a few emails that I use on a regular basis - the email body is pretty much the same each time, just a small part of it is changed. An example is the Technology Tidbits emails I send out when we are doing a series - the only part that changes is the actual tidbit, while the introduction and other information stays the same. To not have to recreate this email each time (or find an old one and copy and paste it), I have turned on the Email Templates and created a template email to use.

1. How to turn it on:

When in your email, go to the Gear icon and select Settings

Click on Advanced in the tab options across the top of the settings window -

Scroll down the list until you find Templates -

Click Enable, and then click the button to Save Changes -

2) How to set up a template:

Open a new email. Compose the standard message you want to turn into a template, just as if you are creating a new message. You can even format the message as desired, including links. A couple ways I format mine:

anything that needs to be customized in the future emails I indicate with bold XXX's which are a unique color (you can see in the example below)
if you use a signature line, delete the signature from the email you are creating the template from or you will end up with double signatures in the future emails

Once it is set up as you wish, click the More menu (three stacked dots) -

Hover your mouse over Templates, then move over the submenu that appears and then over the Save draft as template option

Choose Save as new template -

Give the template a name that you will recognize going forward.

Trash the message (so you can actually use your template to see how it works!).

3) How to use a template:

To use your template, create a new message. Then 1) click on the More menu (three stacked dots), 2) move the cursor over Templates, then over to select the name of the Template you wish to use under INSERT TEMPLATE -

The template will load into the message compose window -

Put the final personal touches onto the email - in my example I will replace the XXX with the actual video tidbit. Note that recipients are NOT part of a template - you will need to add the recipients also.

After it is all set, Send your email (or schedule it to send if you would like).

Thank you for joining us for this episode of Technology Tidbits, brought to you by Melinda Waffle (Calhoun Intermediate School District), and CJ Walker and Du Bui (Jackson County Intermediate School District)