Sending emails at just the right time can make all the difference in how your messages are received. Whether you want to avoid sending late-night weekends emails or make sure important messages go out during business hours, Gmail‘s email scheduling feature is an invaluable tool.
In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll walk you step-by-step through how to schedule emails in Gmail on both desktop and mobile. I‘ll provide plenty of examples for clever ways to use scheduled sending effectively. You‘ll also learn how to edit or cancel scheduled emails in case your plans change.
Let‘s dive in and master the art of scheduling emails like a pro!
Why Schedule Your Gmail Messages?
Before we get into the how-to steps, let‘s look at some of the benefits of scheduling emails in Gmail:
- Send at better times – Avoid early/late emails by scheduling business messages during work hours
- Different time zones – Tailor your send times to your recipient‘s time zone
- Plan ahead – Schedule emails up to a year in advance to plan communications
- Avoid mistakes – Give yourself time to review drafts before scheduled sends
- Never forget – Queue birthday/holiday wishes and they‘ll send automatically
- Data shows that open and click-through rates are 50% higher during business hours compared to early morning, evenings, or weekends (Campaign Monitor)
- Over 100 billion emails are sent each day, making timing more important than ever (Radicati Group)
In summary, scheduling emails allows you to plan and optimize your messaging for maximum open rates and responsiveness.
Step-by-Step: How to Schedule Emails in Gmail on Desktop
Ready to get started scheduling your Gmail messages like a pro? Here‘s a step-by-step walkthrough:
1. Click Compose to Start a New Email
Sign into Gmail on your desktop and click the Compose button in the upper left corner to start a new email.
Gmail‘s compose button is located in the upper left corner of the desktop interface. Click it anytime you want to start writing a new email message.
2. Write Your Message Content
In the compose window that opens, write your email just like normal. Include recipient email addresses, subject line, and the body of your message content.
Write your email with the recipient, subject line, and message content as you normally would.
3. Click the Dropdown Arrow Next to Send
Once you‘ve written your email message, click the dropdown arrow to the right of the Send button at the bottom of the compose window.
Clicking the dropdown arrow opens up a menu with scheduling options.
4. Select "Schedule Send"
In the send dropdown menu, click the option for "Schedule send". This will open up a date and time scheduling window.
Choose "Schedule send" to pick when you want your email to be automatically sent by Gmail.
5. Pick Your Preferred Date and Time
The scheduling window provides several quick preset options like "Tomorrow morning". You can also click "Pick date & time" to choose a specific date and time from the calendar and clock pop-up.
Choose your ideal send date and time. Once selected, click "Schedule send".
And that‘s it! Your email is now scheduled to be sent automatically at the specified date and time. You‘ll see a confirmation message from Gmail.
Following these five simple steps allows you to precisely schedule emails right from Gmail‘s desktop website.
Modifying or Canceling Scheduled Messages
You have a few options to edit or cancel a message after you schedule it:
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In the confirmation popup, click "Undo" to revert the email back to a draft.
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In the confirmation, click "View" to open and modify the email. Click "Cancel Send" to revert to draft.
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In the left Gmail menu, click "Scheduled" to see all scheduled emails. Open one and click "Cancel send".
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After sending, quickly click "Undo" to cancel the send.
Knowing how to modify or cancel a scheduled email gives you flexibility.
Scheduling Emails in Gmail‘s Mobile App
Gmail‘s iOS and Android apps also make it easy to schedule emails on the go. The process works much the same as on desktop:
1. Tap Compose
Open the Gmail app and tap the compose icon in the bottom right corner to start an email.
The compose button on mobile is located at the bottom right.
2. Write Your Email Message
Write out your email just like normal, filling in the recipients, subject line, and message body text.
Writing an email on mobile works the same way as usual.
3. Tap the More Options Menu
Tap the three-dot menu button in the top right of the compose screen. This will open up additional options.
The three-dot menu provides access to scheduling and other options.
4. Tap "Schedule Send"
In the menu, tap the "Schedule send" option. This will open up the scheduling window.
Select "Schedule send" to pick when your email gets sent.
5. Choose a Date and Time
Pick one of the presets like "Tomorrow afternoon" or tap the date and time picker. Select a date/time and tap "Save".
Use the date and time picker to schedule your send.
Following these steps allows you to easily schedule emails from Gmail‘s iOS or Android app.
Modifying or Canceling on Mobile
You have similar options for modifying scheduled emails on mobile:
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In the confirmation tap "Undo" to revert to draft.
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Tap "Scheduled" in the side menu to view and modify.
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After sending, quickly tap "Undo" to cancel sending.
Now you can schedule emails with precision whether on your desktop or phone!
Example Uses for Scheduled Sending
Now that you know how to schedule emails in Gmail, let‘s look at some clever examples of using this feature:
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Schedule weekday newsletters to avoid weekends. Newsletters sent Tues – Thurs have up to 100% higher open rates.
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Wish contacts happy birthday by scheduling messages to send automatically on their special day. Set it once and never forget a birthday again!
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Avoid late night weekend emails by scheduling messages to send Monday morning. Recipients will be more likely to read and respond during business hours.
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Send meeting recap emails the next morning so participants have time to review overnight before receiving your recap.
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Schedule emails or reminders for yourself too! Set reminders to go out certain days or times.
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Optimize for different time zones by scheduling morning messages to reach U.S. and European contacts during their peak business hours.
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Queue messages while traveling to maintain correspondence when you have limited connectivity.
Hopefully these examples sparked some ideas for how you could use Gmail‘s scheduling options more effectively!
Key Takeaways for Scheduling Emails in Gmail
To recap how to be a scheduling pro:
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Know the benefits – Scheduling optimizes delivery time for higher open rates.
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Schedule through Send dropdown (desktop) or More Options menu (mobile).
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Pick date/time – Use presets or custom picker.
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Modify – Click "Undo" or find in "Scheduled" to edit.
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Be clever – Schedule for birthdays, time zones, business hours, and more!
With this comprehensive guide, you now have the knowledge to schedule emails in Gmail like a pro. Use this powerful feature to optimize your messaging timing and take your communications to the next level!