In one of my previous jobs, I worked in a quasi-customer service role where I spent most of my day sending the same email to 20-30 different clients. We used HelpDesk to facilitate these emails, which included the ability to pick and grab stock responses so we didn’t have to reinvent the wheel every time a client had the same problem as the previous. Not everyone needs help-ticket software to manage their everyday emails, but you may benefit from the similar ability to plug-in similar stock responses using templates to manage your email and send email faster. A Web-based app called Tout offers this functionality and much more.
With Tout, you simply sign up, confirm your email, and then optionally sync your contacts with Google, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Syncing these other social networks allows you to send LinkedIn messages right from Tout using the stock-message feature, and similarly Tout can facilitate an email exchange with anyone on Twitter on your behalf. The primary feature of Tout is the ability to create stock emails applicable to different types of people and behaviors, such as a follow up to a meeting or a pitch of your product or service. Tout automatically fills in all the necessary fields, and when sent, it looks like it has been sent from you — not from Tout. Of course, you can customize the message each time you create a message, but having something to start with, rather than starting from scratch, is ideal for the person who doesn’t have a lot of time to spend on email.
Tout is available as a free trial so you can see how powerful just these basic features can be. If you upgrade to premium, which costs $30/month, you can add multiple identities from which to send, track the clicks and views of sent-email, as well as schedule email delivery. While Gmail does not have the ability to schedule email, this is an ideal feature for those who only have the time to write an email when it may be inopportune to send (such as in the middle of the night or over the weekend). Upgrading also offers unlimited emails per day (the trial only allows you five), and you can create unlimited templates and add unlimited contacts as well as send email with file attachments.
Tout is an essential investment for those who are looking for ultimate inbox efficiency. Try out Tout at toutapp.com and let us know if you think Tout is a good investment in the comments.
