Want to keep better track of your email? Vocus.io, is a Google Chrome browser extension that founder Ahmad AlNaimi says will “dramatically improve your productivity on Gmail” — and more.
Adding the extension to Google Chrome is pretty straight forward. Just go to the Vocus.io website and click the get started tab. The extension will immediately ask your permission to integrate with your Gmail account. You will also receive an email confirming your request.
You will also be prompted to add the extension to Google Chrome. Here’s how it appears when integrated.
Now you are ready to start using the feature as you please.
Features
The Chrome extension carries with it the ability to: accurately track emails, find any person’s email from their name, integrate with Salesforce and other CRMs, launch multi-stage mail merge campaigns, schedule emails, and more.
Accurate Email Tracking
Vocus.io helps you to take the guess work out of email tracking. The extension is able to tell you not just who, but also when, where, and how your email was opened. Classic email trackers will just send you a notification that someone opened your email and that’s just about it. Vocus.io, however, goes on to tell you who that someone is, the gadget they were using and the exact time they opened the email.
Automation of Followups
Another important feature that any business will find useful is the ability to automate followups. We all know that followup emails certainly double the chance of getting a response, but many times, the day-to-day business activities hinder effective followup of emails. Vocus.io, however, allows you to create what they call “a sequence of gentle reminders” to your recipients. This instantly doubles the response rate.
Smart Planner
The Chrome extension also offers you a chance to smartly organize meetings. Instead of engaging in the daunting back and forth emailing when planning a meeting, Vocus.io allows to you share your availability and poll the invitees in a single email. The poll content automatically changes to show responses from your team members.
Ability to Write Now, Send Later
The extension also allows you to schedule your email to be sent at the most appropriate time that your recipient is most likely to see and respond to it. You can therefore write an email on a weekend or late on Sunday night and schedule it to be sent at 9 a.m. in the morning.
Besides, you can also use the extension to run a multi-stage business campaign with attachments. All you have to do is to create a new campaign from Dashboard > Mail Merge and upload a CSV file. The CSV file must have a column with emails. You can as well have any number of columns that will be available as variables in your subject line or message body. You can then schedule the emails to be sent at a certain time.
Pricing
The company offers a 30-day free trial of their extension and if satisfied with its performance then you can opt for the Starter pack that costs $4.99 per month or the Professional pack that has a limited offer of $7.99.
Conclusion
Vocus.io is truly an effective email management tool that will dramatically increase your productivity. The downside is that it is only works with Gmail for now, but in an email to the Small Business Trends, Ahmad says that they will soon be bringing support for Outlook.