Submit tasks at lightning speed with email templates

Max Dana Updated by Max Dana

Typing can be tedious. Especially when you have to type the same thing over and over. One way send work requests or documentation to ArtsPool more quickly is to use email templates to automatically populate your subject line and email body based on the template you choose. We use Gmail at ArtsPool, so the below instructions are specific to Gmail's "canned responses" feature, but you can set up similar templates in email clients such as Outlook or Mac Mail. 

Enabling canned responses

  1. Select the gear icon on the upper right corner of the Gmail interface.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Select Labs on the horizontal menu at the top.
  4. Enable Canned Responses.
  5. Select Save Changes at the bottom of the page.

Creating your first canned response

  1. Select Compose from the top left of the Gmail interface.
  2. Select the small grey down arrow next to the trash can icon at the bottom right of the new message pane.
  3. Select Canned Responses > New Canned Response


  4. Select a submission type from ArtsPool's Task description cheat sheet and enter the suggested subject line format (e.g. Reimbursement: [EMPLOYEE NAME] - [AMOUNT]) into the dialogue box that pops up after step #3 above. This will be the name of the template and will also automatically populate the subject line of your email when the template is used.


  5. Select OK to save the template.

If your template only needs a subject line, you can skip the next section, but if you also want to set up a template to help you enter information into the body of the email follow the additional steps below.

  1. Select Compose from the top left of the Gmail interface if you don't have a new message pane open.
  2. Select the small grey down arrow next to the trash can icon at the bottom right of the new message pane.
  3. Select Canned Responses > Insert and then select the name of a template you want to edit.
  4. When the new message pane is populated with the template subject line, copy the suggested body content from the appropriate submission type in the Task description cheat sheet and paste it into the body of your new message pane (you can omit the sample data).
  5. Select the small grey down arrow next to the trash can icon at the bottom right of the new message pane. Select Canned Responses > Save and then select the name of the template you are working on.
  6. Select OK on the dialogue box prompting you to confirm your edits to the template

Using canned responses

  1. Select Compose from the top left of the Gmail interface.
  2. Select the small grey down arrow next to the trash can icon at the bottom right of the new message pane.
  3. Select Canned Responses > Insert and then select the name of a template that you would like to use.
  4. Fill in the necessary information.
  5. Enter your organization's ArtsPool address in the To: field.
  6. Press Send.






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