Organizer: cleaning Gmail contacts

"Where is the address?"

This is one of the most common questions, to speak the new users of Gmail. When many people may not even their Gmail / Google contacts, you better believe the system is very intuitive and easy to use. (In this article, I use Google Contacts and Gmail contacts interchangeable because they are the same thing.)

Even if you do not know an area to your existing Gmail account, there is a good chance that this is an area, even phone numbers of unidentifiable e-mail disaster and perhaps loosely grouped all other contacts.

Your Gmail account, the company had more than a thousand entries in the Other group contacts. I decided that this is not acceptable, so I started cleaning my contacts from Gmail. I'm here to share what I was doing, what I've learned, and some alternatives, I would recommend if you do not want to waste your time with dirty contacts Gmail.

Organize This last possibility for something else, it's actually what I recommend. Google cleaning requires a lot of manual work contacts, especially if you have thousands of contacts "other." There are so many great applications and services for the management of contacts, the very good and right hooks work in your Gmail account so that you can go that way.

5 Facts About Gmail / Google Contacts
Gmail contacts works differently than in many other contact managers know some basic principles can help tremendously. Here are five facts that you might take a look:

  • How to get your Gmail address? It is hidden under the large shopping center in the upper left corner of the interface. Click the mail and you will see an option drop down contacts. Otherwise go to Google and go to google.com / contacts.
  • If you find (including "fulfilled all") or send an e-mail, Google automatically adds anyone and everyone on the wire to your contact list if you have disabled this feature. Even if you use an Android device, can Google contacts are listings of phone numbers you called, depending on how your account is set on the device.
  • Google Contacts has a combination tool, but still not working or the air we expected (more on that later).
  • Google contacts are to extract information from the ads, both Gmail and Google + (groups and circles, respectively), but are not synchronized, even if it sometimes seems that maybe I should.

Now let's get into some tips and instructions to clean the contacts of Google.

Cleanliness Google contacts

Description of the contact groups vs Circles
Once you are in Google contacts (again, click on the e-mail contacts logo in the upper left and select), is the first place to put your attention on the lists in the left lane.

140623_getorg_contacts groups As you can see in my account, I have several main sections: Contacts list, circles, more contact, and other contacts. My Contacts and circles subgroups. The number in parentheses after the group name indicates how many people are in this group.

My contacts are people who have Gmail added as contacts. Circles are the information about the people you know and follow on Google+ and has nothing to do with the e-mail. When the list of people from their Gmail contacts (use the search bar to be called Smith example, to find all) to book, also you can see if people in one of your circles on Google+, this information will be the extreme right of the the name. So there is some overlap between the contact groups and circles, but not much, although people in their circles resemble alone your Google contacts.

Confused?
More reached the top 20 of the people you have exchanged e-mail, even if they were silent on a wire. In other words, is not necessarily that people send, or the last, because your email seems to be the whole story. His ex 3 years ago still very much your top 20th

Another second group is everyone in Gmail (and possibly your Android device, as I said) that has already been contacted.

Search and fusion
The best course of action, in my mind, we begin the search for duplicates in your contacts to another group and their fusion (or all contacts from Google if you no subgroups).

Click the other contacts, and select More at the top of the page and in the drop-down menu, select Find and merge duplicates. A summary that you have details of possible mergers, before they can view measures is displayed. Be sure to check this list of common names that can be made by two different people.

Well, if this list is surprisingly long, must undo and repeat the search function / fusion in a smaller subset of your contacts. You can just choose a different subset of the rail on the left, or you can search as a search domain (for example, search for all e-mail addresses with pcmag.com). Anyway, it is a manageable piece can be considered duplicates. Repeat if necessary.

Check out the official Google instructions to find and merge contacts for details.

Instruct individuals, groups, add details
Just below this input to other contacts you can see a new group. If you want to organize your contacts into different groups, this is the next area of contact Google should get their attention.

That someone in a group, must also appear in My Contacts. That's just the way it is.

To add people to groups, use the button with the symbol of the three heads at them. This is pretty self-explanatory from there, but see instructions change contact Google for more information.

I'm still not sold on the groups that are really valuable, I have to a limited extent, but could not some of the scenarios that could be helpful to predict. One group that I have, for example, technical directors of the Company. If at all the time and desperate for a budget that helps you know that in the technology industry I have connected directly (as opposed to connecting through a public relations firm) in the past.

When I limitless time (who does?) Had, I would seriously improve the "Remarks" section of the individual. Click on a person in your contact list, and you can book information usually takes add, along with a photo and notes.

In my personal Gmail account, it would be useful to add details to PR professionals can have their e-mail addresses and even earlier releases are not always does not help you determine whether they represent a company or product to have to study.

Disable Auto-Add
If after reviewing your list of others, you realize that it is mostly junk (generic addresses @ "Help" and others), I suggest you disable the Auto-Add.

Go to the gear icon in the upper right and select Settings. Stay on the General tab, and then down to "Create contacts for auto-complete" (ie, two under your profile picture.)

Interested in other applications and services?
Let's say that after reading this information, decide that you just do not use Google contacts. I can not fault. Here are some points to your address to collect that automatically and add the contact information to keep Google allow.

LinkedIn and contacts. The real problem I see with your own e-book is that it is difficult. Keeping the information up to date should not be responsible for updating the title of your work and your e-mail if you change the address employer. It is up to you, mate. And that's why I love LinkedIn as an address book. It is much easier if you have updated all your contacts are responsible for maintaining the information.

LinkedIn works well enough to help you, contacts and basic information, but a special application called LinkedIn contact goes a little further in this direction.

If you are in your LinkedIn account with Gmail, friends, professional networking site online, on the basis of information on Google "you may know." Some people really hate it, but it could be useful, depending on how hard is your LinkedIn account.

In addition, you also have the option to export contacts from LinkedIn , and then import them into Gmail.

iOS contacts. If you are an iPhone or iPad user, you can synchronize your Google contacts with your iOS device , so you can easily contact with Apple as the main address. The instructions are slightly different for users of Google Apps.

140623_getorg_easilydo carrying

EasilyDo and iOS. Further possibility your contacts with the new application and EasilyDo iOS (surcharge) function called Fang manage all contacts. Running catch all contacts, EasilyDo run the last two years of your e-mail to get the coordinates of the message body, and stores it on your iOS Contacts application. Although the application is free EasilyDo This feature costs $ 39.99 (one-time) per e-mail account. Unfortunately, this feature is not available for Android users. Learn more about simple iPhone and Android EasilyDo in their reviews.

Include web and mobile applications. Application circuit combines all your inboxes and social media feeds, and draws some interesting information about your contacts, too. This is not just a contact manager, but only supports Gmail old. The closure can people who are important to you (if you are by loving their Facebook messages to boost your ego) as well as people with whom you identify lost contact. Like I said, this is not just an application for contact management, but it is clean enough to give you an overview of your contacts on Gmail, Yahoo Mail, Twitter, Facebook and other online accounts.

For more tips on managing contacts, see you order: 7 ways to organize your contacts automatically . And when you're ready, your Gmail inbox are to take, check Gmail 30 tips on how to e-mail to conquer .

Organizing is helping a weekly series of articles on PCMag.com, organizes your digital files and online life. Check back every Monday for new tricks. By Jill Duffy, follow her on Twitter @ jilleduffy . And check out the book to organize:

"The organization: How do you clean your digital lifestyle disorder" by Jill Duffy Ganxy