Managing Email Influx: Create custom filter rules

If you are a member of many listservs, your inbox is likely constantly bombarded with emails. The three steps below outline the creation of a custom filter rule to quietly deliver and organize categories of emails. Additional custom filter rules can be created by following the same logic outlined below.

Step One: Create your custom label

Note: the screenshot below has SD Announcements entered as an example. If this scenario is not applicable to you, try starting with Calendar Responses instead...

On the left of your Gmail, scroll down, then click More.

Click Create new label.

3.Name your label then click Create.

Step Two: Customize your new label

Note: the steps below are for the SD Announcements label but the same logic can be applied to any label.

On the Gmail page, click on the Settings icon on the top right corner, then click on See all settings.

Under the Labels tab, scroll down to the Labels section until you see the SD Announcements label you just created.

In the second cluster, select show if unread.
In the third cluster, select show.

Return to your inbox.

Step Three: Create the custom filter rule

Note: the screenshots below use text from Text Block #1 for the filter rule for the SD Announcements label. Reach out to Uriel (uguadarrama@saga.org) if you need support creating a filter rule not covered in the Additional Recommendations section.

Set the conditions to be met:
1. Copy all text from your Text Block of Choice in this document, including the curly brackets.
  - Remember to copy the curly brackets.
  - Again, remember to copy the curly brackets!
2. Return to your inbox and click the filter icon located inside the Gmail search bar on the far-right.
3. Paste the text from the Text Block in the Has the words field.
4. Click Create filter.

Specify the actions:
1. On the next screen, check the following options:
  - Skip the Inbox (Archive it)
  - Apply the label:
    - Choose the label you want to send your emails to
  - Never send it to Spam
  - Also apply filter to matching conversations.
2. Click Create filter.

That’s it! Your new labels will only appear when there is new mail inside!

Additional Recommendations

If you are a member of all six sdbc, sdchi, sdchs, sddc, sdnyc, and sdpro listservs, you might benefit from creating a DoP Announcement filter rule, using the text from Text Block #2.

If you are a member of HR, who is on every listserv, copy the text from Text Block #3 when following the steps above. Text block #3 contains all listservs and using that text would just lump all listserv communications into a single label.

If you send lots of calendar invitations, and therefore receive a lot of calendar response emails, then you definitely need to create a Calendar Responses label and filter rule using text from Text Block #4.

Text Blocks for Custom Filter Rules

Text Block #1

Text for the SD Announcements filter rule:

{to:dt@saga.org to:hallandale@saga.org to:hh@saga.org to:mn@saga.org to:amundsen@saga.org to:bogan@saga.org to:clemente@saga.org to:ch@saga.org to:curie@saga.org to:englewood@saga.org to:excel-er@saga.org to:esyp@saga.org to:farragut@saga.org to:foreman@saga.org to:hp@saga.org to:kelly@saga.org to:kennedy@saga.org to:lv@saga.org to:mp@saga.org to:ombudsman-rw@saga.org to:os@saga.org to:phillips@saga.org to:schurz@saga.org to:simeon@saga.org to:steinmetz@saga.org to:sullivan@saga.org to:yccs-wla@saga.org to:bwa@saga.org to:stallc@saga.org to:stallm@saga.org to:arb@saga.org to:cardozo@saga.org to:eastern@saga.org to:dewey@saga.org to:hphs@saga.org to:hsfi@saga.org to:lincoln@saga.org to:randolph@saga.org to:wheels@saga.org to:aj@saga.org to:central@saga.org to:pcta@saga.org to:hope@saga.org to:fellowsbc@saga.org to:fellowschi@saga.org to:fellowschs@saga.org to:fellowsdc@saga.org to:fellowsnyc@saga.org to:fellowspro@saga.org to:optionsschools@saga.org}

Text Block #2

Text for the DoP Announcements filter rule:

{to:sdbc@saga.org to:sdchi@saga.org to:sddc@saga.org to:sdnyc@saga.org to:sdchs@saga.org to:sdpro@saga.org to:sdnew@saga.org to:lcbc@saga.org to:lcchi@saga.org to:lcdc@saga.org to:lcnyc@saga.org to:lcchs@saga.org to:lcpro@saga.org to:lcnew@saga.org}

Text Block #3

Text for the All Listservs filter rule:

{to:dt@saga.org to:hallandale@saga.org to:hh@saga.org to:mn@saga.org to:amundsen@saga.org to:bogan@saga.org to:clemente@saga.org to:ch@saga.org to:curie@saga.org to:englewood@saga.org to:excel-er@saga.org to:esyp@saga.org to:farragut@saga.org to:foreman@saga.org to:hp@saga.org to:kelly@saga.org to:kennedy@saga.org to:lv@saga.org to:mp@saga.org to:ombudsman-rw@saga.org to:os@saga.org to:phillips@saga.org to:schurz@saga.org to:simeon@saga.org to:steinmetz@saga.org to:sullivan@saga.org to:yccs-wla@saga.org to:bwa@saga.org to:stallc@saga.org to:stallm@saga.org to:arb@saga.org to:cardozo@saga.org to:eastern@saga.org to:dewey@saga.org to:hphs@saga.org to:hsfi@saga.org to:lincoln@saga.org to:randolph@saga.org to:wheels@saga.org to:aj@saga.org to:central@saga.org to:pcta@saga.org to:hope@saga.org to:fellowsbc@saga.org to:fellowschi@saga.org to:fellowschs@saga.org to:fellowsdc@saga.org to:fellowsnyc@saga.org to:fellowspro@saga.org to:optionsschools@saga.org to:sdbc@saga.org to:sdchi@saga.org to:sddc@saga.org to:sdnyc@saga.org to:sdchs@saga.org to:sdpro@saga.org to:sdnew@saga.org to:lcbc@saga.org to:lcchi@saga.org to:lcdc@saga.org to:lcnyc@saga.org to:lcchs@saga.org to:lcpro@saga.org to:lcnew@saga.org to:staffremote@saga.org to:staffsaga@saga.org to:saganation@saga.org}

Text Block #4

Text for the Calendar Responses filter rule:

{"has accepted this invitation" OR "has replied ''Maybe'' to this invitation" OR "has declined this invitation"}