Boomerang for Gmail Help
Boomerang for Gmail is a browser plugin that adds time-awareness to email. This page answers some of its more frequently asked questions.
If you do not see your question answered here, please contact us at support@baydin.com.
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What do I need in order to use Boomerang?
Boomerang works in Gmail and Google Apps accounts. Boomerang for Gmail is available for Google Chrome, Safari, and Firefox web browsers. Download the extension here.
We also make Boomerang for Outlook so you can use Boomerang at work.
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Does Boomerang work with Google Apps?
Yes. We support Google Apps Mail and hosted domains.
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It didn't work for my Google Apps account. I got an error saying "single sign-in feature is disabled." Help?
To turn on the "Federated Login" feature in your Google Apps Settings(you will need administrator permissions):
From Google Apps, click "Manage this domain."
In the blue bar, click on "Advanced tools."
Under "Authentication" section, click "Federated Login using OpenID."
Make sure the check box labelled "Allow users to sign in to third party websites using OpenID" is checked.
Click "Save Changes."
Attempt to Boomerang a message after you have taken these steps to confirm that you’ve turned “Federated Login” on.
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How do I use Boomerang?
Boomerang can be used from within in a single message, from the Inbox, or from within in folder in Gmail. When reading a message, click the "Boomerang" button, which is located next to "More Actions." Select one of several pre-defined times or customize a new time and confirm.
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From the Inbox view or from within any folder, select the messages that you would like to return at a later time, then click the “Boomerang” button and select a time or enter a custom one, just as with regular Boomerang.
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How do I view my Boomerang’d messages?
To view all scheduled messages(Return to Inbox, Send Later and Recurring), go to Manage scheduled messages on the Boomerang drop down menu, click on the subject line to view a message.
Your messages are also labeled with a tag; “Boomerang” in your mail. To view, click on the Boomerang label on the left sidebar, or do a Gmail search with the option: "label:boomerang".
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How do I reschedule or cancel a Boomerang’d message?
Click the "Boomerang" link in the upper-right corner of your Gmail page, next to your email address and the "Settings" gear. Next, select Manage scheduled messages.
To reschedule a message click "Reschedule" and choose a new time.To cancel a message, click "Return Now" or "Don't Return".
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How do I change my message preferences?
Click the "Boomerang" link in the upper-right corner of your Gmail page, next to your email address and the “Settings” gear. Next, select Manage scheduled messages. You may change your preferences by scrolling to the bottom of the page.
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If your current email matches certain criteria, Boomerang will suggest a time for you to return the message to your inbox. Click the suggested time to automatically Boomerang the message, or click the nearby arrow to see a list of other suggested times.
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How do I add a note to a message?
When you Boomerang a message, you can click the “note” icon in the upper right-hand menu of the drop down to add notes which will be added to the conversation when the message returns to your inbox.
Notes can be removed by clicking “Delete this message” from the drop down within the conversation thread.
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After composing a message, first click "Send Later" and specify the time you want that message to be sent.
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Do I need to have my computer on or browser open when the message is scheduled to be sent?
No, you do not need to have your computer on or browser open at the scheduled time.
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How do I view my outgoing messages?
To view all messages scheduled to be sent out, please go to Manage scheduled messages on the Boomerang drop down menu, click on the tab named "Messages to Send Later". From this tab, you can reschedule, cancel or edit the scheduled messages.
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How do I know that my Send Later message has been delivered?
After delivery, your message will leave the Boomerang-Outbox label and appear in Sent Mail folder inside Gmail. Once it's in Sent Mail, you know your message has been sent.
Note: After a scheduled message is sent, it will also be removed from the "Messages to Send Later" section of the Manage page. See: How do I view my outgoing messages?
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How do I create a Recurring Message?
After composing a message, first click "Send Later" and scroll to the bottom and choose "Schedule recurring message". Then choose the start date, frequency, day of the week to send, and the end date.
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How do I change, edit, or cancel a Recurring Message?
Click the "Boomerang" menu in the upper black bar of Gmail page, next, select Manage scheduled messages.
To reschedule a message click "Reschedule" and choose a new time.To edit message contents or recipient list, click "Cancel". This returns the message to your Drafts folder in Gmail.Find the message in 'Drafts' and make the changes, then click "Send Later" > "Schedule recurring message".
Read Receipts
A read receipt is a way for the sender of an email to request notification when a message has been read.
Boomerang's read receipt feature offers valuable open and click tracking data while at the same time respecting the privacy of the recipient. Boomerang gives you access to the approximate time when an email was opened, if a link was clicked and how many times, but does not provide privacy invading info like IP address, exact time of open, or the physical location of the reader. While similar to implementations of read receipts from Google Apps Mail and Microsoft's Outlook, with Boomerang you get the added features of click tracking, the integrated Boomerang reminders; "Boomerang, if not opened" and "Boomerang if not clicked".
How do read receipts work?
When the 'Request read receipt and track clicks' button is clicked, Boomerang will insert an image into the footer of an email, just below the signature line. This image, notifies the reader that the sender has requested a read receipt and provides a link to opt-out. If the opt-out link is not clicked the message will be tracked and the sender notified.
How reliable are read receipts?
Boomerang read receipts are generally reliable, but we don't recommend that you rely on them as a guarantee. Read receipts are an indication that the email was likely read. Generally they work across different email clients and systems, but occasionally you may not receive a notification even if an email was read. And with our opt-out feature, the recipient may choose not to send the receipt.
What if I send an email to lots of people, can I tell who opened/read it or clicked the links?
Regreattably, no. There are some techinical limitations to what data we can even retrieve and the email address of the person who opens the email is one of those elusive pieces of data that is not available. If you need to know which recipient opened your email or clicked the links, you'll need to send individual emails.
How are read receipts different from 'click and open tracking'?
Read receipts are different from traditional click and open tracking in that a recipient can opt-out of providing the data to the sender. Many other services use a covert form of tracking that involves inserting a 1X1 pixel image into the body of the email, when images are displayed, the sender receives a bunch of information, such as IP address, time of open, type of device the message was opened with, as well as the physical location of the reader. We think this is all a bit creeptastic!
We do recognize that it can be useful to have some of this information, which is why we have done our best to implement a solution that respects the privacy of the reader while at the same time offering valuable information to the sender. Additionally, Boomerang's read receipts are a bit different than those of other email clients in that they do not require any action on the part of the recipient, if the reader doesn't opt-out then a receipt is given.
What data is given to the sender if I opt-out of providing a read receipt?
None. It's really that simple! If you choose not to provide a receipt, we respect your privacy and no data is provided to the sender, to them it just looks like you never opened the message.
How do I track clicks and opens using Boomerang?
From any Compose or Reply window, just click the toggle button and we'll do the rest! Check out the screen shot below:
How do I see the results of my tracked messages?
Click the 'Manage schedules messages' link on the Boomerang menu, then click the 'Tracked Messages' tab. Once there, click on "Details" to get information about a specific message.
Boomerang Mobile
How do I access Boomerang Mobile?
On any smart phone with a web browser, please go to http://m.boomeranggmail.com on your mobile device and sign in with your Gmail or Google Apps account. You will have all the features of Boomerang for Gmail on the go.
Check out our Boomerang Mobile demo here: bit.ly/BoomerangMobile
How do I make sure I have easy access to Boomerang Mobile?
You can save a bookmark to your home screen on your iOS and Android devices for easy access to Boomerang Mobile.
iPhone:
Open Boomerang Mobile from Safari on your iPhone.Then click the arrow (the middle button) at the bottom and click 'Add to Home Screen'.iPad:
Open Boomerang Mobile from Safari on your iPad.Then click the plus button next to the browser address bar.Select 'Add to Home Screen' and a Boomerang app icon will be added to your iPad.Adroid:
Open Boomerang Mobile from your default browser on your phone.Then bookmark it in your browser.Go to the home screen and press and hold in an empty space. It will bring up 'Add to Home Screen' menu.Then select 'Shortcuts' and then 'Bookmark'. Then tap on the Boomerang Mobile bookmark you saved.
