by: Janet Barclay
If you use Outlook for your email, chances are you have a number, possibly a large number, of email addresses stored in the Contacts section. You've probably discovered that you can address messages to one or more of your contacts several different ways with just a click of the mouse. But if this is the only way you use your Contacts, you're not using the feature to its full capacity. Here are a few other ways you can tap into the full power of Outlook.
Create a contact from an email message
Drag and drop a message onto the Contacts folder, and a new Contact will automatically be created, using the name and email address from the message header. The message body will appear in the Notes section, which can be a valuable reminder of why the person contacted you in the first place. If the sender has provided their website address, mailing address, telephone number, or other important information, you can copy and paste this information into the appropriate fields.
Assign categories to your contacts
If you have a lot of contacts, it is very easy to lose track of people, including prospective clients. By assigning one or more categories to each contact, you can easily locate the names of the people you need to contact for a specific reason.
Outlook comes with several standard categories, but you will likely want to create some of your own, based on your individual needs. Click on Edit - Categories - Master Category List, and type in your new category. Any categories added to the Master Category List will also be available in the Outlook Calendar and Tasks sections.
View a map of your contact's location
If you're going to visit a client for the first time, or you don't remember how to get there, you'll love this feature! When a contact record is open, click on the Display Map of Address button and you will be connected to MSN Maps, and a map of the contact's address will be displayed. Of course, this will only work if you have entered a street address! Unfortunately, mapping is only functional for addresses within the USA.
Print an address book
Many people who use a paper planner or address book don't see a need to enter any details in Outlook other than the name and email address. Not only is it very easy to print out an address book right from Outlook, it offers a number of options for print layouts, including layouts for popular planners such as Day Runner, Day Timer, and Franklin Covey products.
By using Outlook as your address book, you don't have to put up with messy changes and corrections, or spend time copying out information every year, or whenever you replace your address book. Instead, you can just print new pages from Outlook. You can even specify which contacts you want printed if you don't need them all.
Add a picture
Outlook 2003 has a new feature which allows you to add a picture to a contact record. To some this may seem like more of a toy than a tool, but if remembering faces is not your strong point, you'll appreciate being able to view a photo before you head off to meet someone!