Too Many E-Mails On Your Android? GMail Alias & Filtering Are Your Friends [TIPS & TRICKS]

Do you get a lot of Gmail? Do many of them trigger Android notifications that offer little more than an annoyance? We think we can help.

I have been using Gmail ever since the Alpha days and have converted just about everyone close to me into Gmail users as well – they all love it.  Gmail has become a very important tool in my day to day activities.

If you’re like me, you may have a several Gmail accounts:

This really helps to segregate what’s most important and what’s not. However, I’ve learned some hidden little secrets within Gmail that make me love it even more. Time to bestow these secrets upon you, Phandroid Reader, so you can get organized, keep your inbox clean, and avoid irritating notifications on your phone – all within your main Gmail account.

TIP: Did you know that you that if you add “+whatever” to your email address, you can create an additional email address (alias) for your primary Gmail address? For example, if your email is mygmail@gmail.com you can just add +whatever to it (mygmail+whatever@gmail.com) and it’ll function as an additional account altogether!

Why is this important?  Let’s say I order an awesome Detroit Red Wing jersey from SomeOutfitter.com.  Obviously I will have to provide an email address.  Being an avid online shopper I know I am going to get bombarded with sales ads and offers at some point after the initial order.  Or more likely, many, many times after my initial order. I want the initial communication with them so I can be alerted when my order is shipped, but after the order ships, I don’t want to be irritated with the 2-3 sales pitches each week in my Gmail and ultimately notifying me on my Android device.

No problem.

Simply give them your geniusly created alias address (mygmail+purchases@gmail.com) when ordering and all email will still come to your main Gmail account (mygmail@gmail.com). And now comes the fun part: you can creates a Filter to SKIP INBOX and move ANY email sent to mygmail+purchases@gmail.com to a Folder called READ LATER (or whatever you want).

When this is set, it will NOT come to your main Gmail Inbox, and therefore will NOT notify your phone and disturb you at random times during the day or night.  You can still easily visit your READ LATER folder/label – whatever you named it – and won’t miss that sale, announcement or delivery info.  And of course, it will still be listed in Gmail on your Phone under whatever folder you designate.

There are tons of ways to use this feature.  I have setup filters that have helped me clear my inbox.  For example, I monitor my 10 yr old sons email and all his email are forwarded to my main account.  However, I do not want to be bothered with the various emails that tell me what iTunes songs he has purchased or other non-essential things that he has sent there, but at the same time I like the comfort of know its there just in case.  So I create a filter to skip my inbox, move his mail to a separate label, and can look later if I want.

I also do this for any threads that I subscribe to on Android Forums.  Being a moderator (gobluejd) I can get tons of emails within minutes – this helps me get the email that that I need, but my phone is not notifying me every 2 minutes.

Let us know how YOU use aliases and filters in GMail for more efficient communication on your Android and beyond!

For more information see Gmail Help for Using an address alias and Using filters.

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