Raise your hand if your inbox is packed. I know mine is.
That takes care of the digital correspondence you actually have to deal with, but what about all the junk mail? You can't get rid of all of it, but you'll make a good dent.
When it comes to sending emails yourself, the most important thing - aside from getting back the answer you want - is knowing your message made it to the right place.
Here are a few ways to know if someone has opened and read your email.
The solution: read receipts
Read receipts are more common than you might realize. Most major email platforms give you the option to request return/read receipts with email that you send. Some will also let you specify these receipts for every email you're composing.
Keep in mind, these requests only do half the job; the recipient can still decline, and you'll never receive the receipt you're hoping for. Some email platforms, including Gmail and Apple Mail do not officially support the sending of read receipt requests.
As an alternative, you can use "invisible" email tracking and read receipts, but here you'll have to rely on third-party tracking software. More on that below.
For the other major email platforms, here's how you set them up.
Outlook
To request a return receipt in Microsoft Outlook, click Options on the top menu bar to bring up its sub-menu.
Check "Request a Read Receipt" to receive a notification when your message is opened.
Additionally, you can also get notifications when your message is successfully delivered by checking "Request a Delivery Receipt."
Mozilla Thunderbird
Click Tools (on the top menu bar) then Options. Now, on the General tab click on "Return Receipts."
Here you can expect Thunderbird to always include return receipts with your emails. You can also send your own return receipts and the location of your receipts. When done, just click OK.
Sick of Outlook? Thunderbird is the best free email program for Windows, Macs and Linux.
You can also configure Thunderbird return receipts on individual emails. While writing a new email just click on Options on the top menu bar then select "Return Receipts and or Delivery Status Notification" to configure its return receipt setting.
Again, the recipient can choose whether to send a return receipt reply or not.
