For those that haven’t heard of or use Contact Groups (also known as Contact Lists), you’re wondering what they are….
What is a Contact Group?
As you know (or I hope you do), adding details of people that you know or work with into Outlook, creates a new Contact (although the section is now called People).
When you need to email the same group of people again and again, you can enter all the names into the email address field – but do you ever feel like you’ve forgotten one? Or perhaps it takes a few minutes to remember and type all the names in?
This is where the group comes in.
Having contact groups means that you need to remember the group name, not everyone individually.
With a group, you have a single place that you can keep updated, adding and removing names as things change.
Create Contact Group
Contact Groups are part of the People Section in Outlook.
From the ribbon and the New section – create a New Contact Group.
Enter a meaningful name (this is what you’ll type into the address field) and start adding email addresses to build up the list.
Where do the names and email addresses come from?
They need to be in Outlook is the simple answer.
However, there is a number of choices that you can select from:
- Contact List
- Address Book
- Email Contact
Most of the time your contacts will already be either in the Contact List and/or Address Book.
Why add a contact into Outlook?
Storing contacts in Outlook, means they be used in a contact group, but you can store a lot of information in a single place, meaning that it’s easier to find the information that you’re looking for.
Information that can be included:
- Name
- Email Address x 3
- Phone Numbers x 19
- Postal Address x 3
- Company
- Job Title
- Web site
- Image
- and more
Keeping your group updated
One of the useful things is that with a contact group that you created, you can update it as needed.
Distribution Lists are versions created by a company, you can use them in the same way, but the IT Dept (or someone with edit access) needs to make changes.
Because the contact group is a personal version, you can easily add and remove people as you need to, keeping it updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to use everyone in the list all of the time?
A simple answer is yes. However, you can also expand the group to show all of the names. You can then remove anyone you don’t want to send to.
Note: This doesn’t change the group, only this email.
Can I change the group name?
Yes, edit the Contact Group from the People section. Change the name and save. Just remember to enter the new name when you want to use it.
Will my Contact Groups be in my Address Book?
Yes, look at the Contacts (or Personal Contacts) in the Address Book.
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