Gmail like a pro
In a continuing quest to emancipate the world from Outlook email or services that don’t exist in the cloud, we’ve found ways to use Gmail in your professional life with a variety of addons, extensions and the like.
The reason HTML signatures are so important is that without it, your signature can’t have an image, links or customized features, rather the standard Gmail signature is standard font in a standard color with limited options. This is valuable real estate, use it wisely.
When using Google Chrome, there is not a supported addon allowing you to add a HTML signature to your Gmail which is surprising, but we’ve found a simple hack that allows you to work around that. We’ve tested this (and currently, I use it for my own email) and you can create signatures for a variety of purposes (I have one for AG, one for NML and one for personal emails) with a simple hack.
The simple hack
- Go to GeekFG and save that website in case you have to edit your signature(s) later.
- Format your signature. Don’t use too many links or graphics, include basic information and if you’re overly cautious like me, include a disclaimer or privacy statement at the end.
- Select “insert signature above reply” or you’ll have to copy and paste over and over again.
- When finished, click “go to step 2.”
- Drag and drop the new signature link that is now a bookmarklet to your toolbar or somewhere easily accessible in Google Chrome.
- Start from step one to create another signature, repeat as many times as you need to.
Note: there is not a “save signature” option, so be sure to save the HTML somewhere on your desktop as you’ll have to start from scratch if you notice something wrong. Trust me, it can be a pain, so be prepared and avoid that.
This simple hack gets you one step closer to living in the cloud and one step away from your dependence on Outlook and the like. We know, we know- you can quit whenever you want, but we’re here to help!
If you use Firefox, here is a Firefox extension to add a HTML signature to your Gmail.
Chris Rodriguez
May 11, 2010 at 7:55 pm
You must not have looked very hard before writing this article because there are at lease two (2) very easy to use extensions for Google Chrome to add rich HTML signatures to your email (WiseStamp and Autopen).
WiseStamp: chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/pbcgnkmbeodkmiijjfnliicelkjfcldg?hl=en
Autopen: chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/cmjcoiohflenpehfaalahocpmacjloof?hl=en
A simple search on the Google Chrome extension page for “email signature” would have saved you about 30 minutes of typing. Glad to be of service.
Lani Rosales
May 11, 2010 at 8:05 pm
Hey Chris, good call, I searched for Gmail signature (like I do on Firefox). WiseStamp is notoriously unstable and causes browser crashes but I’ve never tried Autopen, good find.
I’m already set up with a signature, but these are two options people should check out! Thanks 🙂
Josh @WiseStamp
May 11, 2010 at 8:21 pm
Hi Lani and Chris,
Thanks for mentioning WiseStamp for Chrome,
@Lani Please feel free to contact our support via wisestamp.com/support-contact-form and we will do our best to assist you, Yes some of our Chrome users reported crashes however usually this is caused due to the Chrome version of the users (Chrome carries a wide range of channels and versions some are still in beta and others simply not stable) The good news is that we found that most of the reported Chrome crashes could easily be fixed simply by reinstalling Chrome.
We make a lot of efforts in order to release a stable and nifty WiseStamp version and in making our users happy! and we hope to have some cool new features released in the near future as well, so stay tuned!
Yours truly,
Josh – CEO WiseStamp
Andrew Stone
May 11, 2010 at 8:21 pm
If you use Chrome, I love this signature APP.
chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/cmjcoiohflenpehfaalahocpmacjloof
Very simple and easy to use and your HTML signature is automatically added.
Dean Ouellette
May 12, 2010 at 11:12 am
Lani, I use Chrome and love Wisestamp. Have never had any issue with stability or crashing at all. I would give it another try
Benn Rosales
May 12, 2010 at 1:04 pm
bookmark > extension
Molly
May 12, 2010 at 2:07 pm
I use wisestamp for both firefox and chrome and haven’t had an issue that I noticed.
I love wisestamp!
Roanoke
May 12, 2010 at 2:40 pm
This is great, I’ve been too lazy to search for a solution. Thanks Lani!
D. Patrick Lewis
May 17, 2010 at 2:20 pm
I use Wisestamp and love it. I highly recommend giving it another shot. Besides, as you can see, there support is pretty awesome.
Lisa Thorell
May 18, 2010 at 9:59 am
Thanks to both Lani and Chris Rodriguez for helping find a solution. AutoPen is superb!
Ken Montville
July 26, 2010 at 9:16 pm
As usual, I am glad for the “search” bar. I recently installed Chorme and wanted to use WiseStamp which works perfectly for Firefox. Alas and alack, it does not for Chrome and now I know why.
What is it with Chrome, Google and HTML. Is HTML really that nefarious.
Thanks for the heads up.