Googling Google Survey: Part II
» Googling Google Survey: Part II | Googling Google | ZDNet.com
Posted by Garett Rogers @ 6:59 pm
gmail_logo.gifOne of my readers sent an article that explains how GMail changed the way he uses email, and that got me thinking — I wonder what people I know think about this service and how has it changed the way they use email? Enter the second part of the Googling Google survey.
'll start by explaining how I use GMail as my primary email client. It is my communication portal that encapsulates every email address I own, providing an easy, heads-up view of my accounts. My GMail address is used for personal communication between friends, family and my blog readers. Besides my @gmail.com address, I have a few others for domains I own — all of which are hosted on a server I operate. Incoming messages to that server are automatically forwarded to GMail — this takes care of most spam too. My work email also forwards to gootch2@gmail.com.
For outgoing mail, I set up accounts corresponding to these addresses. For people who don't know about this feature, setting up accounts gives you the ability to impersonate email addresses that you control. For example, when I'm at work I can send mail that appears originate from there rather than gootch2@gmail.com — even though GMail is used to compose the message.
Here are the results of the informal, non-scientific survey I conducted with close to fifty friends, family and random strangers who use GMail as their primary client.
Where did you hear about GMail?
Two answers to this question came up time and again. The most common answer was a referral — a friend or someone else they know got them to sign up. The second most common answer was seeing @gmail.com addresses more frequently around the Internet — for some people this caused enough curiosity to investigate.
Before you signed up, which single feature did you find most appealing?
Most people said they were impressed by the very large storage size. To me this makes sense because storage is the easiest feature to explain, understand and appreciate. For example, explaining the storage size to someone who doesn't use GMail involves a simple comparison to the mail service currently being used.
People who had a Hotmail account in the days of the 2MB limit know exactly what it's like to run out of space. Now imagine someone like that hearing "GMail gives you over 1000 times more storage than Hotmail used to, and is continually growing". It's easy for them to understand the benefit — that's what makes it a success.
Do you like GMail?
Yes. People who have made the switch generally like the service on one of two levels. In most cases, they like it better than their previous mail client, and others find it to be a suitable replacement.
What makes GMail different in your eyes?
People who use the service as their sole email client often confirm that the "message grouping" feature is quite addictive, and is surely missed when forced to use something like Hotmail, Yahoo or a client like Outlook. "It is a little weird at first, but give it a week of actual use and you will be hooked" says one of the surveyed.
Some users say they receive less junk using GMail. That, coupled with the ease of reporting messages gives people a sense that they are actively taking part in the fight against spam.
In more of a negative light, people recognize that the file structure is quite a bit different compared to traditional mail clients. Folders really don't exist, and labels are confusing for some people. The average user doesn't quite understand the concept or benefits of labels until they are explained by someone who knows.
Has GMail changed the way you use email?
The majority of people surveyed simply use GMail in a very basic way. Only a handful of people surveyed even knew about the more advanced features like setting up multiple accounts for outgoing mail, web clips, contact groups, labels, and mobile viewing capabilities.
I did run into a couple people however that used GMail in almost every way it can be. They both said that GMail has absolutely changed the way they use email. Like myself, they use it for every email address they own, have filters set up, labels for all kinds of things, etc. These fellows even use the mobile viewing capabilities. In general, they said, GMail makes them more organized, productive and reachable.
What do you wish GMail did better?
The majority find that GMail does most everything they want, but there were a few complaints. The ability to drag and drop messages into folders and labels came up a couple times. MSN Live Mail and Yahoo Mail beta both sport some nice drag and drop capabilities — could it be that far away for GMail?
A number of people switching from Hotmail and Yahoo were annoyed with the lack of a "choose recipients" feature. When composing or forwarding messages, it would be nice to see a selectable list of contacts. Many users decide where to forward messages on a case by case basis. Contact groups don't quite fit the bill in this type of situation.
I am a huge fan of services like GMail, Hotmail and Yahoo Mail as they provide a portable solution that makes it simple to carry around email. In the last couple months, Google added even more portability by giving users the ability to view email on mobile phones with http://m.gmail.com.
Keeping data online is very important, and I am sure Google will continue to develop products and services with this in mind. To emphasize this fact, I recently purchased a new computer. The painful process of transferring data from my old computer amplified my gratefulness of portable data. I didn't have to create a backup of my email and import it into a new system because everything was conveniently stored on the Internet for me.
There will be a day when Google makes storing your files as easy and portable as storing your email. Files that I want to keep portable could be stored on Google's G: drive so that switching computers (or even operating systems) would be extremely simple and worry free.
As rumors spread that Google is working on a version of Ubuntu called Goobuntu, even if just a rumor, I can't help but think that an online storage service isn't far away. People don't want to leave their whole life behind and start fresh with a brand new operating system — so why should they?
1 Comments | Blog This | E-mail This | Print This | Permalink
Categories: Gmail
* Previous Post
* Google VPS / VM Desktop on the Net Dietrich -- 02/04/06
* Add your opinionAdd your opinion
Trackbacks
The URI to TrackBack this entry is: http://blogs.zdnet.com/Google/wp-trackback.php?p=88
No trackbacks yet.
Popular white papers, webcasts, and case studies
* File Fragmentation, SANs, NAS and RAID Diskeeper Corporation
* Transforming Discrete Manufacturing Supply Chains Hewlett-Packard
* Successful Server Consolidation: It's All in the Preparation Hewlett-Packard
* Footwear Company, Dr. Martens, 'Steps Up' with ShoreTel ShoreTel
* ITIL: What It Is and Why You Should Care Global Knowledge Network
* Preparing Your Windows 2000 Network for an Upgrade to Windows 2003 Global Knowledge Network
February 5, 2006 at 12:26 AM in email | Permalink
| TrackBack (558)
| Top of page
| Blog Home
