The new site is live! 

If you wanted to learn more about me and what I do—here is your chance to get acquainted! If you have any questions about sessions, consultations, or workshops, please feel free to use the contact form and we will get you set up.

To celebrate the launch of the new site, we want to announce the upcoming Google Apps for Wedding Planners webinar coming up on May 25th and May 26th. 

I am so happy to host another Google Apps Webinar this week for those who are eager to get started with Google Apps for their wedding business. I had such a fun time with last week’s participants and look forward to sharing it with you this week.  To continue with the relaxed atmosphere, class sizes will remain low so that we can all engage, ask questions and get good feedback from each other.  What I loved last week was how willing everyone was to assist and give ideas. 

To make it easier for those who are just getting used to Google Apps, we are breaking the Webinar up into a two part session:  One on Wednesday, June 17th and another on Thursday, June 18th.  We will discuss the Mail and Calendar portion in great detail on Wednesday, and the Docs and Sites portion of Google Apps on Thursday.  

You will see real-time, real life examples and instructions on how to: 

• Streamline all of your email in one place.  That’s right– a website for all of your staff to login to check their email.  Also, you can get all of your email in one place. Great if you have  multiple accounts, but would rather floss with your laptop cord than to check them individual.
• Share and work on documents, presentations, and spreadsheets with colleagues, vendors and clients.
• Keep a detailed calendar for yourself and your staff that is easily shared and integrated with your email.  It’s very intuitive– you can talk about a  date in an email, and it will ask “Would you like to add this to your calendar?” Really. Could it get any easier?
• Create project management sites, or a virtual office,  to collaborate with members of your staff and clients.

Here are what previous webinar attendees have said:

Click here to buy your ticket and reserve your seat today!
(iWED members, check the forum for your discount code)

If you are an iWED member and interested in learning more about using Google Apps for your wedding planning business, I have great news for you!  I will be offering a webinar to iWED members at a special discounted rate next week on Thursday,  June 11, 2009 at 8:00 PM EDT.  I only have 15 seats, so please be sure to sign up early as I am sure that they will go quickly!

Here are some things we will go over:

• Tips for using email, calendar and documents productively
• Other websites, add-ons and software to enhance the Google Apps process
• Setting up a virtual office
• Question-Answer period afterwards

One thing I will not go over is setup; while all iWED members are invited to attend, it may best benefit those who already have Google Apps set up on their system.  However,  if you have been leaning towards Google Apps as your online workstation,  this webinar will show you some of the robust features that are at your finger tips if you choose to set up later. 

After the webinar, you will be sent a packet of information to assist you with implementing the tools and tips discussed in the webinar. 

For more information  or to request a seat, shoot me an email to info <at> chicweddinggeek.com.  Have questions about something specific with Google Apps?  Leave a comment below and I will be sure to integrate it into the webinar!

Stats are wonderful thing.

Most email systems will track your stats for you to show where your incoming mail has originated from.  This is good if you want to reconcile your stats of visitors on your page or blog against inquiries on your contact form.  Users that were used to receiving this information via programs like Mail, Outlook or Entourage now have that same ability with Google Apps or Gmail.

To do so, click on the little triangle link next to “Reply” or “Reply all”.

Select “Show Original”

This will show you a separate window with a coded version of your email.  Look for “Received: from” that is the farthest down, closest to where the email message begins.  You will find the IP address there. 

Please note, this does not work with other gmail accounts. 

We’ll be here every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Tip your waitress.

This is great news!  The Gmail blog made the announcement this week that you can now track your tasks in your Google Calendar.  The tasks feature was released as a Lab (an advanced feature) a few months ago.  Now, in addition to being available in your email, your to do list can be integrated into your calendar(s).

I think it probably is.

As a wedding planner, I needed to streamline my business and work process to wor for me, not against me.  Here is how I think it will work for you:

• Streamline all of your email in one place.  That’s right– a website for all of your staff to login to check their email.  Also, you can get all of your email in one place. Great if you have  multiple accounts, but would rather floss with your laptop cord than to check them separately.
• Share and work on documents, presentations, and spreadsheets with colleagues, vendors and clients.
• Keep a detailed calendar for yourself and your staff that is easily shared and integrated with your email.  It’s very intuitive– you can talk about a  date in an email, and it will ask “Would you like to add this to your calendar?” Really. Could it get any easier?
• Create project management sites to collaborate with members of your staff and clients.

What’s best– it is accessible online anytime and anywhere, from any computer running Windows and Mac, all in one place. You’ll still have access to your mail on your mobile device, and once you have Google Apps, you’ll have full access to everything above on the go!  There are other benefits to having Google Apps, as well.  Since there is a free and paid version, your business could benefit with minimum risk.

The Chic Wedding Geek team can get you started with setup!  We’ll get you set it up for you and then show you how to use it for your wedding planning business with advanced features, time saving options and productivity lessons to help you work smarter, not harder. If you already have Google Apps set up for your business, but would like to learn how to maximize its effect and benefit for your business, sign up for the webinar!

Interested?  Of course you are.  Just email us at info <at> chicweddinggeek.com for more information and we will show you how we can help!

If this post helped, please thank Eliana and Liene. And Jeffrey for getting me to the airport on time