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Don’t miss Kim’s newsletters: Instructions for Gmail users
Spam blockers are great. They keep you from receiving unwanted emails, including ones that could contain viruses or links to malicious sites.
Unfortunately, the spam blocker and other advanced features in Gmail are causing some of my readers to miss out on my helpful newsletters.
That’s why I’ve put together these easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions to ensure you keep getting my newsletters uninterrupted. Don’t worry, it only takes a minute and a few clicks.
Warnings
Gmail isn’t just looking for spam, it also wants to warn you about viruses and phishing attempts that could infect your computer or steal your information. Unfortunately, it sometimes flags messages that are perfectly safe.
Let me assure you, my email newsletters are 100% virus-free and safe to open and read! We are working with Gmail to reduce these false alarms.
In the meantime, here’s what to do if you see these messages.
Virus warning
If you see this red bar on one of my newsletters, just click “Ignore, I trust this message,” as shown below.
Phishing warning
If you see this amber bar on one of my newsletters, just click “Not spam,” as shown below.
Special note: These instructions and illustrations are based on using Gmail through a standard Web browser on a PC or Mac computer. Gmail on smartphones and tablets with the Gmail app or mobile Web browser may not have all of the same options. If you read your Komando newsletters on a mobile gadget, I recommend that you make these changes from a desktop or laptop computer.
Spam
Some readers tell me they are not receiving my newsletters at all. If you have subscribed to my newsletters using a Gmail address, but you aren’t getting the newsletters in your inbox, please follow along.
The first place to look for missing newsletters is your spam folder. But don’t worry; it is easy to find your spam folder and easy to tell Google to never hide the newsletters you want.
Check your spam folder
Open your Gmail Inbox and look on the far left-side column for the word “More” with a downward-pointing triangle. Click “More” and the column will expand below with more options, including Spam.
Click on “Spam” to open your spam folder as shown below.
If you see anything in the spam folder with my name, like the two emails above, just check the box in front of each email. Then click the “Not spam” button, as shown below.
When you click “Not spam,” you are telling Gmail that my newsletters are not unsolicited junk email advertising. Gmail will then ask if you wish to share your information to its anti-spam team. Please click “Yes” as shown below.
When you tell Gmail that my newsletters are not spam, Gmail automatically moves the newsletters out of your spam folder and back to your inbox. You’ll see the message “X conversations have been unmarked as spam and moved to the Inbox.”
Inbox tabs
Even after Gmail moves your newsletters out of your spam folder, it might still be tricky to find exactly where Gmail puts them. That’s because your newsletters don’t automatically go to your main email inbox. Gmail calls your main inbox your “Primary” tab.
Instead, Gmail moves your newsletters to a different tab. Gmail labels this tab “Promotions,” as shown below. Note that Gmail also sends unsolicited ads to your Promotions tab, so don’t be surprised to see some email advertising there, especially if you don’t usually check the Promotions tab.
Don’t worry, I’ll show you the easiest way to make sure your newsletters appear in your main inbox. But first, here’s where you’ll find the Promotions tab.
Lots of folks are not in the habit of regularly checking their Promotions tab. That’s why I suggest that you have your favorite Komando newsletters delivered right to the same place where you read most of your other emails. Again, in Gmail, your main inbox is called your Primary tab.
There’s a simple easy way to have your Komando newsletters delivered to your Primary tab. Click the checkbox in front of each newsletter you want to move and then simply drag the newsletter title to the tab labeled “Primary.”
Tip: Save time! You can select and move multiple items at once.
As you drag newsletters from Promotions to Primary, Gmail will automatically open the Primary tab to show you where they moved. It also confirms the move with a message that lets you “Undo” the action, as shown below. That’s just in case you dragged the wrong message.
These instructions will help ensure that future Komando newsletters will be delivered to and appear in your main inbox.
Reminder: You will need to do this for each newsletter title you receive, such as Top Stories, Online Finds, etc.
One more step
Would you like a little extra insurance policy to help stop Gmail from hiding your Komando newsletters again? There is no guarantee that Gmail won’t make some changes in the future that could affect how your newsletters are handled.
After all, Gmail is always trying to stay one step ahead of the hackers and scammers. But there’s one more step you can take that tells Gmail that you trust your Komando newsletters. Just add the email address of each newsletter to your Contacts list.
Here are the simple steps to add my newsletters to your Contact list:
Open a Komando newsletter, look in the upper right corner for the settings menu, it’s three dots stacked, then click it. A menu will open and you’ll click on Add Kim’s (newsletter name here) to Contacts list. Of course, the name will reflect whichever newsletter it is that you’re looking at so if it’s Online Finds you’ll add Kim’s Online Finds to Contacts.
Note that each newsletter has its own email return address, so the name you add will depend on the particular newsletter you are adding to your contacts. Repeat this for each newsletter title you receive until each one is in your Contacts list.
Here’s a list of my Komando newsletters and the email address of each one:
- Online Finds – kimsdcareply@lyris.komando.com
- Tech Tips & How-Tos – kimstipreply@lyris.komando.com
- Top Stories – kimsdailynewsreply@lyris.komando.com
- What Kim’s Watching – tvkimreply@lyris.komando.com
- Weekend Digital Digest – kimnewsreply@lyris.komando.com
- USA Today Column – kimscolumnreply@lyris.komando.com
- Small Business Tips – kimssbreply@lyris.komando.com
- Android Updates – androidnoreply@lyris.komando.com
- Apple Updates – kimsapplereply@lyris.komando.com
- Fraud & Security Alerts – komando-special-alerts@lyris.komando.com
Not getting all of these emails? You can manage the newsletters you receive here.
Your Contacts list
After you have added all of your favorite Komando newsletters to your Contacts list, you should double-check to confirm that the newsletter titles are indeed in your contacts. But Gmail can be tricky when it comes to finding your Contacts list.
To check your Gmail Contacts list, click the Apps icon that looks like a panel with nine windows in the upper right corner of the Gmail inbox. A menu will open that will have Contacts listed inside.
Select “Contacts” and all of your contacts will be displayed, including the titles of my newsletters that you have added to your Contact list, as shown below.
When your favorite Komando newsletter titles are added to your Contacts list, it will help ensure that you get my newsletters just as soon as I email them to you. Don’t forget that some of my newsletters are emailed only once per week, so be sure to check your spam folder and Promotions tab a few more times over the next couple of weeks or so.
You’re all set! That wasn’t too hard, was it? If you’re still having trouble, though, feel free to contact my Customer Service.
Tags: Android, Apple, apps, Google, hackers, newsletters, phishing, security, settings, web browser
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