Today we’re going to look at 8 quick Google Chat features that anyone can try that could improve the way they use this communication tool.
Google Chat is the spiritual successor of Google Hangouts. Besides regular users, Google is also targeting businesses and enterprises with Chat. Spaces, which allow you to have productive conversations and assign tasks, are a great addition to help your team keep in touch.
Want to know how to take full advantage of Google’s all-new messaging service? Give our primer on using Google Chat a read and then try these simple Google Chat tips and tricks. With these guidelines, you’ll be a pro in no time!
Get notifications of new messages delivered to your inbox.
With this setting set, Google Chat will email you to let you know if there’s any unread direct messages or @mentions. This way, you’ll never miss important conversations that would have shown up in your inbox anyway.
You can enable or disable email notifications on your computer when you are logged into Google Chat.
Click the Settings Cog in the upper-right corner.
From the pop-up window next to Email notifications, select the option you prefer.
To switch to Dark mode,
Do you prefer using Gmail with the light theme turned on or off on your mobile device and web browser? That doesn’t mean you have to use Google Chat with the same settings. In fact, you can set the messaging app to dark mode.
The web app allows you to switch to a dark theme by going under Settings. The Android app has the option from the hamburger menu, called Theme, and then selecting Dark.
One of the things we love about Chrome is how easy it is to multitask. With just one tab, you can quickly switch between accounts on different devices.
Using one finger, you can switch between multiple account on the Google Chat app on Android and iOS. Just swipe down on your profile photo in the upper-right corner of the screen. You can also do this gesture in Gmail and Drive.
DND enables you to mute chat notifications.
Do you often find yourself in meetings but your phone or PC is constantly buzzing with notifications? Or do you sometimes want to work in peace on your laptop without interruptions? You can silence incoming notifications while in these situations by using Google Chat’s “Do not disturb” feature.
On your Android device, open the Google Chat app.
On the left, you’ll find a hamburger menu.
Go to your settings.
Turn on Do Not Disturb.
You can choose to mute chat notifications for a set amount of time.
In addition to muting the chats temporarily, you also have the option of setting a specific time for them to become active.
Select your desired time to tap it.
On Google Chat for the web, you can find the Do not disturb options in the Settings menu. In order to do so, click on the gear icon at the top right of your chat window.
- Create a space
Google Chat is a great way to communicate and collaborate with your team. With the ability to thread conversations and assign tasks, it’s an especially useful tool for those working in teams. A Space lets you create a private location where you can chat about, share files, and more. You’ll feel like you’ve gone from one person chats to group chats on steroids!
On our app, you can create a new chat space by tapping the ‘New chat’ button and selecting the ‘Create a space’ option. That’s just the beginning. You can name your space, add an emoji as its display picture, and then invite people to join.
You can also add this task to your to-do list.
Add any message to Google Chat as a task with just a click. Once you’ve pressed and held the message for about five seconds, the Add to Tasks option will appear. This can be found on both the web and mobile app by selecting the three-dot menu icon besides the message. Soon after, it will appear in your Google Tasks list of tasks.
If you never want to see the CRM messages again, have messages automatically deleted.
If you want to have a private conversation in Google Chat and keep it between you, disable the message history for your chat. As long as you don’t click Send, Chat automatically deletes the conversation 24 hours after it was started. Open up the conversation for which you want to disable the history, then select the recipient’s name. Then click Turn off history.
You can pin conversations so you can easily find them for future reference.
You’re able to pin a conversation that you frequently access to the top of your chat list, so you can easily find it, instead of scrolling endlessly through search results. Simply long-press on a chat and select the ‘pin’ feature on mobile, or click the three-dot menu by a chat and select the ‘Pin’ option in the web interface.
Google Chat is one of the best Slack alternatives on the market today.
A versatile messaging app can be an essential part of any workplace. For example, Google Chat has features like deep integration with Gmail and other Google services. Another helpful feature is Spaces, which can replace chat apps like Slack. So give Google Chat a try and it might just become your next favorite workplace app.