For many companies, Google Tasks is one of those things that seemed to get pushed aside for other new strategies and tips over the years (to be fair, an algorithm update is a little bit more important). However, if you’re looking to manage everything you need to do for work or your day-to-day activities, Google Tasks has a mobile app and browser extensions to help you stay connected on all platforms. As an SEO agent, this is a great way to stay organized and make sure that you’re always in the loop when it comes to working with Sales, Analytics, IT, and more.
No matter where you add a task or where you check one off, it gets transferred to help you stay organized. If you’re one of those people who loves Google everything, Tasks is a must-have tool, so consider how you can get started and make it work for you below.
How Google Tasks Work
You first should master the three main places that you can use tasks: Gmail, Mobile, and your Calendar. You can essentially start with one option and then watch your work transfer over to the other two areas where Tasks are used. Consider the steps below:
Tasks for Gmail
Starting with Gmail, all you need to do is click the drop down menu on the top left hand corner and choose “Task.” Once you do this, a screen will pop up and you can start typing whatever it is you need to get done (go grocery shopping, a list of items you need to return, who you need to email for work, etc.). The screenshot below on the left shows you how to find Tasks, and the screenshot on the right shows you what you will see:
You also have the option of adding something to your tasks that you see in an email by choosing the “More” option above the message and then choosing “Task.” You can check off the tasks when you’re finished and can even create “Subtasks” by using your Tab button to indent. You can learn more about the specifics here.
Tasks for Mobile
Tasks are not actually available in Gmail on a mobile device, so you have to access them in different (and in fact easier) ways. There is a basic version and an optimized version of Tasks available, and with both versions you can add, edit, and delete tasks or entire task lists. This works for Android as well as iPhone. Simply go to http://gmail.com/tasks in your phone’s web browser to access Tasks.
Tasks for Your Calendar
The best way to take advantage of the calendar option is to put a date in front of whatever item it is you’re putting into your Task list. As you can see in the screenshot above, I put “10/2” in front of my item “concert tickets.” This transferred right to my calendar so I will get an alert when something is due. If I want to change the date, I can either change the date on my Task list or I can go to my calendar and click and drag the item to a different day.
To reiterate, whatever you do on one of the devices will transfer over to your other devices or platforms. You may need to refresh the page, but you should have no problems. If you want to create a to-do list on your computer and then open it up on your phone, no problem. Below is a video that was created by Google that might help clear up how it works:
Google Tasks Keyboard Shortcuts
If you’re into creating tasks to make things easier and faster, chances are you’re a fan of keyboard shortcuts. The following screenshot explaining all of these shortcuts was taken from the Google blog:
As an SEO agency, this is a great tool to get your employees involved with to help streamline processes. As discussed above, it can get pretty tough to work with so many different departments when it comes to SEO, and we have found that Tasks make a big difference in our company. There are of course many other tools out there that can get you more advanced, which you can learn about here, but Google Tasks is something that can be implemented for free right away. It’s a great starter tool to get your company working together.
Have you ever used Google Tasks to help you stay organized? What have you found to be the most helpful? Let us know how you use the feature and what you’ve thought about your experience in the comments below.