Tip of the week # 477
21 February 2016


Set a flag to remind recipients to reply by a specific date (Microsoft Outlook) *

Do you ever send an email message where you ask for feedback by a specific date? If so, you probably type it in the message, perhaps in bold. You might even add it in the subject line. But did you know you can set a flag that will remind recipients to follow up the email on the date you specify?

Here's how:

  1. Create the new message, as normal. (CTRL + N, anyone?) 2. On the Message tab, in the Tags group, click Follow Up, followed by Custom.
  2. Tick the Flag for Recipients check box.
  3. Select an action from the drop-down list or type your own instruction.
  4. Tick the Reminder check box (or press TAB and the SPACEBAR).
  5. Press TAB and type the date (for example, 1/3 or today, tomorrow, next week, next month).
  6. Press TAB and type the time (for example, 3PM).
  7. Press ENTER or click OK.

Mail messages with a follow-up flag have a flag icon in the Inbox listing. A flagged e-mail also appears in the To-Do Bar. When the reminder becomes overdue, the normal Reminder box is displayed. Dismissing reminders only removes the reminder, not the flag. To remove the flag, right-click the item and select Mark Complete.

See tip_103.html and tip_67.html for additional information related to Outlook reminders.


* Unless stated otherwise, these tips were written for Microsoft Office 2010.