Microsoft 365 is one of the most popular office software packs worldwide. It includes a software tool for writing documents (Microsoft Word), one for creating presentations (Microsoft PowerPoint), one for working with sheets and formulas (Microsoft Excel), and one for managing emails (Microsoft Outlook). As a result, chances are you must use Outlook for your work-related correspondence, and you must use it professionally. Mastering Outlook’s features will help you deal with a full Inbox by automatizing tasks. For example, you don’t have to waste time creating a professional signature each time you send an email. Instead, you can create and use predefined signatures. And here is how to do it using the latest version of Microsoft 365.
Disclaimer: Examples illustrating this article use fictional names and institutes. All used images are royalty-free Unsplash images.
Contents
An Outlook signature includes text you can format any way you like. For example, you can write your full name and title on one line, the position within the company on the following line, and the contact details on the following one. You can also include pictures and hyperlinks such as to your company website or LinkedIn profile to complete your signature.
To create a new signature in Outlook, start composing a new message by clicking on New Email. Once the window for composing a message has opened, click on Signature in the top menu bar and choose Manage Signatures from the dropdown menu.
Outlook will open a new window designed for creating and managing signatures.
Press the + button to add a new signature. Again, you’ll get a new window to add your signature details.
Enter the name of the new signature and its text. Don’t forget to format the text professionally and catchy, for example, using a bold font for your name or an italics font for your job position. You can even add a closing, such as Best regards. When you have everything set up, press Save and close the window.
Keep in mind that you're not limited to just one signature. You can create multiple predefined signatures, each serving a different purpose. For instance, you can have a professional one with all your business details for correspondence outside the company, and a more casual one for internal communication. This flexibility empowers you to tailor your signatures to different contexts, enhancing your professional image.
To create another signature, press the + button and compose the body text of the signature just like you did before.
Once you have the signature(s) ready, check out the settings. Outlook allows you to add this newly created signature to all new messages and/or to reply/forward messages.
The same window for formatting the text of a signature can be used to add an image, such as the company logo, icons, handwritten signatures, and even your corporate picture.
Press on the small image icon with the caption. Insert a picture and choose the image you want to add to your signature on your computer. You can add as many images as you like. Some people prefer to create a graphic design for their signature instead of using text.
Once you’ve uploaded the image, arrange it to fit the signature. Select the image and drag on its corners to make it larger or smaller. Or right-click the image and select Crop to change its dimensions and aspect ratio.
Tip: Use a table to place the image on the same line as the text. Insert a table with one row and two columns and place the image in the first cell and the text in the second one. Then, select the table, right-click, and choose Borders and Shading… from the dropdown menu. Select None for the borders’ style, and you’ll have a perfectly aligned signature with the photo.
Once you made all the edits as mentioned above with your new signature, it should look like this one.
Related: How to write a professional email?
Similar to adding images, you can add one or several hyperlinks in a signature. The hyperlink may lead the reader to the company’s website, your professional profile or CV, or any online material that’s relevant to your business persona.
Select the anchor word(s) or image and press on the small chain icon with the caption Insert link. A new window will open with fields for the anchor text and the URL text.
Outlook adapts to your needs perfectly. You can create and customize multiple signatures and decide whether to add them automatically to all emails or manually to each one. This will save time and create a personalized workflow that benefits you in the long term. Managing emails should be an opportunity to connect with people, not a burden.
Click on New Email, then go to Signature in the menu, and choose Manage Signatures from the dropdown menu. Select the account to which you want to automatically add a signature in the Choose default signature section, then select a signature for new messages and one for replies/forwards. It may or may not be the same signature.
If you prefer to add the signature manually, you can do so by not selecting a signature for new messages and replies/forwards. Instead, use Outlook’s default setting, which is None.
When you manually add a signature to your email, it's an opportunity to personalize your message. After selecting the signature from the dropdown menu, it will appear at the bottom of your new message. You can then add the text of the message above it, insert the receiver’s email address, write a subject line, and press Send. This personal touch can help you connect with your recipients on a more human level.
You can edit your previously created signature and change their settings at any time.
To change a signature in Outlook, click on New Email, then go to Signature, and choose Manage Signatures from the dropdown menu.
Then, select the signature you want to change from the left panel. You’ll get a preview on the right panel.
Press Edit, and the signature window opens. Here, you can modify text, images, and hyperlinks as you wish. When you finish editing, press Save and close the window.
Looking for inspiration? We provide 15 Email Signature Examples.
Let’s go through all the steps we discussed above. You can follow this section when creating your signature in Outlook to ensure you don’t skip any steps.
Step 1: Create a new message
Click on the New Email button.
Step 2: Open the signature management tool
Click on Signature and select Manage Signatures from the dropdown menu.
Step 3: Create a new signature
Press the + button.
Step 4: Design the text of the new signature
In the pop-up window, insert the name of the new signature as well as its content.
A professional signature includes your title and full name (e.g., Associate Professor John Johsen), job title (e.g., Executive Manager for Department of Communications, Colombia University, New York, United States), and contact data (e.g., the physical address of your office and/or business telephone number.
Step 5: Insert an image
Select the small picture icon in the top menu and choose your business profile picture or the company’s logo. Once you see the photo in the editing field, select it and drag one of the corners to scale it to an appropriate size. You can also reposition it within the space. Use a small size image file because it increases the storage space your emails occupy on the server.
Step 6: Insert a hyperlink to your company’s website
To increase the visibility of your business, select the company’s name in your signature and click on the small link icon in the top menu. In the pop-up window, insert the URL of your company’s website.
You can also add small social media icons and hyperlinks pointing to your company’s Facebook and Instagram pages (e.g., adding these hyperlinks may be required for social media communications or marketing business). Make sure you use royalty-free icons.
Step 7: Proofread and format
Take a moment to review your signature and ensure no mistakes or spelling errors. Then, align the elements of the signature. For example, you may want your profile picture aligned with the text information or the company’s logo underneath your data. Although there are no strict rules for structuring the signature information, ensure it is compact, aligned, and easy to read.
Tip: Now that you know how to set up and create an email signature, you might be interested in creating an out-of-office message.
Conclusion
Learning to make the most of Microsoft Outlook saves you a lot of time and energy. They also help you improve your business image, showcase your professional skills, and stay in touch with your colleagues, customers, and business partners. It may seem that everyone knows how to write an email nowadays, but to do so professionally requires a bit of practice. However, once you know everything there is to know about tools like Outlook, Excel, Jira, HR software, and collaborative tools, don’t forget to add them to your CV as well.
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