Let's start with the basics: your name, your web site, your company, your phone number, your elevator pitch, your… well, all the things you'd put in an email signature. Of course, you can add a quote, too.
An email signature comprises a few lines of text placed at the bottom of outgoing mail. You can use this to share essential contact information and generally advertise both yourself and your business — in a very condensed form.
In Gmail, setting up a signature is easy.
Set Up an Email Signature in Gmail
To set up a signature automatically added to emails you compose in Gmail:
- Click the Settings gear in your Gmail toolbar.
- Select Settings from the menu that will have appeared.
- Go to General.
- Make sure the desired account is selected under Signature:.
- Type the desired signature in the text field.
- It's best to keep your signature to about five lines of text.
- You don't have to include the signature delimiter. Gmail inserts it automatically.
- To add formatting or an image, use the formatting bar.
- If you cannot see the formatting bar, start a new message using rich-text formatting.
- Click Save Changes.
Gmail will now insert the signature automatically when you compose a message. Of course, you can edit or remove it before clicking Send.
Move Your Gmail Signature Above Quoted Text in Replies
To have Gmail insert your signature right after your message and above the original message in replies:
- Select Settings from the top Gmail navigation bar.
- Go to the Labs category.
- Make sure Enabled is selected under Signature tweaks.
- Click Save changes.
- Go to the signature editor as outlined above and add the standard signature delimiter.
Set Up a Special Signature for Mobile Gmail
In the Gmail mobile web app, you can also set up a signature dedicated for use on the go.
(Updated October 2012)
