Microsoft today announced that it's implementing several new features in Outlook for Mac, all of which have been highly requested by its Office 365 subscribers. To make it quicker to send the same type of emails, messages can now be saved as templates, and emails can also be dragged and dropped. Then click File > Save as after you finish composing your email. When a dialog popping up, select your aim folder and name you file. In Save as type, select Outlook Template option from the drop-down list box. Finally click Save. See screenshot: 5. You will see an outlook template is created. Now, it is time to use the template.
I’ve got several message templates stored in the Drafts folder which I use on a frequent basis. However, whenever I open the template from the Drafts folder and send it, it is removed from the Drafts folder.
Can I configure Outlook to always leave a copy of the template in the Drafts folder?
Outlook has no such option but the workaround is really easy; instead of opening your template from the Drafts folder by double clicking on it, press the Forward button instead.
For Outlook 2013, 2016, 2019 and Office 365, the method requires an additional step due to the Reading Pane Reply feature.
Note: For more information and other methods about working with message templates in Outlook, also see the guide; Working with message templates
Forward method
By using the Forward button or by pressing CTRL+F, a copy of the selected template is automatically being created and opened. This can then be sent without the original template being removed from the Drafts folder.
As the template message is a draft and not a received message, no header information will be added above the template text, like you normally would get when forwarding an already received message.
Forward method in Outlook 2013, 2016, 2019 and Office 365
In Outlook 2013 and later, things work a bit different as the Reading Pane is also a place where you can now compose emails. Therefor the Forward button is now disabled.
To still be able to use a Draft as a message template, you can use one the following methods instead:
Open the message via a double click first. Then either press CTRL+F while the cursor is inside one of the header fields (so not in the message body) or add the Forward button to the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT). It’s already listed as an option when you press the down arrow on the right side of the QAT.
Copy the message first. A quick way to create a copy is to use CTRL+C and then CTRL+V when the item is selected. You can then press CTRL+V again to create additional copies.
Disable the option for allowing composing in the Reading Pane. This will however also affect regular replies and forwards. File-> Options-> Mail-> section: Replies and Forwards-> enable option: Open replies and forwards in a new window
When you open a template in an Office 2011 application, a copy of the template is opened with a new filename so that the template file itself remains unchanged. That way, you can reuse the template whenever you need it. When you save a document as a template from Word, Excel, or PowerPoint, your document is saved with the entire contents intact as a Word, Excel, or PowerPoint template.
A template includes everything, such as the document’s words, formatting, objects, pictures, graphs, charts, and content. Typically, people save a document that has room for additional content, such as a business letterhead or a form, as a template.
Each application has its own built-in templates, which you can choose from by choosing File→New From Template.
The letter t in the file extensions .dotx, .xltx, and .potx alerts you that you’re creating a template. Of course, PowerPoint’s regular file format .pptx also has a t in the second to last position, but that’s an exception!
You can easily save Word, Excel, or PowerPoint files as templates in the My Templates folder. Here’s a step-by-step procedure to follow:
Create a document that has all the basic formatting you want to reuse in other documents you create henceforth.
For example, you can make a letterhead document in Microsoft Word.
Choose File→Save As.
The Save As dialog appears.
Type a filename for your template in the Save As text box.
In the Format drop-down list, choose the appropriate template and then click the Save button.
Depending upon which application you’re using to create the template, the appropriate format is one of the following:
Word Template (.dotx)
Excel Template (.xltx)
PowerPoint Template (.potx)
To make it easy for you, when you choose a template format, Office automatically saves your template in the My Templates folder by default, which is convenient for most users.