The Set-It-and-Forget-It Guide to Never Missing Important Events

Missing cool events, hot jobs, great deals, and important news stinks. Having an inbox stuffed with email alerts is just as bad. Here’s how to stay alert with the best email alert services, but avoid a cluttered inbox.

With a smart inbox setup, you can choose to see all the new things you’re interested in—albums from your favorite artists, new episodes of favorite TV shows, Facebook and Twitter happenings, local concerts, and more—without having all those alerts become inbox annoyances you’re more apt to ignore than mark on your calendar. You can check in once a day, on breaks, or whenever you want to see what’s coming up, and save your inbox for things you actually need to act on. We’ll start off this guide by highlighting our favorite email alert services, covering everything from TV and concert alerts to notifications for Facebook or cellphone minutes. After setting up your various alerts, we’ll explain how to use smart email filters to keep your inbox clean and your alerts useful.

The way we’re setting this up, it’s best to go ahead and sign up for these services first, then filter them all down.