How To Create A Distribution List On Iphone

Want to set up groups of recipients in Outlook and send emails or newsletters fast? Find out here how to create and edit a distribution list in Outlook for Mac, how to address and edit it, and what to do when "New Contact List" is grayed out.

First, John Steinbeck's Puppy Is Hungry

Hungry for mice, it seems, and men perhaps, the story goes, the poor setter dug into and eventually gulped whole an early draft of Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men.

Think the author should have sent a few people a copy for backup? Well, now we can do that easily:

How to Create a Distribution List in Outlook for Mac

Time needed:5 minutes.

To set up a distribution list for mailing groups quickly in Outlook for Mac:

Go to People in Outlook for Mac.
Outlook for Mac keyboard shortcut: Press Command 3 to go to People directly.
Click New Contact List on the ribbon's Home tab.
Using the menu: You can also (and from anywhere in Outlook for Mac) select File | New | Contact List from the menu.
New Contact List grayed out: If you cannot access or click New Contact List, see below for enabling contact lists.
Type a name for the list that lets you recognize it over Untitled List.
Add new recipients to the list:
1. Double-click in the first empty line in the member's list. (The line says Double-click to add contact in the Name column.)
2. Type the recipient's name in the Name column and select from auto-complete entries.
Note: You can also add members to list that are not yet contacts or in your auto-complete list; see below.
Optionally, check Use Bcc to hide member information.
Tip: This setting usually makes little difference in day-to-day use; see below for its meaning.
Click Save & Close on the ribbon's List tab.
Save without closing and use the list: You can also press Command S to save the list without closing it so you can immediately use it and set up a meeting or send a message to list members, for instance.
Note: Do save before using the list, or you will use the list without unsaved changes.

How to Send a Group Message to a Distribution List in Outlook for Mac

To send a message to all members of a distribution list in a newsletter-like fashion using Outlook for Mac:

Start a new email message.
Outlook for Mac keyboard shortcut: Press Command Option N to start composing a new message.
Go to the Bcc: field in the message header.
Does it have to be BCC: You can also use the list in the other address fields, of course; unlike the To: and Cc: fields, Bcc: does hide individual recipients and their addresses from each other.
Start typing the name of the distribution list.
Use auto-complete to enter the list.
Compose and eventually send your group email or newsletter.

As an alternative, you can send using Outlook for Mac People:

Go to People in Outlook for Mac.
Find and highlight the desired distribution list.
Click Email on the ribbon's Home tab.
Tip: You can also click the email icon that appears when you hover the mouse cursor over the lists's entry.
Note: Outlook for Mac will create a new message with the list in the To: or Bcc: field depending on the list's Use Bcc setting.
Compose the email to the list.

How to Edit a Distribution List in Outlook for Mac

To edit a distribution list and add, remove or change members:

Go to People.
Find and double-click the list.
Tip: Outlook for Mac distributions lists are stored and appear in the On My Computer address book.
Double-click any list entry to edit it.
Click Add in the ribbon to add a new entry.
Highlight any entry and click Delete to remove it.
More than one: Hold down Command or Shift (for a range) to select multiple entries and delete them in one go.

Creating and Using a Distribution List in Outlook for Mac: FAQ

New Contact List is grayed out in Outlook for Mac; how can I set up a distribution list?

To make sure you can set up distribution lists in Outlook for Mac:

Select Outlook | Preferences… from the menu.
Open the General category under Personal Settings.
Uncheck Hide On My Computer folders.
Close the General preferences window.

Outlook for Mac contact lists are stored in a local ("On My Computer") folder. This is why those folders need to be enabled and visible for lists to work.

Can I edit the members of a list — say, exclude someone or add an address — when sending a group email?

Yes.

To expand the list of recipients and remove or edit individual members when you write a group email in Outlook for Mac:

Click ⊕ in front of the distribution list name in the address field.
Add, edit or remove individual recipients as needed.
Tip: Double-click an entry to edit the name or address.

What does "Use Bcc to hide member information" mean and what effect does it have?

With Use Bcc to hide member information enabled for list,

Outlook for Mac will enter the list in the Bcc: field when you start a new message from the list,
otherwise it will use the To: field.

The Bcc: field hides recipient's names and addresses, while the To: field with all its entries is visible to all recipients. Even with BCC, you will be able to see all recipients for any email or newsletter you send.

You can always

explicitly enter the list in the To:, Cc: or Bcc: fields.

(How to create and edit a distribution list in Outlook for Mac tested with Outlook for Mac tested with Microsoft Outlook for Mac 16; updated March 2021)

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