At the time of writing Loop components are currently only available for the web version of Microsoft Outlook. Loop Components allow you to edit content with others and see the changes instantly wherever you are accessing them from. They are built for collaboration.
Where are Outlook Loop components stored?
Outlook loop components are stored in One Drive in a folder called Attachments. They have a file extension .fluid. They are automatically a Shared file due to the nature of how they are used. The file extension is due to change to .loop at some point in the future.
How to add a Loop Component to an Outlook Email
- Open Outlook for the web
- Create a New email and add the person/people you wish to send it to
- Add a subject line as normal
- Click in the main body of the email
- On the Insert tab choose Loop component
6. The Loop component can be any one of the following:
a. Bulleted List
b. Checklist
c. Numbered List
d. Paragraph
e. Table
f. Task List
g. Q&A
7. Checklist is a common application of this so we will choose this option here
8. A loop component box is created where a Title for the checklist can be added and multiple options can be typed
9. When the email is sent and opened by the recipient they will see and be able to edit this loop component. This is actually a link to the original loop component created not a copy
10. If one of the items is marked as being completed this will also update anywhere else the loop component is being used. In this case if the original sent items is opened then the loop component will also show the change here
Adding the Loop component to other locations
You may want to have this list available in other places to make it easier for people to keep it up to date. By using a loop component, anywhere that this is changed it will update all other places that this is being used. This prevents the issue or changes being made in one place but not others leading to inconsistencies.
- Open the email containing the loop component. This could be the original sent item or the email opened by the recipient
- Click on the Copy Component icon
3. Navigate to where you want to share this component. This could be a meeting chat, an individual chat in Teams, in a Teams Conversation, in a Word document and many other places
4. Paste the component here.
5. Changes made in the loop component in any of the locations will also be reflected in the other locations too
6. The name of the person who has made the change will be visible too
NOTE: Loop components are also available in Word for the web but currently the type o loop components is more limited. Loop Components in Word are stored in the xxxxx folder in One Drive not the Attachments folder used in Outlook.
Further Reading
If you’ve enjoyed reading about Loop Components in Outlook, there are some other blogs below that you might find useful:
Want to learn more about Microsoft Outlook? Then email lara@laramellortraining.co.uk to discuss how I can help or have a look at the Microsoft Outlook Courses I run.