autosave - How to communicate the message that the edit is auto-saved

I have created a web application that the user can change the report filters, the report columns visibility and order.

All these are automatically saved so the user doesn't have to press a 'Save' button or make any other action. The next time she logins everything is as she left them.

My problem is that I have received several mails that people asking me to save the changes because they don't want to setup the report every time(they don't have to since it's autosaved at the first place).

Clearly these people are not confident that the configuration is auto saved.

What do I have to do to communicate the autosave feature of my application?

• Show a spinner next to every autosave element?


• Show a full page spinner? (since the saving doesn't take long it will look like flashing)


• Show a small save icon that fades in and fades out at the top right?


• Or something else?

Answer

Just like, google mail, when you are drafting an email, this little word saved fades in and out every few seconds. Because your system will be new to people and not as widely used, at first, as google mail, or stackexchange or medium, you might want to make it visible somewhere maybe in green color so users mind is put at rest, that it is indeed being saved.