Quick scenario overview
To track your emails directly on the Kanban board, you first need to set it up accordingly (Edit Workflow).
Create the following columns in your workflow (see the image below):
How does it work?
1. Incoming new email - a customer sends an email to a predefined address (e.g. support_mycompany@kanbanize.com), which is integrated into the Board via the email integration feature.
The email is converted and created as a Kanban card into the Requested column -> drag & drop the card into the “Working On” column and reply to the email via the card (open the Comments tab of the card and hit the "Send as Email" or "Reply to Author" button.)
Once you send the email from the card -> go to the Details tab of the card and set a deadline.
Once you set up the deadline, move the card to the "Waiting for your Reply" column. The point is to set a deadline for the expectancy of the customer’s response. It is useful for two possible use cases:
Case 1. When a customer replies within the deadline set, the card with the new email (created as a comment) is automatically moved to the “Follow up” column. This automation is achieved via the configuration of the "Card Updated by Email" policy - if properly set, it will trigger a predefined action (move the card to a pre-defined column), whenever a comment is added (i.e you get a reply).
Case 2. When a customer does not reply within the deadline set, the card is automatically moved to the “Follow up” column upon deadline expiration. This automation is achieved via the configuration of the "Time based policy" - if properly set, it will trigger a predefined action (move the card to a pre-defined column), when the deadline is in 0 days (there is a countdown and the card will be moved when the deadline is reached). This could be considered as a reminder and you can approach this contact again.
Note: It is important to understand, that this scenario requires appropriate actions and discipline on the Kanban board - you have to move the cards to the appropriate columns to make the automation work.
You can repeat this process multiple times, until your card is processed to the "Done" column.
Tip: Apply the "Card Updated by Email policy" to the "Done" column also. In case that someone writes you back accidentally, the card will be moved to the "Follow up" column and you will take an action from there.