Rules decide which email ReplyPen writes a Draft for. They do not change who sends: every reply is a Draft, and a person sends it.
What happens before you add any Rule?
Two things are on from day one:
- Draft-only. Every customer email that needs a reply gets a Draft in your Gmail or Outlook thread. Nothing is sent unless you send it.
- Automatic skips. Newsletters, notifications, receipts, auto-replies, internal mail and spam do not get a Draft.
Many small inboxes never need more than that.
What can a Rule do?
| Rule | What it does | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Skip | No Draft for matching email | Updates from a supplier, a mailing list the automatic skips missed |
| Always draft | A Draft for matching email, even if it looks like something to skip | Your biggest customers, or anything that mentions a refund |
Either way, what ReplyPen writes stays a Draft in your inbox until you send it.
What can a Rule match on?
- Sender: one address, such as
[email protected] - Domain: everyone at a company, such as
bigclient.com - Subject: words in the subject line
- Body text: words in the message
What can a Rule not match on?
A Rule matches what is in the email, not what ReplyPen knows about the person or the question. “Existing customers”, “angry customers” or “easy questions” are not things a Rule can match. When you mean a group of customers, match their domains or addresses. When you mean a topic, match the words customers use for it, in the subject or the body.
Which Rules should a support inbox start with?
Start with none, and add one when you notice a pattern. The first ones most support inboxes add:
- Skip the domain of a supplier or tool that sends you updates the automatic skips do not catch.
- Always draft the domains of your largest customers, so their email never ends up skipped.
- Always draft email whose body mentions “refund”, “cancel” or “complaint”, so these always get a Draft you read.
How do you see whether your Rules work?
Reports show, week by week, how many Drafts ReplyPen created, and how many you sent unchanged or with edits. If email you care about gets no Draft, add an Always draft Rule for it. If Drafts appear for email nobody needs to answer, add a Skip Rule. See what each Draft relied on in its Check note.
What about auto-send?
Auto-send, for the kinds of email you choose with a Rule, is coming in a later version. It will be off until you switch it on. Today nothing goes out without you: every reply is a Draft that a person reads and sends.