Replies sorted by AI, and reply rules
Every reply to a sequence or journey gets a category such as Interested, Not Now or Wrong Person. It is sorted by AI or by the button pressed. Your reply rules then start another sequence, give a tag, set a task or, with CRM, make a lead.
PLANSFrom Growth
Built and tried on our test systems; not yet sorting replies for a customer.
The problem it solves
- Fifty replies a day sit in the inbox, and the hot ones wait behind the out-of-office notes.
- A "not now, try in March" reply is read, forgotten and never followed up.
- Interested people are told to the sales team over a chat group, and some fall through.
How it works
- Leave Sort Replies with AI on in the sequence or journey (it is on to start with).
- A message from someone who got a sequence or journey message in the last 60 days counts as a reply to it, on any channel.
- A pressed WhatsApp button is taken as it is. An automatic absence reply is sorted Out of Office. Stop, unsubscribe, remove me, opt out and stop all are sorted Asked to Stop. Everything else is sorted by the AI right after it arrives.
- A reply sorted Asked to Stop, by its words, the AI or you, opts the person out of that channel for your Entity. They also leave your Entity's running journeys and sequences.
- Read and correct them in Marketing > Outreach > Replies. A corrected category runs the rules again.
- A Marketing Manager sets Reply Rules for a sequence (or any), when the reply is a category or a given button. The rule can start a sequence, give a tag, give someone a task, or with CRM make a CRM lead.
Everything it does
Categories
- Interested, Has a Question, Not Now, Wrong Person, Not Interested, Out of Office, Asked to Stop, Other
- Sorted By: AI, A Person, or Button
- A button reply keeps the button text and no category
- Asked to Stop records an opt-out of that channel (source Replied STOP, the reply as proof) and takes the person out of running journeys
What counts as a reply
- A message from a person who entered a sequence or journey in the last 60 days, on any channel
- It belongs to the latest sequence or journey they entered
- Sorting by AI runs after the message is saved, so the inbox is never held up
Reply rules
- Replies To: a sequence or journey, or empty for any
- When the Reply Is: a category; or the Button Pressed: the text of a quick-reply button such as "Yes, call me"
- Then: Start a running sequence or journey, Give Tag, Task For and Task (a to-do with the reply in it)
- With CRM: Make a CRM Lead with the conversation; the salesperson is the rule's task person
- Rules are tried in list order and every matching rule acts; archive a rule to stop it
Lists
- Replies: received, from, reply to, the text, category and who sorted it
- Filters: Interested, Not Sorted, Received; group by Category or Reply To
Who uses it
Marketing UserReads replies, corrects categories and answers in the inbox.
Marketing ManagerWrites the reply rules.
SalespersonGets the task or the CRM lead for an interested reply.
Where you use it
- Web: Marketing > Outreach > Replies and Reply Rules
- Web: the reply itself in Marketing > Inbox
- Not in the phone app: this is done on the web. The SmartMy Marketing app covers chats, contacts, posts, leads and campaigns
What you control
Settings
- Sort Replies with AI: on, per sequence or journey
- Reply window: 60 days after entering (fixed)
- Reply rules: none until you add them
Notifications
- No event of its own; a rule's task appears in the person's activities
Questions
Does a reply still end the sequence without sorting?
Yes. In every plan a reply ends the sequence and opens a chat in the inbox. Sorting and rules start in Growth.What if the AI sorts a reply wrongly?
Change the category in the Replies list. The rules run again for the new category.Does "Asked to Stop" opt the person out?
Yes. They are opted out of that channel for your Entity, with the reply as proof, and leave your running journeys and sequences. If the sorting was wrong, opt them in again on the contact's Consent tab.Can an interested reply go straight to sales?
Yes. A rule can give a salesperson a task with the reply, or, with CRM, make a CRM lead with the conversation.Related features
OUTREACHEmail sequences over many mailboxes, with tracking and one-click unsubscribeCold and warm outreach as plain, personal emails. Each sequence sends from a pool of your mailboxes, a little at a time. It keeps follow-ups in the same thread and stops for a person when they reply. Every email carries an unsubscribe link and the one-click unsubscribe header.OUTREACHWhatsApp sequences: free text in the 24-hour window, over several numbersPut WhatsApp steps in the same sequence as your emails. Each step sends its approved template, or your own free text when the person wrote in the last 24 hours. New chats can be spread over several numbers within Meta's daily limits.CHANNELS AND INBOXChats, lead ads and interested replies become CRM leadsWith CRM, a chat becomes a CRM lead in one press. Every lead from a Facebook, Instagram or Google lead form can make one by itself. A reply rule can turn every interested reply to your outreach into a lead.CAMPAIGNSA/B tests on emails, WhatsApp steps and broadcasts, with the winner sentTry up to five versions of an email, a WhatsApp template or a broadcast. Split people evenly or by shares, or test first and send the winner to everyone after. You get a plain verdict on how sure the result is.CHANNELS AND INBOXOne inbox for every channelWhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, web chat and replies to your outreach emails come into one inbox. Your team assigns, tags, notes and answers every chat in one screen, with the 24-hour reply window shown on each chat.
See your inbox and campaigns on it.
Tell us which channels your customers use, how leads reach you and how many people answer them. We will connect a channel with you and run your first journey.