The Inbox keeps application events, automated acknowledgements, outbound email, and inbound replies together in each contact's conversation. Team members reply by email without leaving the contact they are reviewing.
Open Email
Open the Inbox in the main navigation, then select a contact. The workspace has:
- A searchable contact list with application-type and decision filters
- A chronological conversation containing submissions, decisions, notes, sent email, and replies
- The original application details beside the conversation
- A reply composer with formatting, templates, attachments, and a preview
On mobile, select a contact to open it, then use Back to return to the list.
Automated application and notification emails appear beside staff replies and applicant responses.
Write a Reply
Type in the reply box below the conversation. The email always goes to that contact's email address and appears in their conversation, where their answer lands too. Press Enter to send, or Shift + Enter for a new line. The toolbar adds bold, italic, and links.
A reply that does not use a template is sent with a general subject about the person's application. A reply you have not sent yet stays with its contact while you open other contacts in the same browser tab, and it clears once the email is sent.
A blocked contact's conversation is read-only, so the reply box is disabled.
Use an Email Template
Select Templates to choose a saved template as an editable starting point. Only enabled templates that fit the conversation are listed, and you can search them by name. The selected template's subject becomes the email subject and its text is added to the reply, where you can change it before sending.
Personalization fields such as the recipient's name, your organization's details, the application date, and the applied-for pet are filled in with this contact's details when you insert the template. A template that needs a pet is offered only when the application names one. If bracketed prompts remain in the text, sending stays disabled until you replace them.
If the email uses your organization's email address, phone number, or website and that detail is not saved yet, PawPlacer asks for it before sending.
Templates are managed in Inbox > Email Templates. Team members who can manage templates can open that page from Manage templates.
Attach Files
Select the paperclip to attach files from your device. Upload progress appears above the reply box, and you can remove a file before sending. An email with files and no text is sent with a short note that files are attached. See Send Messages and Collaborate for the file checks PawPlacer runs on attachments.
Preview Before Sending
Select Preview email (the eye icon) to see the email before it goes out. The preview shows the recipient, the subject, your message, the organization footer, and how many files are attached, exactly as the applicant will receive it. Send from the preview, or go back to keep editing.
Organization Footer
Every tracked email ends with the same closing: a short sign-off with your organization's name, followed by the organization's saved email, phone number, and website. Contact details that are not saved are left out. The preview shows the footer exactly as the recipient will see it.
The sign-off and the note inviting the recipient to reply are written in your organization's language, the same as automated emails, even when you use PawPlacer in a different language. Your message is sent exactly as you wrote it.
To change what the footer shows, update your organization's name and contact details. Changes apply only to future email. PawPlacer saves a snapshot of the exact footer with every sent email, so older history remains accurate after those details change.
Delivery and Replies
Email is sent in the background, so you can keep working while it goes out. Each email you send appears in the conversation with its subject, sender, and time. An email that could not be delivered is marked Not delivered.
The recipient can answer straight from their own mail app. Their reply lands back in the same conversation when it can be matched to the email they are answering.