Auto-responders allow you to automatically reply to incoming emails that aren’t tied to a specific process. They’re managed through Inbox Rules and work like automations for your inbox.
Note: If you want to send automated emails as part of a process on a board, you’ll need to create an Email Automation
When to Use Auto-Responders
Auto-responders are perfect for setting expectations with customers and providing essential information. Here are a few common use cases:
Common Scenarios
- Vacation
- The dates you’ll be gone
- An alternate contact person or team
Let contacts know when you’ll return and who to reach out to while you’re away.
Include:
- Extended Leave
For longer absences, let contacts know how long you’ll be away.
We recommend converting personal inboxes to shared inboxes so that someone on your team can review incoming emails.
- Holiday Closures
- Dates your office will be closed and reopening
- Emergency numbers to call if needed
Notify contacts of:
- After-Hours Maintenance/Emergencies
- When the team will respond
- Emergency phone numbers
Confirm receipt of maintenance requests and include:
How to Set Up an Auto-Responder
Follow these steps to create an inbox rule for your auto-responder:
Step 1: Open Inbox Rules
- Open Inbox and select Inbox Rules at the bottom of the navigation.
- On the Rules tab, select Add a new rule.
Step 2: Create the Rule
- Title: Name your rule (e.g., Office Closed – Holiday).
- Inbox: Choose which inbox the rule applies to.
- Conditions: Decide when the auto-responder should send.
- Any Email – Triggers on every incoming email to the inbox.
- Date Range – Triggers only between specific dates.
- Time Range – Great for after-hours rules with specific days/times.
- Certain Contact Types – Triggers only for selected contact types, like Tenants or Owners.
- AND: All conditions must be met (e.g., Date Range AND Contact Type = Tenant).
- OR: Triggers when any one condition is met (e.g., Owners OR a specific email address).
AND vs OR Conditions
Step 3: Set the Action
- Action Type: Select Reply to Email.
- Review the action frequency, including Once per Conversation, to match your intended reply behavior.
- Recipients: Choose whether the reply goes to just the sender or everyone in the thread.
- Template: Select or create the email template used for the response.
- Send As: If using your personal inbox, choose Use the inbox name so it appears as sent from that inbox.
Step 4: Finalize and Activate
- Review the inbox, conditions, recipients, response template, sender, and action frequency before saving.
- Click Save.
- Find the saved rule in your list of Inbox Rules.
Before using an auto-responder broadly, validate its response with a narrowly scoped new incoming message. Check both a message that should match and one that should not.
- Edits to existing rules can take up to 10 minutes to take effect after saving. This describes the saved rule changes, not a delay before each automatic reply.
- They are not retroactive — only new incoming emails will trigger the rule.
Summary
Inbox Auto-Responders are an effective way to:
- Set expectations for response times
- Provide emergency contact information
- Communicate office closures or after-hours procedures
By using Inbox Rules, you can fully automate these responses and ensure customers receive timely updates without manual effort.
Need help?
- Email Support: help@getaptly.com
- Join the Community: Aptly Community