Texts Inbox — reading and replying to messages

The Inbox is where inbound text messages land. It lists every text conversation your account has, flags the ones with replies you have not read yet, and lets you read a thread, reply to it, raise a task from it, or leave an internal comment on it — all without leaving the Texts feature.

The Inbox is one of the two views on the Texts landing page. The other, Campaigns, lists your bulk text message campaigns (see Creating a text message campaign).

What you can do

• See every text conversation, with unread replies flagged.
• Limit the list to conversations that have actually replied.
• Open a conversation and read the whole thread.
• Reply to a conversation from within the Texts feature.
• Create a task from a conversation.
• Leave an internal comment on a conversation and tag colleagues in it.

Opening the Inbox

1. Open Texts from the left-hand menu.
2. The Inbox view opens by default. Use the Inbox and Campaigns buttons at the top right to switch between the two views.

Reading the list

Each row is one conversation, with these columns:

1. Recipient Name — the Contact matched to the number. Where the number matches a Contact, the name links to their profile.
2. Recipient Number — the mobile number the conversation is with.
3. Status — Read, or a count of replies you have not opened yet (for example 2 New Replies). Opening a conversation changes its status to Read. To flag a conversation you want to come back to, select the three dots (⋮) at the end of its row and choose Mark as unread; the option only appears on conversations that are already read and have an incoming reply.
4. Sentiment — SwiftFox's read of the tone of the replies, for example Positive or Neutral. It can also be blank.
5. Stakeholder Leader — the Contact's stakeholder leader, or None / No record found where there isn't one.
6. Latest Activity — the date of the most recent message in the thread.

The toolbar above the list has Search, Filter and Sort, plus icons to pin and to hide columns. A Hide Non-responses toggle limits the list to conversations that have had a reply, which is the quickest way to find what actually needs attention.

Conversations are grouped by mobile number, not by Contact. If several Contacts share a number, they all show the same thread. A number that matches no Contact appears as Unknown Person, and its name does not link anywhere.

Two ways to open a conversation

The row gives you two different views of the same conversation, and which one you get depends on where you click:

• Select the row itself to open the conversation with a reply box — use this when you want to answer.
• Select the eye icon at the end of the row to open the conversation alongside its Tasks and Comments tabs — use this when you want to act on the conversation internally rather than reply to it. This view has no reply box.

Replying to a message

1. In the Inbox, select the row for the conversation you want to answer.
2. A drawer slides out from the right showing the Contact's name, their sentiment and the full thread, oldest to newest, grouped by date. If the Contact has an active contact restriction, a badge showing the restriction type and reason (for example Permanent - Opted out) sits beside the sentiment chip, so you can see before you reply that they have asked not to be contacted. See Campaign periods & contact restrictions.
3. Type your reply in the message box at the bottom. Beneath it, a counter shows the length and how many SMS units the message will use (for example 0 characters : 1 SMS unit). If you are sending from an MMS-capable number you can also attach an image, which sends the reply as an MMS (see Sending pictures in text messages (MMS)).
4. Select Send.

Replies sent this way are a paid send, funded from your account's Communications Wallet, and count against the same credit as any other text.

The reply box here sends immediately — there is no option to schedule it. To schedule a message to a Contact for later, use the Send text quick action on their profile instead (see Sending a text message to a single Contact).

Viewing a conversation with its tasks and comments

1. In the Inbox, select the eye icon at the end of the row.
2. The drawer opens on the Conversation tab, showing the thread. This tab is read-only.
3. Switch to Tasks or Comments using the tabs at the top of the drawer.

Creating a task from a conversation

You can raise a task against a conversation either from the Tasks tab of this drawer, directly from the tick icon on the Inbox row, or from Create a task in the row's three-dots (⋮) menu.

1. Open the Tasks tab, or select the tick icon on the row.
2. Enter a Task name and, if it helps, describe the task.
3. Set a Due date if the task needs one — the date and time are both optional.
4. Under Assign to, choose a User or a Team and search for who should own it.
5. Under Permissions, use Sharing permissions to control who can view or edit the task.
6. Select Create.

Commenting on a conversation

1. Open the Comments tab, or select the speech bubble icon on the row.
2. Add your comment. Type @ to tag a colleague in it.

Comments are internal. They are not sent to the Contact.

Context and relationships

• The Inbox covers inbound replies to both bulk campaigns and individual messages — every text conversation appears here regardless of how it started.
• Pictures a Contact sends are shown in the thread. Other files they send (audio, video, PDF, contact cards and calendar files) are offered as downloads in the conversation.
• The same thread is visible on the Contact's profile through the Send text quick action, so you can work from whichever place suits you.
• A reply of UNSUB unsubscribes that number from text messages. See Text message opt-outs and unsubscribes for what that changes.
• Viewing conversations and sending replies are governed separately by the View SMS and Send SMS permissions on your user group (see Text message permissions for user groups).
• Sending is funded from your Communications Wallet.

FAQs

Why can't I see a reply box?

You have most likely opened the conversation with the eye icon, which shows it alongside the Tasks and Comments tabs and is read-only. Close the drawer and select the row itself instead.

Can I schedule a reply from the Inbox?

No. The Inbox reply box sends straight away. Use the Send text quick action on the Contact's profile if you need to schedule.

What does Hide Non-responses do?

It limits the list to conversations that have had a reply, hiding the rest.

Why does a conversation show "Unknown Person"?

The number is not matched to any Contact in your account. Add the number to a Contact and the conversation will show their name.

Why do two Contacts show the same conversation?

Conversations are grouped by mobile number. If two Contacts have the same number recorded, they share the thread.

Does opening a conversation change anything?

It marks the conversation as Read, clearing the unread reply count on that row. If you opened it by accident, use Mark as unread in the row's three-dots (⋮) menu to flag it again.

Are comments sent to the Contact?

No. Comments are internal to your team.

What does the restriction badge in the conversation header mean?

The Contact has an active contact restriction. The badge shows the type and reason (for example Permanent - Opted out). It only appears while the restriction is active; an expired temporary restriction shows nothing. Check their profile's Contact Restrictions tab before replying.