Using the Conversation Task
Adding the Task to your Case
When working on a case, open the Tasks tab and press the "Add new task" button.
On the next page, find the email task from the list, then complete the form to add the task to your case.
The options you see when when adding a task will depend on how the task has been configured. Creating case tasks has more information about these standard Case Management steps.
Sending Emails
Once the task has been created and assigned, the task user can send the first email.
Contact Options
The first time the task is used, the contact needs to be set. Use the contact drop-down to choose the recipient:
The items in this drop-down are set in the configuration. The screenshot above shows every possible option. They are:
- Custom - Manually enter an email address
- Case Owner - Email the person who raised the case
- Preconfigured - Pick an email address from one of the presets
- Site Group - A user group mailbox
Only a single address can be chosen, and once it has been set it can't be changed during this conversation task.
Templates
You can optionally prefill the subject and message body by picking one of the configured templates.
Subject and Body
Enter the subject and body of the email. Any text added using a template can also be edited.
Attachments
Use this section to add attachments to the email.
In the task configuration you can choose whether or not files that have been added to the parent case will be available in the task. If they are, they will be listed here.
New files can also be uploaded and attached. Any files uploaded here are also available in the attachments list of the parent case.
Files uploaded as part of this task can be deleted from the list of attachments (they will still be available in the message thread once they have been sent). This will also delete them from the parent case's attachments tab. Once the task has been closed, any attachments uploaded as part of the conversation cannot be deleted.
Attachment Limits
The attachments added as part of this task count towards the limit set in the case's Attachments configuration. Once this number has been reached the "upload" field will be hidden.
Reminders
Reminders are automated follow-up emails sent out to the contact if they do not reply to a message. Set the reminder email time in hours or days, or leave blank to not set a reminder.
The reminder email sent uses the "Send Reminder" email template.
If you send a new message with a new reminder time, or without one, before a reply to a previous reminder has been received, the existing reminder is cancelled.
Message Thread
The message thread displays the emails exchanged in the conversation so far.
Each message includes:
- The name of the person who sent the message
- The email address the reply came from
- The date and time of the message
- The subject line
- The first line of the message
Click on a message in the thread to view the full email, including any attachments.
Actions
While working on a task, the following may be available.
- Send Message - Sends the email to the contact
- Complete Task - Closes the task
- Cancel Task - Cancels the task
- Close - Close the current view without saving any changes
Completing Tasks
When you complete a task the note you add will be logged to the history of the task and into the main case history. The note can be private (only visible to users working on the case) or public (also visible to the user who raised the case).
The completed task can be viewed from the task list in the parent case. The full message thread, attachments, and task history can be seen. Additional notes can also be added to the task history.
You can optionally send an email to the task contact, which will use the "Task Complete" template.
Cancelled Tasks
When a task has been cancelled any messages and attachments are still visible from the task list in the parent case. Cancelling a task does not send an email to the contact.
