# Read and answer enquiries The inbox, the stage board, tags and notes, and replying without leaving the site. For: Everyone answering website enquiries ## The inbox Messages gathers everything the contact forms send; newsletter sign-ups go to Subscribers instead, so the inbox stays for enquiries. The chips at the top separate the Inbox from Archived and Spam, with counts, and the filters narrow by stage, tag or which form was used. List and Board are two views of the same messages. An unread message shows a dot and a bold name until it is opened. The unread count also shows on Messages in the website's menu, on the website's card in the websites list, and beside Websites in the workspace menu, so nothing waits unseen. Board shows each stage as a column: New, Contacted, In progress, Won, Lost. Dragging a message between columns changes its stage, which is a quick way to see where the week's enquiries stand. Walkthrough: The inbox and its two views (The Messages tab) 1. **Inbox, Archived, Spam**: Three states, with counts. Working down the Inbox is the whole job some mornings. 2. **Unread**: A dot and a bold name until the message is opened. The same count shows on the website card and in the menus. 3. **List or Board**: The List reads like a postbag; the Board shows each stage as a column, for seeing the week at a glance. 4. **Filters**: Narrow by stage, tag or which form was used. An export takes the current view with it. 1. Open Messages on the website. 2. Work down the Inbox, opening each message. 3. Move finished conversations to Archived; mark anything hostile as Spam. ## Right-click for quick actions Right-click a message, in the list or on the board, or use its menu, for the everyday jobs without opening it: Open, Mark as read or Mark as unread, Move to a stage, Reply by email, Copy email address and Delete. Delete removes a message for good, with its notes, after you confirm. To keep it but have it out of the way, archive it instead from the open message; archived messages wait under the Archived chip. Walkthrough: The menu on a message (The Messages tab) 1. **Right-click a message**: In the list or on the board, or use the menu at the end of the row. 2. **The everyday jobs**: Open, mark as read or unread, move to a stage, reply, copy the address, or delete it for good. Warning: A deleted message cannot be brought back, and neither can its notes. Export the messages first if a record might be needed. ## Stages, tags and notes An open message carries everything known about it: the contact details as typed, the stage, any tags, and a run of notes. Notes are for the team: "Called back, quote on Thursday" saves the next person reading the thread from asking the customer again. Tags are your own words, a couple per message at most, useful for the ones that need following up rather than filing. Walkthrough: What an open enquiry carries (One enquiry, open) 1. **The contact as typed**: Name, email address, phone. The email is how a reply reaches them, so it is the field that must be right. 2. **The stage**: New, Contacted, In progress, Won, Lost. Dragging on the board changes the same value from another view. 3. **Tags**: A couple of your own words, for the ones that need following up rather than filing. 4. **Notes for the team**: "Called back, quote on Thursday" saves the next person reading the thread from asking the customer again. Notes never leave the workspace. Note: Notes never leave the workspace. Nothing written there is sent to the customer. ## Replying Reply by email opens your own email app with the customer's address and a subject already filled in, so you answer from your usual mailbox. Add a note to the message afterwards, such as "Replied with a quote", so the team can see where it stands. Draft a reply asks AI for a first version based on the message. Read it and adjust the wording to your voice; Reply by email then carries the draft into your email app, where you send it yourself. Nothing is sent without you pressing send. Walkthrough: Replying, with and without AI (One enquiry, open) 1. **Reply by email**: Opens your email app with the address and subject filled in, so you answer from your usual mailbox. 2. **Draft a reply**: AI offers a first version based on the message. Read it, adjust the wording, and send it from your email app yourself. 3. **The record stays**: If the enquiry became a CubeFlow task, the reference travels with the message so the two sides can be found together. Warning: Check any drafted reply for promises the business has not agreed: dates, prices and guarantees are exactly where a machine-written message drifts. ## Do replies come back into the Messages tab? No. Replies go from your own email app, so the conversation carries on in your mailbox. Notes on the message keep the team up to date. ## Can I delete a message completely? Yes. Delete in the message's menu removes it and its notes for good after you confirm. Archive it instead if you only want it out of the way. ## Who can see the messages? Members of the workspace with access to this website. They are not visible anywhere public. ## Related guides - [Build a contact form](/help/forms-and-enquiries/build-a-contact-form) - [Manage your site on the go](/help/mobile/manage-your-site-on-the-go) --- CubeSites is a trading name of Cube Systems Limited, part of Crushed Ice Group. Registered in England and Wales, company number 17220899. Registered office: Unit 11, Olney Business Park, Osier Way, Olney, Buckinghamshire, MK46 5FP. ICO registration number ZC216972. Contact: hello@cubesites.co.uk | 01234 672 617 | https://cubesites.co.uk/contact