How to reply to, forward, and resend an email
Overview
Front has several different options for how you can reply, forward, or resend an email based on your needs. You can also set a default option reply button for mobile. Read about each of the options in this article and how they differ.
Reply options
Reply
The blue Reply button appears at the bottom of the most recent message in the thread, as well as in the 3-dot menu on the top right of every message. This option will reply only to the From sender in the message that you reply from, not any other recipients on the message.
Reply all
If there are multiple recipients in the most recent message, you will see a blue Reply all button at the bottom of the message; as well as in the 3-dot menu on the top right of any message. This option will send the reply to all recipients in this message that you Reply all from.
Forward options
While commenting and assigning can take the place of forwarding emails internally, sometimes it's necessary to resend or forward to external parties. Front allows you to forward within the same thread or a new thread.
Forward
When you use the Forward option, the forwarded message will thread into the existing conversation. The forward will include existing content prior to that conversation thread. This allows you to keep the context of the forward within the thread and replies will also thread into the existing conversation if your threading is turned on. Otherwise, you'll want to use the Forward as a new conversation option instead.
You can see the forwarded content by clicking the 3 dots at the bottom to expand the history.
Forward as a new conversation
The Forward as a new conversation option will create a brand new thread for the forwarded message. This option is helpful if you want to start a completely separate discussion that is not related to the original at all. Replies will thread into this new conversation if you have threading turned on. You can see the forwarded content by clicking the 3 dots at the bottom to expand the history.
Resend options
Sometimes there are messages we need to re-use and send again, like an order quote or proposal. Now, you can do that right from your chosen message in Front — no need to copy and paste into a new message or disrupt the formatting by forwarding. Currently, this feature is available on email channels. To see the Resend options, click the 3 dots at the top right of any inbound or outbound message.
Resend
When you choose the Resend option, a new duplicate message will be created within the same thread. You can send this to any recipient you'd like to keep the context within the same thread for your team to see. Replies will thread into this original conversation if you have threading turned on.
Resend as a new conversation
When you use Resend as a new conversation, Front will create a brand new thread replicating the message that you are resending. This option is helpful if you want to reuse the information with a completely different client that is not related to the original at all. Replies will thread into this new conversation if you have threading turned on.
Change the From address
When composing a reply to an email, you can change the From address. In other words, you can receive a message to one email address and reply to it with a different email address. When composing a reply to an email, you can click the From address in the composer to choose any other reply channel you have access to.
While you can change the reply channel in email conversations, other channel types, such as SMS and chat, do not allow you to change the From address.
Change from shared to private
If you're replying to a shared conversation and you adjust the From channel to your private channel, your message will still be visible in the shared inbox. However, you can create a fully private thread for the conversation following the steps below.
Step 1
Hover or click on the i icon at the end of the gray banner on top of your reply draft.
Step 2
Upon hovering or clicking on the i, you will see a popup message allowing you to create a new private reply. Click on the Start new conversation button.
Step 3
You will see a new popup window containing a brand new thread, carrying over any content you already started drafting from the previous screen. Ensure that the From and To addresses are correct, and complete your reply. This thread will be private if you use your private channel as the From address.
Change from private to shared
If the email originally lived in your private inbox and you adjust the From channel to a shared channel, then the whole thread will also become visible in the shared inbox after you send the message. If your team settings also have the Auto-assign conversations on first reply feature turned on, then the conversation will also be assigned to you.
Set default reply on mobile
This option is only available on mobile 📲 because Front will always automatically show reply and reply all buttons on desktop and web for messages with multiple recipients.
Step 1
Click the gear icon on the top right of Front and into the Personal settings tab, then go to the Preferences section.
Step 2
Scroll to or search for the Reply button (mobile-only) option and select Reply or Reply all in the dropdown.
Step 3 (optional)
If you always want to reply or forward in a new conversation, turn the toggle on for the Reply or forward in new conversation setting. When this is enabled, your default reply and forward actions will always create new conversations instead of threading messages to the original conversation.
FAQ
Are there shortcuts for sending options?
Yes, check out this article to learn which shortcuts to use.
Who has access to a forwarded or resent message?
Anyone who has access to the existing conversation in Front will have access to the conversation if you selected Forward or Resend.
Who has access when I use Resend or Forward as a new conversation?
The email address you send from in the new conversation will determine who has access to the conversation in Front. For example, if you Resend or Forward as a new conversation from your individual inbox, then only you will have access to this conversation. In addition, anyone else who is included as a participant in the new conversation will also have access.
14 replies
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Is there a way to reply as the email address that the original message was sent to? So, for example, consider a shared inbox called sales@acmecorp.com that has an alias called nwregion@amcecorp.com that automatically routes to sales@acmecorp.com. If an email comes into sales@acmecorp.com because an email was addressed to nwregion@acmecorp can I respond to the email as nwregion@acmecorp.com?
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Hi Jacob,
Yes! You will need to create a channel in Front for nwregion@acmecorp.com. Then you'll be able to reply from it.
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Cori Morris But doesn't that count against my shared inbox quota? Remember, in my example, NWRegion@ is not an actual email account; it's just an alias that funnels to Sales@. So, I wouldn't even be able to provide login credentials for NWRegion because it's just an alias of Sales@.
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Jacob Fenton, yes, it would. The other option would be to change the From address. But that would mean you would never be able to reply from the sales@ address.
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Could you please make "Reply all" the default reply action? I see no reason why our customers who send us emails and cc their colleagues should receive replies that are directed only to them instead of also to their colleagues. Whenever when I click on the "Reply to this conversation" bar, I forget that there might be someone who was added to cc and will not receive my message. This is a serious issue that we're having and which already resulted in delays for us.
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Michal Wendrowski Hi! You can make "Reply all" your default. Go into Settings, click My preferences and change the default Reply button:
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If I reply to a message from Gmail (ant not from Front) is it correct that the reply will not appear in Sent folder inside Front?
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Raffaele Viggiani It will.
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Cori Morris Ok tks, but I don't see replies made by Gmail inside Front. I see replies only if I answer from Front.
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Raffaele Viggiani Can you try searching for one?
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Cori Morris Yes, in search mode I find it, but not in the sent folder.
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Raffaele Viggiani You're right. That's a bug. I will let you know when it's fixed.
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In Gmail, once you choose "Reply" you can change it to "Reply All" while still drafting the email and we have not found a way to do that in Front. Is that something that can be done? Switching from "Reply" to "Reply All" or vice versa when already writing the email?
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Is it possible to select multiple messages in the inbox and forward all of them to the same person all at once? Rather than forwarding them individually?