# Canned Responses

Canned Responses are pre-written reply templates that agents can insert into conversations with a single click, saving time on frequently asked questions. Your team can insert them into emails with a click or keyboard shortcut. They ensure consistent messaging across team members and can be personalized with dynamic variables before sending.

## Overview

Unlike full email templates (used for campaigns and automation), canned responses are lightweight text snippets designed for quick insertion during one-to-one email conversations. They are ideal for:

- Answering frequently asked questions from customers or prospects.
- Providing consistent support replies across your team.
- Speeding up responses to common inquiries.
- Maintaining professional tone and messaging standards.
- Onboarding new team members who are not yet familiar with company communication style.

## 20 Pre-Built Professional Responses

MailTrixy includes 20 ready-to-use canned responses covering the most common business communication scenarios:

### Customer Support (6 responses)

- Acknowledgment: "Thank you for reaching out. I've received your message and will get back to you within [timeframe]."
- Issue Escalation: Informs the customer that their issue has been escalated to a senior team member with an expected follow-up time.
- Resolution Confirmation: Confirms that the reported issue has been resolved and asks for verification.
- Feature Request Noted: Thanks the customer for their suggestion and explains the feedback process.
- Refund Processed: Confirms refund processing with amount, method, and expected timeline.
- Account Setup Help: Step-by-step instructions for common account setup questions.

### Sales (6 responses)

- Initial Outreach: A warm introductory email for first contact with a prospect.
- Follow-Up After Demo: Thanks the prospect for attending a demo and provides next steps.
- Pricing Information: Overview of pricing tiers with a link to the full pricing page.
- Proposal Attached: Accompanies a proposal document with key highlights and CTA.
- Check-In: A gentle follow-up for prospects who have gone quiet.
- Closed Won Thank You: Welcomes the new customer and outlines onboarding next steps.

### General Business (8 responses)

- Meeting Confirmation: Confirms meeting date, time, and agenda with a calendar link.
- Meeting Reschedule: Politely requests to reschedule with alternative time slots.
- Out of Office: Standard auto-reply template for vacations or unavailability.
- Introduction: Introduces yourself and your role to a new contact.
- Referral Request: Asks a satisfied customer for referrals or introductions.
- Feedback Request: Requests feedback on a recent interaction or service.
- Thank You: A general-purpose thank you message adaptable to various contexts.
- Apology: A professional apology template for service issues or delays.

## Personal vs. Team-Shared Responses

Canned responses can be scoped at two levels:

- Personal Responses: Visible only to the team member who created them. Use these for individual communication patterns, personal follow-up templates, or drafts in progress. Personal responses are stored in the user's account and travel with them across workspaces.
- Team-Shared Responses: Available to all members of the workspace. These are managed by Admins and Owners and ensure consistent messaging across the entire team. When a team response is updated, all team members immediately see the updated version.

> Tip: When the slash command menu shows results, personal responses appear first (marked with a person icon) followed by team responses (marked with a group icon).

## Channel Coverage

Canned responses work across every channel the inbox supports — Email, WhatsApp, SMS, Telegram, Slack, and Live Chat. The same template library is available in both Compose (for new messages) and Reply (inside a conversation).

- Email: Full HTML-formatted responses with rich text, links, and formatting.
- WhatsApp / Telegram / Slack / SMS / Live Chat: The inbox strips HTML automatically before sending so plain-text rendering is clean on every platform. Telegram additionally applies its supported-tag subset (`<b>`, `<i>`, `<u>`, `<a>`, `<code>`, `<pre>`, `<blockquote>`) and converts paragraphs to real newlines.

## Keyboard Shortcuts (/ Commands)

The fastest way to insert a canned response is using the slash command. It works in both Compose and Reply editors (previously only Reply; the fix strips the rich-text editor's `<p>` wrapping before checking the prefix so the trigger now fires reliably in both places):

1. In the Compose or Reply editor, type `/` followed by the shortcut or any word (e.g. `/hi`, `/pricing`).
2. A dropdown appears showing matching responses, sorted by usage count. The search looks at title, shortcut, and content.
3. Click a card to insert its content. The editor's current draft is replaced and the usage counter bumps so your most-used replies bubble to the top.
4. Edit the inserted text as needed and click Send (or Add Note).

### Shortcode Aliases

Each canned response can have a custom shortcode alias for even faster access. For example:

- `/ack` — Insert the Acknowledgment response.
- `/price` — Insert the Pricing Information response.
- `/mtg` — Insert the Meeting Confirmation response.
- `/ty` — Insert the Thank You response.

Shortcode aliases are configured in the canned response editor. They must be unique within the workspace.

## Variable Support

Canned responses support the same personalization variables as email templates. When a response is inserted, variables are resolved against the current conversation's contact data:

- `{first_name}`, `{last_name}`, `{full_name}` — Contact name fields.
- `{company}`, `{job_title}` — Company and role information.
- `{email}`, `{phone}` — Contact details.
- `{agent_name}` — The name of the team member sending the response.
- `{agent_signature}` — The sender's configured email signature.
- `{ticket_id}` — Reference ID for the current conversation thread.
- `{custom.field_key}` — Any custom contact field.

Variables are highlighted in the preview so you can verify they resolve correctly before sending. Unresolvable variables (missing data) are highlighted in red with a warning tooltip.

## Usage Tracking

MailTrixy tracks how canned responses are used across your team, providing insights into which responses are most valuable:

- Usage Count: Each response shows the total number of times it has been inserted. This metric helps identify which responses are most popular and which may need updating.
- Last Used: The date and time the response was last used, with the team member who used it.
- Usage by Team Member: See a breakdown of which team members use each response and how frequently.
- Response Effectiveness: For responses used in reply emails, track the reply rate (how often the recipient responds after receiving a canned response). This helps identify which responses effectively engage contacts.
- Usage Trends: A time-series chart showing usage frequency over weeks and months. Spikes may indicate seasonal patterns or new team members ramping up.

## Creating and Managing Responses

To create a new canned response:

1. Navigate to Settings > Canned Responses > New Response.
2. Enter a Name (displayed in the search menu) and an optional Shortcode alias.
3. Select the Scope: Personal or Team.
4. Select the Channel: Email, WhatsApp, SMS, or All Channels.
5. Compose the response body using the rich text editor (for email) or plain text editor (for messaging channels). Insert variables using the variable picker button.
6. Click Save. The response is immediately available in the slash command menu.

### Organizing Responses

- Categories: Group responses into categories (e.g., Support, Sales, General) for organized browsing in the management interface.
- Search and Filter: Search responses by name, content, or shortcode. Filter by category, scope, and channel.
- Bulk Actions: Select multiple responses to bulk-change category, scope, or channel. Bulk delete is also available.
- Import/Export: Export all responses as a JSON file for backup or migration. Import responses from a JSON file to populate a new workspace.

## Best Practices

- Keep It Personal: Even though responses are pre-written, always review and personalize before sending. Add a sentence or two specific to the conversation context.
- Use Variables: Leverage dynamic variables to automatically personalize greetings and references. `Hi {first_name}` feels much better than a generic greeting.
- Review Regularly: Schedule quarterly reviews of team canned responses. Remove outdated ones, update product references, and add new responses for common new questions.
- Descriptive Names: Use clear, descriptive names that help team members find the right response quickly. "Pricing - Enterprise Tier" is better than "Response 14".
- Short Shortcodes: Keep shortcode aliases short (2-5 characters) for maximum speed. Use intuitive abbreviations your team will remember.