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Smart Replies in Workflows Inbox

Email templates let you answer a case in the Workflows inbox without writing the same reply again and again. You choose a ready-made template, ChurchDesk fills in the contact's details, and you send. Templates can be shared across your organisation, so everyone answers enquiries in the same tone and with the same information.


What you can do with email templates


  • Insert a prepared reply into any case with one click.
  • Personalise the reply automatically with the contact's first name and surname.
  • Send a reply straight away when you change the status of a case.
  • Organise templates by case category and filter them when you search.
  • Share templates with your own parish only, or with all parishes connected through your portal.



Availability


Email templates are part of the Workflows module and are available to all customers who have the module included in their plan.



Content




Rights and roles


  • Everyone with access to Workflows: Can open a case, select a template and send the reply.
  • Users with editing rights for a template: Can change the template itself. The change applies to everybody who uses it.
  • Users without editing rights: Can still use the template and save their own version of it by creating a copy. The copy belongs to their organisation only.
  • Administrators: Can see and manage every email template under ChurchDesk Settings > Workflows > "Email templates".
  • Multi-parish: Templates published to "Your organisation and connected parishes" are visible to staff in all parishes connected through your portal.



Send a reply from a template


  1. Open the case you want to answer in the Workflows inbox.
  2. In the message box at the bottom of the case, select the "Email" tab.
  3. Click "Select template".
  4. Choose a template from the list on the left. The full email appears in the preview on the right.
  5. Click "Select" to insert it into your email.
  6. Check the text, then click "Send".



Finding the right template


  • Use the search field to look for a template by name.
  • Use the "Ownership" filter to show only your own templates or only templates shared with you.
  • Use the "Category" filter to show only templates for a certain type of case, for example wedding or funeral.



TIP: Press Cmd + K to open the template list without leaving the keyboard. Use the arrow keys to move through the templates and Enter to select one.


If the case has more than one contact


If several people are linked to the case, ChurchDesk asks who the reply is for. The "Select contact" window opens, you choose one person and click "Select". The template then uses that person's details.


NOTE: A reply can only be addressed to one contact at a time. To write to a second person, send a separate reply.


If you have already started writing


If the message box already contains text, ChurchDesk asks "Replace the message?" before it inserts the template. Choose "Replace" to use the template, or "Cancel" to keep what you have written.



Personalise a reply with variables


Variables are placeholders that ChurchDesk replaces with the contact's real details when you insert the template. Two variables are currently available:


  • First Name
  • Surname


When you select a template for a case, each variable is replaced with the details of the contact you are replying to. A template that starts with "Dear First Name" arrives as "Dear Riccardo".



When a placeholder stays empty


If the case has no contact, or the contact has no first name or surname stored, the placeholder cannot be filled. ChurchDesk shows an orange warning icon next to the message.


If you click "Send" anyway, a warning appears telling you how many placeholders are still empty and that the recipient will see blank spaces. You can then:


  • Click "Go back" to remove or replace the placeholders yourself, or
  • Click "Send anyway" to send the email as it is.



Send a reply when a case status changes


When you close a case, it is often the moment you want to tell the contact. ChurchDesk offers a reply automatically.


  1. Open the case and change its status, for example from "Active" to "Resolved".
  2. The template list opens with a note at the top confirming the new status and asking whether you want to send a message to the contacts on this case.
  3. Choose a template and send it as usual.
  4. If you do not want to send anything, close the note. The status change is saved either way.


TIP: Give your closing templates a clear name, for example "Case completed", so they are easy to find in this moment.



Create a new email template


You can create a template while you are answering a case, or in the settings.


  1. Click "Select template" in a case, then click "Create template".
  2. Enter a "Name". This is only shown in the template list inside ChurchDesk, not to the recipient.
  3. Enter a "Subject line". This is the subject of the email that the contact receives.
  4. Write the email in the "Message" field. The editor is the same one you use for normal emails.
  5. Add variables where you want personal details to appear. Type an opening square bracket [ and choose First Name or Surname from the list.
  6. Select one or more "Categories" to say which type of case the template belongs to.
  7. Choose under "Publish" who can see the template.
  8. Click "Save as new template". The template is available immediately.


Categories


Categories describe the type of case a template is meant for, for example baptism, blessing, burial, confirmation, funeral, wedding or other. They are used to filter the template list, and a matching template is suggested when you close a case of that type. A template does not have to have a category.


Publish


  • "Only in your organisation" — visible to your parish staff. This is the default.
  • "Your organisation and connected parishes" — also visible to staff in parishes connected through your portal.



Edit or copy an existing template


Two buttons at the bottom of the template list let you change a template. Which one you need depends on whether the change should apply to everybody.


Edit template


Use "Edit template" when the change should apply to everyone. Select the template, click "Edit template", make your changes and save. The next time a colleague uses the template, they see the updated version.


Customize


Use "Customize" when you only want your own version, or when you are not allowed to edit a template that was shared with you by your diocese or portal.


  1. Select the template and click "Customize".
  2. A new template opens with all the values already filled in and "(Copy)" added to the name.
  3. Change whatever you need and give it a clearer name.
  4. Click "Save as new template".


The original template stays exactly as it was. Your copy belongs to your organisation only.


INFORMATION: "Customize" always creates a new template. It never changes the template you copied it from.



Manage all templates in the settings


Administrators can see every email template in one place.


  1. Go to ChurchDesk Settings > Workflows.
  2. Select the "Email templates" tab.


The list shows the name of each template, its categories and its ownership, so you can see at a glance which templates belong to your own parish and which were shared with you. You can filter the list, search it, and create new templates here with "Create template".



Keywords: email templates, templates, Workflows, inbox, cases, standard reply, canned response, smart replies, select template, create template, customize template, copy template, variables, placeholders, first name, surname, personalisation, case categories, case status, resolved, publish template, connected parishes, portal, multi-parish, reply to enquiry

Updated on: 28/09/2026

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