> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.lindy.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Email Assistant
> Auto-sort, label, and answer emails so your inbox stays at zero.
## Quick Overview
Connect your agent to Gmail or Outlook and let it:
* **Filter** incoming mail by sender, keywords, or labels
* **Categorize** messages (Marketing, Support, Colleagues, Spam, etc.)
* **Label** & tidy the inbox automatically
* **Draft** or send replies with your voice and brand tone
* **Tap** a Knowledge Base for accurate answers when needed
You can build off of both the [email triage template](https://chat.lindy.ai/home?templateId=6684857db1aa4ed9d5baa9e3) and [email responder template](https://chat.lindy.ai/home?templateId=681f0d58c7832f340735ba2d).
## Setting Up Your Email Assistant
### Step 1: Connect Your Mailbox
1. Select `Gmail / Outlook – Email Received` as the trigger.
2. Complete authentication to grant read/send access.
### Step 2: Set Inbox Filters
Use `Trigger Filters` to keep processing costs tight. Examples:
* *Subject* contains "Invoice"
* *From* equals `news@` (route newsletters)
* Attachment present (flag items needing review)
## Step 3: Categorize with Conditions
Add a `Condition` step to branch emails into different paths based on their content.
Click `Add Condition` to create branches for each email type. Here are some examples:
| Condition Type | Example Setup |
| -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Team** | Prompt: "Is from a coworker (from address contains @lindy.ai)" |
| **Support** | Prompt: "Is this a support request?" |
| **Marketing** | Prompt: "Is this marketing related?" |
| **Spam** | Prompt: "Is likely spam and does not need response" |
| **Unknown** | Prompt: "None of the above applies" |
You can add as many conditions as needed – each one creates a separate branch in your workflow. Feel free to customize these categories to match your business needs and email patterns.
### Step 4: Label & Organize
For each category, drop in a `Add Label to Email` action:
| Category | Label |
| --------- | -------------- |
| marketing | `Marketing 📣` |
| support | `Support 🛠` |
| coworker | `Team 💬` |
| spam | `Spam ❌` |
### Step 5: Draft or Send Replies
For each path you want a response, connect them to a `Send Reply` action.
Use a prompt like this in the `Body` field and adjust the adjectives to match your style:
```
Reply to this email.
My style is : [ADJ1], [ADJ2], [ADJ3]
Always sign off like this: [insert signature]
Be concise and actionable.
```
You can also use the signature field and add in your custom html signature.
Toggle `Save as Draft` if you want to review before sending.
### Step 6: Add a Knowledge Base (Optional)
1. Attach docs (FAQ, help center, pricing guides).
2. Insert `Search Knowledge Base` before the reply action.
3. Gate replies with a `Found answer?` condition to avoid guesswork.
## Advanced Customizations
| Trick | What it does |
| ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Thread Sentiment Check | Score each email's tone (angry, happy, neutral) → escalate negative threads to Slack. |
| VIP Escalation | If `from` domain matches big-logo clients, bypass auto-reply and ping you instantly. |
| Spam Digest | Collect low-priority marketing mails → send one daily summary at 7 AM. |
| Attachment OCR | Auto-extract invoice data from PDFs and push to your accounting system. |
## Best Practices
Keep `Save as Draft` on for the first week to spot issues.
Out-of-date answers are worse than no answer; schedule monthly reviews.
Leave sensitive/legal threads for human review.
## Next Steps
Now that your Email Assistant is set up, explore these complementary workflows:
Advanced email automation and workflows
Add smart routing logic to email workflows
Jump-start with pre-built email workflows
Add approval steps for important emails