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Practice Management Source: Not Available: APS, Iris, MYOB AE & AO, CCH, MYOB Practice Management (formerly GreatSoft) Available: FYI or Xero Practice Manager
The Create Email step is used to automate the creation of emails. When used with an AI Prompt step, the Create Email step can create AI-generated content into the email body using merge fields. Practices can then create draft replies, follow-ups and other custom email content.
The Reply To option allows the Create Email step to draft a reply to an incoming email.
This feature is currently in beta. Learn more about beta registrations.
Create Email Step
When creating a Custom Process, to add a Create Email step:
- Click Add Step.
- Select the FYI Actions application.
- Select Create Email from the list of functions.
- The Create Email step will open.
Create Email Step Details
Actions
The following fields are in addition to existing Create Email step functionality. Refer to Process Step Details - Create Emails and Documents.
| Field | Details |
| Reply To |
Select the email to draft a reply. When an email is selected, the recipients field will be removed, and the email is created as a reply to all the original To, CC and BCC recipients.
The Draft Reply will be automatically threaded to the earlier conversation, maintaining the correct subject, recipients, and sender. Important: Valid incoming emails must be selected in this step. If the Document view used in the Trigger Document is not filtered to incoming emails, the process will not run. |
| Recipients |
Displayed only when creating a new email. Refer to Process Step Details - Create Emails and Documents for more information. |
| Use Custom Body |
Toggled off by default. Toggle on to define the email body. Click the Merge Field icon to open the Merge Field editor window, where you can include text and merge fields, including merge fields generated by a previous AI Prompt step. Refer to Custom Body Option below. Note: When enabled, the Template field is disabled. |
| Template |
Select an email template from the list. Note: When Custom Body is enabled, the Template field is disabled. |
| Save or Send |
Select whether the email should be saved as a Draft in FYI, saved as a Draft in Outlook, or Sent Immediately. Tip: When a Custom Body is created or Reply To, it is recommended Draft in FYI so the response can be reviewed before it is sent. |
Using AI to Reply to Emails
Reply To Option
In the Create Email step, a new field Reply To appears under the Recipients section. This allows users to optionally select a document from the filter or an email generated in a preceding step, for example an Alter Document step.
Important Note: The Create Email step creates the email according to the step configuration. It does not assess whether a reply is required.
If the process should only continue when a reply is required, use an earlier AI Prompt step to review the incoming email and return an Output Merge Field, for example 'Reply Needed'. A Stop step can then stop the process when' Reply Needed' is equal to No, so the Create Email step only runs when a reply is required.
When an email document is selected, FYI automatically configures the new email as a reply. The Reply To field can only reference a single document at a time.
Tip: The Reply To behaviour mirrors standard reply actions in FYI and Outlook, ensuring that automated responses follow existing email threads correctly.
| Reply To Action | Details |
| Non-email document selected |
If a non-email document (for example, a PDF or Word document) is selected for Reply To, the process will not run. The system displays a clear, user-friendly error message: “The selected document is not a valid email for ‘Reply To’. Please select an email document or clear the selection.” The Create Email step will remain paused until a valid email document is chosen or the field is unselected. |
| Valid Incoming email |
When a valid incoming email that can be replied to is selected, the process runs:
|
Custom Body Option
The Custom Body allows users to define a one-off email message directly with the Create Email step, without using an email template. This allows users to dynamically personalise the email message and include merge fields from a previous AI step.
The Custom Body option can be used when:
- The email content is specific to this automation.
- An AI Prompt has generated content to insert into the body.
- Users do not want to create an email with a reusable email template.
- The message relies on dynamic or AI-generated content. For example, a previous AI Prompt step can generate a personalised draft email, which is then inserted into the Custom Body using the 'Response' merge field.
Note: For standard email communication, using an email template remains the recommended approach.