A shared text inbox the whole office can work from

Because once two or three people answer the phones, texts get lost between them. One person thinks another replied, a customer gets two answers, or nobody answers at all. A shared inbox with an owner on each thread fixes that. Our guide to running a shared office inbox covers the habits that go with it.

In Birdy, every customer's texts are one thread, linked to their customer record or their lead. The list shows the name, the last text, when it came in, an unread badge and who it is assigned to. Each text we send is labelled with who sent it ("Luis · 2:14 PM" or "Automatic · Follow-up 1") and whether it was sent, delivered or failed.

• Assign a thread to anyone who can see it, or unassign it.
• Mine shows only the threads assigned to you.
• Mark done when it's handled. If the customer writes again, it reopens.
• Search by name, three or more digits of the phone number, or any words in the thread.
• Templates for the texts you send all day: Running late, On our way, Quote sent, Thanks.

Sales reps see only the threads for their own leads. Crews don't have the inbox at all: they call or text from their own phone's apps on the job screen.

Not yet for customers. Every business that texts customers in the US has to register its business and its use of texting with the phone carriers first, and texting is being connected. The inbox, threads, assigning, consent and STOP handling are all built and work today in simulated mode: each text is stored and clearly marked "Simulated, not sent". Nothing pretends to have gone out.

Setup is three steps on Settings → Texting: your business details, registration with the carriers (the screen says the carriers usually take 1 to 3 weeks to review), and choosing a local number by area code. When your number is approved, the same inbox starts sending for real.

Consent is kept per phone number. It comes from the unticked consent box on your booking page (the exact wording and time are saved), from the office recording how the customer agreed (on the phone, on a form, in person), or from the customer texting START.

• Automatic texts, such as reminders and follow-ups, need consent on file.
• A typed reply needs consent, or a text from the customer in the last 30 days.
• Automatic texts wait for quiet hours to end (8 AM to 8 PM by default). Typed replies go at once.
• Only a whole-message keyword counts. "Please stop by Tuesday" is not an opt-out.
• After STOP, the reply box is replaced by "They texted STOP on Nov 3. You can text them again after they text START."
• HELP gets an automatic reply with your phone number and email.

With Copy to job. When a customer texts something the crew needs (a new gate code, "the dog is out back"), the office taps Copy to job on that text. It picks the customer's open job, saves the text as a note the crew can see, and alerts the crew lead if they are already on the way or working.

A customer replying to a text also stops that lead's follow-ups, so nobody gets a "still interested?" email after they've already answered.