Workflow Automation

AI Email Triage

Reads every email that lands in a shared inbox and sorts it by type and urgency before anyone has to open it.

A shared inbox fills up faster than anyone can sort it, and urgent messages get buried under routine ones. This workflow reads every email as it arrives in Gmail or Outlook, classifies it by type and urgency, and routes it to the right person or Slack channel. For routine questions it drafts a reply and holds it for someone on your team to send.

  • Every inbound email classified by type and urgency on arrival
  • Routed to the right person or channel using your rules
  • Draft replies for routine messages, held for a person to send
$2,900 20–30 working days Optional maintenance $249/mo
A mail-sorting box with a brass signal tower behind it, inbound messages sorted and sent onward.

What it is

AI Email Triage reads every message arriving in a shared inbox such as Gmail or Outlook, classifies it by type and urgency, and routes it to the right person or Slack channel, drafting a reply for the routine cases. Nothing gets buried at the bottom of an unread pile.

Why businesses buy it

When a shared inbox is sorted by hand, urgent messages wait behind newsletters and routine questions, and customers notice the slow replies. Someone also spends the first hour of every day just deciding who handles what. This workflow does the sorting instantly and consistently, so the right person sees the right message first and routine replies are already drafted. Nothing is sent without a person. The written scope sets the categories, routing, systems and testing before you order, so you know exactly what changes.

Problems this solves

Urgent emails get buried under routine messages in the shared inbox

Every incoming message in your Gmail or Outlook shared inbox is classified by type and urgency. Urgent items are routed straight to the right person or Slack channel.

Team members argue over who should answer which email

Routing follows the rules agreed with you, so each message has a clear owner. One workflow of up to 12 steps handles sorting and routing.

Staff type the same routine replies again and again

For routine cases, the workflow drafts a reply for your team to review. The setup was checked across 20 test runs on your sample emails.

Scope card SKU UPM-C0146

AI Email Triage

Everything this build includes, written down before you pay. Choose a delivery speed and any add-ons, then add it to your cart.

$2,900 one-time build price
1. Choose your delivery speed

Delivery times are in working days (Monday to Friday) and start once your intake is complete. They can extend because of national or public holidays, technical issues outside our control (such as platform outages, third-party changes, account approvals or access delays), or natural disasters and other events beyond our control. If a delay happens, we tell you in writing with a new date.

What is included

Channel
Runs in the background (no customer-facing channel)
Integrations
Up to 3 connected systems
Knowledge
Not applicable
Workflows
1 workflow, up to 12 steps, including 1 AI decision or drafting step
Languages
1
Testing
20 test runs on your sample data
Revisions
2 rounds
Handoff
1 × 45-min handoff session (recorded)
Support
30 days after launch

A good fit if

A shared inbox, such as support@ or sales@, gets enough volume that sorting it by hand takes real time every day.
You already know the categories that matter, such as urgent, billing, sales lead or spam, and want each one routed somewhere specific.
You want routine messages drafted a reply automatically, while anything unclear still reaches a person to decide.
You're comfortable connecting up to three systems, such as Gmail, Outlook and Slack, so triage runs in the background without a new dashboard to check.

Not the right fit if

You want emails that contain action items turned into tracked tasks, not just sorted. See AI Inbox-to-Task Automation, which is built for that job.
Your main input is submitted web forms rather than inbound email. See AI Form Processing.
You need data moved between two systems on a schedule, not messages triaged as they arrive. See AI Data Entry Automation.
You need more than 12 steps or more than three connected systems in the workflow. Add a note at checkout for a Change Quote, or start from our Custom AI inquiry form.

How it works

  1. You describe the current process. A written description or screen recording of how the inbox gets sorted today, plus five to ten real sample emails, defines the categories and routing rules.
  2. Up to three systems are connected. Typically the inbox itself, such as Gmail or Outlook, plus a destination such as Slack, Microsoft Teams or a spreadsheet, linked with admin access.
  3. The workflow is built, up to 12 steps. Each incoming email is classified by type and urgency, checked against your routing rules, and sent to the right channel or person.
  4. The AI decision step drafts routine replies. For message types you approve, a reply is drafted and held for a person to send, rather than sent automatically.
  5. 20 test runs check it against your own data. Real sample emails are run through the workflow so you can confirm every category lands where it should before launch.
  6. You review it and we hand it off. Two rounds of changes tune the categories and routing, then a recorded 45-minute session covers how to adjust rules later.

What you provide within 72 hours

Your portal lists these the moment you order. Delivery starts the working day after everything is in and your access is checked.

  • The list of systems involved, such as your inbox, Slack and any spreadsheet, with admin or API access to each.
  • A written description or a short screen recording of how the inbox gets sorted and routed today.
  • Five to ten real sample emails covering the categories you want the workflow to recognize.
  • The name of who should receive alerts if a message can't be classified or an error occurs.
  • The routing rules you want followed, such as which category goes to which person or channel.
  • Admin access and API keys for every connected system, shared by adding our team as a user or creating a key you control, never by email.
  • Your business information (company basics, hours and brand voice), shared during intake.
  • One decision-maker who can approve the categories and routing rules before testing starts.
  • An API key for your own AI model account (for example OpenAI or Google Gemini), created for this build with a spending limit.
The 72-hour rule. Send everything on your checklist, including access, within 72 hours of ordering so your build starts on time.

Timeline

Start Intake verified and the email categories and routing rules agreed.
Weeks 1–2 Inbox and destination systems connected and the workflow steps built.
Week 3 AI decision step configured to draft replies for the routine categories.
Weeks 3–4 20 test runs completed on your real sample emails.
Week 4 Your review and two rounds of changes to categories and routing.
Go-live Live, recorded handoff session, 30 days of support starts.
Delivery options, in working days (Monday to Friday) from completed intake. They can extend because of national or public holidays, technical issues outside our control (such as platform outages, third-party changes, account approvals or access delays), or natural disasters and other events beyond our control. If a delay happens, we tell you in writing with a new date.
OptionDelivery timePrice
Standard20–30 working days$2,900
Express15–25 working days$3,400
Rush10–20 working days$3,900

What you receive at handover

  • AI Email Triage configured and running on your shared inbox
  • One triage workflow with classification, routing and reply-drafting rules
  • Connections to up to three systems, such as Gmail or Outlook and Slack
  • A test report from 20 runs on sample data
  • An admin guide, the recorded 45-minute handoff and 30 days of post-launch support

Expected benefits and how to measure them

  • Can help urgent emails reach the right person sooner
  • Cuts time spent sorting the inbox each morning
  • Gives routine replies a head start
First response time
Compare reply times from your email platform or helpdesk for four weeks before launch and four weeks after.
Emails routed correctly
Sample a week of routed emails monthly and count any sent to the wrong person.
Drafts used with little editing
Count routine drafts sent with minor or no changes.

Before you start: Record the shared inbox's daily volume and average first response time for the last month.

These are things to track, not promised results. Outcomes depend on your data, your team and your market.

Running costs

The build price is one-time. Running the triage workflow costs roughly $20 to $100 a month, covering the automation platform plus AI model usage, billed directly in your own accounts. A high-volume shared inbox with drafting turned on for several categories sits toward the top of that range.

AI usage during the build and testing is also billed to your accounts, so every provider relationship stays yours. Nothing runs through us.

Ask about running costs

Custom requirements

If you need something outside the Scope Card, add a note at checkout. You get a written Change Quote, and that work only starts once you accept it. Your original order keeps its delivery date either way. Larger or bespoke projects go through the Custom AI request form instead.

Request a custom version

Keep it running

Monthly maintenance for this build covers change hours for things such as adding a new category or adjusting where a routing rule sends a message. It starts after the 30 days of included support and can be cancelled any month; unused hours do not roll over.

$249/mo (the minimum fee, includes 2 change hours)

Optional. Starts after the post-launch support period. Cancel any month.

How maintenance works

How this compares

Do it yourself with a SaaS toolHire a custom agencyUpmark Labs
Price An inbox-rules or helpdesk tool charges a monthly seat or ticket fee A systems-integration contractor quotes an hourly project rate Ours is one fixed price, shown before you buy
Setup Inbox rules need you to write and maintain the filters yourself A contractor scopes and builds the rules as a custom project Ours is built from your sample emails and tested with 20 real runs
Judgment Keyword-based inbox rules miss anything phrased differently than expected A contractor's quality depends on who is assigned Ours reads the actual content of each message, not just keywords
Delivery Inbox rules can be live the same day but stay basic A contractor build usually runs several weeks, set per project Ours has a fixed delivery time shown before you buy, with faster options

Questions about this product

What is included in the AI Email Triage build?

Up to three connected systems, one workflow of up to twelve steps including an AI step that classifies messages and drafts routine replies, 20 test runs on your own sample emails, two rounds of changes and a recorded handoff session. The price is fixed and shown on this page before you order, agreed in writing before the workflow is built.

What does AI Email Triage cost to run each month?

Roughly $20 to $100, covering the automation platform plus AI model usage, paid directly in your own accounts rather than billed through us. A high-volume shared inbox with drafting turned on for several categories tends to land nearer the top of that range than a lighter one.

How fast can email triage be up and running?

On a fixed schedule shown before you buy, counted from a verified intake and including 20 test runs on your own sample emails. Express and rush delivery are both available for an added fee chosen at checkout, rather than after the build starts, if your inbox needs help sooner than the standard timeline allows.

What inbox access does AI Email Triage need?

Admin or API access to the inbox itself, such as Gmail or Outlook, plus up to two more systems such as Slack or a spreadsheet, so classified messages can be routed automatically. Every credential is shared by adding our team as a user or creating a key you control rather than sent over email.

Can we add a new category after launch?

Yes, through monthly maintenance. Adding a category, adjusting where a routing rule sends a message, or turning on drafting for a new message type all fit inside its monthly change hours. Adding a fourth connected system is scoped separately as a Change Quote.

Is maintenance for AI Email Triage a fixed contract?

No. Plans bill monthly and can be cancelled in any given month, with no long-term commitment. The workflow keeps sorting and routing email on its existing rules regardless; a plan only covers the hours spent changing those rules afterward. Unused hours never carry into the next month.

Does a drafted reply ever get sent without someone checking it?

No. Drafts sit ready for a person to review and send; the workflow classifies and routes, and only drafts replies for the message types you approved in advance. If you want certain routine replies sent automatically later, that change is scoped through maintenance first.

Stop sorting the shared inbox by hand every morning.

Order AI Email Triage and incoming email starts being classified, routed and drafted for you from a fixed delivery date.

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