Save and reuse replies

A quick reply is a saved message with a shortcut you type in the inbox composer. Typing the shortcut fills the composer with the saved text, already personalised with the contact’s name, the page name, and your own, and queues any attachments the reply carries. Nothing is sent until you send it, so you can edit the text first. Quick replies belong to the workspace, so a team shares one set.

What you need first

• A connected page with conversations in the inbox. See Read and reply in the inbox.
• Nothing else. Quick replies need no setup beyond writing the first one.

How do I create a quick reply?

1. Open the quick reply list from the inbox composer.
2. Name it, so you can find it in the list later.
3. Give it a Shortcut — the token you will type to summon it.
4. Write the Message. Insert variables from the picker if you want it personalised.
5. Attach an image or a file if the reply needs one.
6. Save.

A shortcut is stored without a leading slash, so typing /thanks and typing thanks create the same shortcut.

Shortcuts are unique across the whole workspace, not per person. If a teammate already uses thanks, yours is refused and you pick another. That is deliberate: everyone typing the same shortcut should get the same reply.

How do I use one?

Start typing the shortcut in the composer. The autocomplete offers the matching quick replies; pick one and the composer fills with the finished text.

What you get is a draft. Read it, edit it, and send it like any other reply. Applying a quick reply never sends a message on its own.

Which variables can I use?

Seven, in three groups. The picker inserts them for you, so you do not have to type the syntax.

Group	Fills in
Customer	The contact’s full, first, or last name
Connection	The name of the page the conversation belongs to
User	Your own full, first, or last name

Quick reply variables lists each one exactly.

Note

Two things in the picker do not work yet. The Choose time group is empty, and a phrase that varies with the contact’s gender is coming soon — AFP does not record a contact’s gender today.

Can I move quick replies between accounts?

Yes, one at a time or in bulk. Select the ones you want in the list and choose Export; the export carries the name, the shortcut, the message, and the URLs of any attachments. The import dialog creates them again from that shape.

Import goes through the ordinary create path, so a shortcut that collides with one already in the destination workspace is refused. Rename it and import again.

The same selection mode does bulk Delete.

Why is it not working?

Symptom	Cause	Fix
The shortcut is refused as taken	Shortcuts are unique across the workspace, including your teammates’	Pick another shortcut
Typing the shortcut offers nothing	The shortcut is spelled differently from the saved one	Open the list and check the exact spelling
A name comes out blank	AFP has no name recorded for that contact	Nothing to fix in the reply — the rest of the message still sends
The message went out unedited	Applying fills the composer; sending is still your action	Read the draft before sending
An imported quick reply is missing its attachment	The export carries attachment URLs, not the files	Re-attach the file in the destination workspace

Related

• Quick reply variables — every variable and its exact syntax.
• Read and reply in the inbox — the conversation view the composer belongs to.
• Work as a team — why a shortcut has to be unique across everyone.
• Contacts — where the names the variables use come from.