Correspondence
Overview
Section titled “Overview”Correspondence covers the letters and documents you send to customers. These include invoices, payment notices, welcome letters, credit control warnings, and other formal communications.
Each piece of correspondence tracks:
- What type of letter it is
- When it was created
- What data it contains (invoices, payments, numbers)
- Whether it has been sent, downloaded, or delivered
- A full audit trail of all actions taken
For a quick walkthrough of common tasks, see the Correspondence User Guide. To create or send correspondence for many customers at once, see Bulk Correspondence. For API access, see the Correspondence API Endpoint.
The Correspondence Page
Section titled “The Correspondence Page”When you open a correspondence record, you see two main areas:
Left side (or top): Correspondence details including the correspondence number, date, type, and current status.
Right side (or bottom): Related information such as linked invoices, payments, open TODOs, recent updates, and actions you can take.
In enhanced mode, you also see:
- Preview Email tab: shows what the email will look like before you send it
- Sent Emails: history of all emails sent for this correspondence
- Linked Tickets: any support tickets connected to this correspondence
Correspondence Types
Section titled “Correspondence Types”Each piece of correspondence has a type. The type controls what content sections appear in the letter and how the document is formatted.
Correspondence Classes
Section titled “Correspondence Classes”Types are grouped into classes:
- Billing: invoices, statements, copy invoices
- Credit Control: overdue notices, suspension warnings, final notices
- Customer Services: welcome letters, general communications
- Sales & Marketing: promotional material and sales correspondence (requires customer consent)
The Sales & Marketing class was previously called Marketing. It is the class that identifies sales correspondence as well, so the label now says both. Existing classifications are unchanged.
The Sales: Email type carries that class and is flagged as marketing, so ad-hoc sales email follows the same consent rules as a campaign: individuals and sole traders need recorded consent, corporate subscribers may still be contacted while consent is unknown, and a recorded opt-out is always honoured. Where you use the Correspondence Classes module, tick Sales & Marketing against a customer before ad-hoc sales email to them will send.
Common Built-in Types
Section titled “Common Built-in Types”Your system administrator configures the available types. Common examples include:
- Welcome: sent to new customers, often includes an email verification link
- Failed Payment: notifies the customer of a payment problem
- Overdue Account: chases unpaid invoices
- Suspension Warning: warns that services may be suspended
- Final Notice: last warning before further action
- Copy Invoices: sends copies of selected invoices
- Statement of Account: summary of the account balance and recent activity
Content Sections
Section titled “Content Sections”Each type defines which content sections are available when creating correspondence. These include:
| Section | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Number list | Select numbers to include in the letter |
| Invoice list | Select invoices to reference |
| Payment | Link a single payment |
| Payment list | Link multiple payments |
| Payment Details | Payment value and nature of payment |
| Expected Payment | Link an expected payment |
| Direct Debit Account | Link a direct debit account |
| Direct Debit Mandate | Link a direct debit mandate |
| Start Date / End Date | Define a date range |
| Free Text 1 / Free Text 2 | Custom message fields |
Only the sections relevant to the chosen type appear on the form.
Composed (ad-hoc) content
Section titled “Composed (ad-hoc) content”A correspondence type can carry an Allows Composed Content flag. Sends of a flagged type may carry their own subject and email body in place of the templated text, written once at send time and stored once per send, with merge fields still substituted per customer.
This is what makes free-form one-to-one email and free-form campaign sends possible from the CRM. See Compose Email.
Composed sends are email only - no PDF letter is produced. They follow the type’s delivery settings, compliance flags and tracking exactly as templated sends do.
Reminders and repeated clicks
Section titled “Reminders and repeated clicks”Sending a reminder is limited to one per record per day. Double-clicking Send Reminders on a bulk proposal or confirmation reminder page, or repeating a record’s own Send Reminder, no longer emails the customer twice or stacks duplicates in the approvals queue.
A reminder still awaiting approval is reused rather than duplicated, and the nightly automatic proposal reminder does the same rather than sending its own alongside one already waiting.
Editing the email wording in the CRM
Section titled “Editing the email wording in the CRM”Where the CRM is in use, the Correspondence page in the Customer Services workspace gives each type an editor with its subject and body side by side, with a Revert to default content button and warnings where the type is used by sequence steps or chase stages.
Checking the email wording
Section titled “Checking the email wording”A correspondence type’s email wording lives in platform parameters, which historically meant hunting through the parameter list to see what a letter actually said.
The correspondence type page now shows the normal and notification email bodies together on a rendered tab, so you can read both as the customer will see them. The View menu links straight to each configured parameter for editing, and where a body has not been set it offers to add one with the correspondence type already filled in.
Correspondence type fields
Section titled “Correspondence type fields”The fields below make up a correspondence type record.
Correspondence Type Name
Section titled “Correspondence Type Name”Basic identification and naming information for the correspondence type, including display positioning and visual classification settings.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Correspondence Type | Name of the correspondence type |
| Correspondence Type Availability | Availability status of this correspondence type (Headline, Standard, or Historic) |
| Correspondence Type Display Class | CSS class name used for visual styling of this correspondence type |
| Correspondence Type Display Position | Numeric position for ordering correspondence types in lists and menus |
Correspondence Details
Section titled “Correspondence Details”Configuration settings that control how this correspondence type behaves, including email settings, marketing classification, verification requirements, and data protection flags.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Correspondence Class | Classification category for this correspondence type |
| Email Settings | Email configuration settings to use for this correspondence type |
| From: Address | Email address to use in the From field when sending this correspondence type |
| Marketing Material | Whether this correspondence type contains marketing material requiring consent |
| Payment Reminder | Whether email delivery of this type must respect each address payment-reminder preference |
| SMS Correspondence | System-managed: whether this correspondence type records an outbound SMS container instead of an email or letter |
| For Email Verification | Whether this correspondence type is used for email address verification |
| Contains Personal Data | Whether this correspondence type contains personal data subject to data protection regulations |
| Allows Composed Content | Whether correspondence of this type may carry a composed subject and email body in place of the templated content; delivery settings and compliance flags still apply |
| Available For Confirmations | Whether this correspondence type can be chosen to deliver a Confirmation of Instructions; its email content must contain the %(confirmationAcceptLinkHere)s merge field |
| Available For Proposals | Whether this correspondence type can be chosen to deliver a CRM proposal; its email content must contain the %(proposalAcceptLinkHere)s merge field |
| Reminder Type | Correspondence type used for reminders when this type sends the initial confirmation or proposal; leave blank to use the built-in reminder |
| Auto-Create Types | Payment failure types that automatically trigger creation of this correspondence type |
Content Sections
Section titled “Content Sections”Defines which content sections are available for use within correspondence of this type, allowing customisation of the information included.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Content Sections | Available content sections that can be included in this correspondence type |
System Information
Section titled “System Information”| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Last Modified | Timestamp of the most recent modification to this correspondence type |
| Created | Timestamp when this correspondence type was created |
Creating Correspondence
Section titled “Creating Correspondence”To create new correspondence:
- Go to the customer’s page
- Click Add menu > Correspondence and select the correspondence type from the submenu
- Fill in the content sections that appear (these vary by type)
- Click Save
The system automatically assigns a correspondence number and generates the PDF letter.
Key Points
Section titled “Key Points”- The correspondence type cannot be changed after creation, so choose carefully
- The correspondence number is assigned automatically, but can be set manually in expert mode
- Content sections only appear if the selected type includes them
- The PDF is generated after saving
Viewing and Downloading
Section titled “Viewing and Downloading”Finding Correspondence
Section titled “Finding Correspondence”You can find correspondence in several ways:
- From the customer’s page, where correspondence appears in the summary on the right-hand side
- Using SmartSearch: enter the correspondence reference in the format
AccountNumber/CCorrespondenceNumber(for example,12345/C001) - From the customer page, searching
/C001finds that customer’s correspondence number 1
Downloading the PDF
Section titled “Downloading the PDF”When viewing a correspondence record, click the Download button to download the PDF letter. The correspondence must have been produced (PDF generated) before you can download it.
Emailing Correspondence
Section titled “Emailing Correspondence”You can email correspondence directly from the platform. For general information about email delivery and tracking, see Emailing Customers.
The correspondence must be ready (PDF generated) before you can email it.
Quick Send
Section titled “Quick Send”Click the Email button on the correspondence page to send immediately. The platform emails the document to the customer’s default email addresses using the default message template. No form appears and no confirmation is needed.
Full Email Options
Section titled “Full Email Options”For more control, use Actions menu > Email Correspondence. This opens a form where you can:
- Choose your recipients
- Add extra attachments
- Record audit trail details
- Click Email Correspondence to send
Choosing Recipients
Section titled “Choosing Recipients”The email form offers several recipient options:
- Customer Email Addresses: email addresses on the customer record
- Contact Email Addresses: emails for contacts linked to this customer
- Internal Team Emails: send a copy to yourself, the account manager, or commission holders
- Previous Recipients: addresses used for previous emails to this customer
- Other Email Address: enter any address manually (expert mode)
Leave the customer email field blank to send to all customer email addresses.
Extra Attachments
Section titled “Extra Attachments”You can attach additional documents configured for correspondence emails. Select them from the Extra Attachments list on the email form.
Audit Trail
Section titled “Audit Trail”The email form records:
- Emailed on Behalf Of: the user the email was sent on behalf of
- Email Reason: why the correspondence was emailed
- Email Details: any additional notes about the email
Marking as Delivered
Section titled “Marking as Delivered”Use this when correspondence has been delivered outside the platform. For example, posted, handed over in person, or sent through another channel.
How to Mark as Delivered
Section titled “How to Mark as Delivered”- Open the correspondence record
- Click Actions menu > Deliver Correspondence
- Fill in the audit details
- Click Deliver Correspondence
What Happens
Section titled “What Happens”- The correspondence status updates to include “Correspondence Delivered”
- Related TODOs are marked as complete (for the correspondence itself, and for any linked invoices, payments, or direct debit accounts)
- The delivery is recorded in the audit trail
Audit Trail
Section titled “Audit Trail”Each delivery records:
- Delivered on Behalf Of: the user the delivery was recorded on behalf of
- Delivered Reason: why the correspondence was manually delivered
- Delivered Details: any additional notes
Recreating Correspondence
Section titled “Recreating Correspondence”If the letter template has changed or the PDF needs regenerating, you can recreate the correspondence.
- Open the correspondence record
- Click Recreate in the Update Correspondence section
This regenerates the PDF letter using the current template. The correspondence data stays the same; only the PDF output is rebuilt.
The Recreate button appears highlighted when the correspondence has data but no PDF, indicating it needs generating.
Status Tracking
Section titled “Status Tracking”Correspondence uses a status system where multiple statuses can be active at the same time. For example, a letter can be both “Produced” and “Emailed”.
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Correspondence Produced | The PDF letter has been generated |
| Correspondence Emailed | The correspondence has been sent by email |
| Correspondence Downloaded | A user has downloaded the PDF |
| Correspondence Printed | The correspondence has been marked as printed |
| Correspondence Delivered | Manually marked as delivered through the platform |
| Correspondence Archived | The correspondence has been archived |
The “Has PDF Attachment” status is used internally to track whether the PDF file exists.
Correspondence Fields
Section titled “Correspondence Fields”The fields below make up a correspondence record.
Correspondence Details
Section titled “Correspondence Details”Basic correspondence information including the correspondence number, customer reference, and type selection.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Correspondence Number | Sequential correspondence number for this customer, automatically assigned if left blank |
Date Details
Section titled “Date Details”Date information for when the correspondence was created and current status tracking.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Correspondence Date | Date when this correspondence was created |
| Status | Current processing status of this correspondence (multiple statuses can be active) |
Contents
Section titled “Contents”Content configuration and data specific to the selected correspondence type, including any required business information.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Correspondence Type | Type of correspondence which determines the content sections and formatting |
Correspondence Data
Section titled “Correspondence Data”Dynamic content sections that appear based on the correspondence type configuration, containing the actual data to be included in the letter.
System Information
Section titled “System Information”Internal system tracking and audit information for this correspondence record.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Last Modified | Timestamp of the most recent modification to this correspondence |
| Created | Timestamp when this correspondence was created |
Related Records
Section titled “Related Records”Correspondence can link to several other types of record:
- Invoices: individual or multiple invoices referenced in the letter
- Payments: payments mentioned in the correspondence
- Expected Payments: scheduled payments referenced
- Direct Debit Accounts: direct debit accounts linked to the correspondence
- Direct Debit Mandates: specific mandates referenced
When you email or deliver correspondence, the platform automatically completes any related TODOs on the linked invoices, payments, and direct debit accounts.
Linked Tickets
Section titled “Linked Tickets”You can link support tickets to correspondence. Linkable tickets for the same customer appear on the correspondence detail page, and you can create the link directly from there.