How email threading works
How Hushdesk keeps a customer's replies in the same ticket using email headers, a private reply address and the subject, and when a new ticket opens.
Last updated 2 min read
Every email conversation with a customer should live in one ticket. Hushdesk threads replies automatically, so your team sees the whole history in one place and customers see one tidy thread in their own mailbox.
Before you start
- Who can do this: nothing to set up. Threading works for every connected address.
- Plan: all plans.
Step by step
How a new email is matched, in order:
- Email headers. Replies carry
In-Reply-ToandReferencesheaders that point at earlier messages. If they match a message in a ticket, the email joins that ticket. - The reply address tag. Replies you send from Hushdesk ask customers to answer to a private address that includes a ticket tag. Even if their email program drops the headers, the tag still finds the ticket.
- Subject and sender. If neither works, an email from the same customer with the same subject, ignoring "Re:" and "Fwd:" prefixes, within the last seven days joins that ticket.
- Otherwise, a new ticket.
What happens next
- A matched reply is added to the ticket's timeline.
- If the ticket was closed, waiting on the customer or snoozed, it becomes open again.
- Rules for customer replies run; rules for new tickets run when a new ticket opens. See Create a rule.
- The AI agent, if it is on for email, looks at the new message.
On your side, replies keep the ticket's subject with "Re:" in front and carry the right headers, so the customer's mailbox groups the conversation as one thread.
Things that are never tickets
| What happens | |
|---|---|
| Gmail or Zoho forwarding confirmations | Code shown on the setup page |
| The forwarding test | Setup step turns green |
| Out-of-office replies and bounces | Noted on the address, no ticket |
| The same email delivered twice | Kept once |
Tips
- Always reply from Hushdesk rather than from your own mailbox. Replies from the mailbox do not reach the ticket.
- If a customer starts a new email about the same order, merge the tickets. See Merge and unmerge tickets.
- Rename unclear subjects such as "(no subject)" from More actions > Rename ticket.
Troubleshooting
Replies from the customer land in a new ticket
They probably wrote a new email instead of replying, or replied after seven days with a client that drops headers. Merge the two tickets.
My own replies from Outlook or Gmail are missing
Only replies sent from Hushdesk are recorded. Answer customers in the inbox.
Frequently asked questions
Why did a customer's reply open a new ticket?
Hushdesk could not match it to the earlier ticket. That happens when the customer writes a fresh email with a new subject, or uses the same subject more than seven days later with no reply headers. If both tickets are about the same thing, merge them from the ticket's More actions menu.
Does a customer reply reopen a closed ticket?
Yes. When a reply threads into a ticket that is closed, waiting on the customer or snoozed, the ticket goes back to open so your team sees it again. The customer reply also runs any rules you set up for customer replies.
How does Hushdesk know which ticket a reply belongs to?
It checks three things in order. First the standard email reply headers, then a ticket tag hidden in the reply-to address of your emails, and finally the same subject from the same customer within seven days. If none match, the email starts a new ticket.
What subject do my replies use?
Replies use the ticket's subject with Re in front, unless it already starts with Re. Customers' email programs then group the conversation together on their side as well. You can rename a ticket from the More actions menu if the subject is unhelpful.
What happens if the same email arrives twice?
Hushdesk recognises it by its unique message id and keeps only one copy, so repeated deliveries from your provider do not create duplicate tickets or duplicate messages in a ticket. This matters when a mail server retries a delivery it thinks failed, which happens more often than you might expect.
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Related articles
- Connect your support emailBring your support mailbox into Hushdesk in about five minutes. Add the address, forward it to your private Hushdesk address and send a test.
- Merge and unmerge ticketsCombine two tickets from the same customer into one conversation, and undo it with Unmerge if you merged the wrong one. Messages and history move across.
- Check if a reply was emailedEvery email reply shows a delivery line under it. Learn what Emailed to, Not emailed and Email failed mean, and what to do about each one.
- Auto-replies, bounces and mail loopsHushdesk ignores out-of-office replies, bounces and its own replies coming back, so they never become tickets or start an endless email loop.
Still stuck?
Chat with the Hushdesk team. A person answers on every plan.