---
title: "Forwarded Lead Triage Inbox"
description: Turn a dedicated inbox into an internal lead triage workflow with HybridClaw for founders and sales reps.
sidebar_position: 4
---

# Forwarded Lead Triage Inbox

In this tutorial, you'll use HybridClaw as an internal lead triage desk. The
workflow is simple: your team forwards interesting inquiries to a dedicated
mailbox, and HybridClaw replies with a qualification summary, a risk check, and
an outbound draft.

This avoids the biggest risk in customer-facing email bots: replying directly
to strangers before you trust the workflow.

## What We're Building

Here's the flow:

1. a rep forwards a lead or inquiry email to the bot mailbox
2. HybridClaw reads the forwarded content
3. it returns a qualification snapshot, the likely buying intent, and a reply
   draft
4. your team edits and sends the final answer from the real customer mailbox

## Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

- HybridClaw installed and the gateway running
- a dedicated email account such as `bot@example.com`
- an allowlist limited to internal senders at first

Configure the email transport once from the
[Admin Console](../../channels/admin-console.md) at `/admin/channels`.
Enter the mailbox address, password, IMAP/SMTP host and port, the folder
to watch (usually `INBOX`), and an allowlist of internal senders such as
`founder@example.com` and `sales@example.com`. The Admin Console stores
these in the same encrypted runtime secret store in both local and cloud
installs. See [Email](../../channels/email.md) for the full field
reference and the security checklist.

## Step 1: Forward A Real Inquiry

Forward an actual contact-form lead, marketplace inquiry, or prospect note to
the bot mailbox with a short instruction above it, for example:

> 🎯 **Try it yourself**
>
> ```text
> Please triage this lead. Tell me:
> - hot, warm, or cold
> - what they seem to want
> - missing qualification info
> - a reply draft in a calm B2B tone
> ```

The bot will reply in-thread to the internal sender, not the prospect.

## Step 2: Standardize The Output

Once the first few replies look useful, tighten the format. Add a block like
this to your forwarded instruction:

> 🎯 **Try it yourself**
>
> ```text
> Return exactly these sections:
> 1. Lead Score
> 2. Why They Reached Out
> 3. Missing Info
> 4. Recommended Next Step
> 5. Draft Reply
> 
> Keep the whole answer under 250 words.
> ```

This is one of the easiest ways to make the workflow repeatable across a team.

## Step 3: Add Email-Specific Guardrails

In `/admin/channels`, add email channel instructions such as:

> 🎯 **Try it yourself**
>
> ```text
> You are HybridClaw acting as an internal lead-triage desk.
> Reply only to the internal sender.
> Do not claim a call is booked, a discount is approved, or a feature exists unless the email states it clearly.
> Prefer concise summaries and safe draft language.
> ```

That keeps the system useful without letting it over-commit.

## Good Inputs For This Workflow

- website contact-form forwards
- marketplace or directory inquiries
- inbound referrals
- RFP or quote requests
- old leads that reactivated after months of silence

## Best-Practice Notes

- **Speed is the signal.** B2B lead conversion drops sharply when the
  first reply lands more than an hour after the inquiry. Triage should
  optimize for a rep replying within two working hours, not for a
  perfect internal memo.
- **Objection mapping beats disqualification.** "Worried about
  migration" is not a red flag — it's the exact line the proposal
  should address. Ask the triage to tag objections so the reply already
  speaks to them.
- **Watch for scoring drift.** After fifty leads, reps start calling
  everything "warm" to avoid the internal debate. Recalibrate the rubric
  monthly against real close rates so the score stays honest.

## Production Tips

- keep the first rollout internal-only
- use a dedicated mailbox instead of your main sales inbox
- if the output gets vague, add more structure to the forwarded instruction
- keep one owner for the weekly triage flow so the mailbox does not become
  passive clutter
- maintain the qualification rubric and objection library in
  [Notion or Obsidian](../skills/memory-knowledge.md) so the triage
  prompt can reference the same source of truth your reps use

## Going Further

- [Email](../../channels/email.md)
- [Admin Console](../../channels/admin-console.md)
- [Commands](../../reference/commands.md)
