PlainAgent / Templates / Inbox triage agent
Operations templateInbox triage agent
Labels incoming email by type and urgency and drafts replies for the routine ones.
Job
Sort every new email into a few labels and draft replies for routine messages.
Trigger
A new email arrives.
Hand off to a person when
Anything labelled urgent, legal or personal stays for you.
Inputs & knowledge
- Email sender, subject and body
- Your label list with one-line definitions
Tools / actions
- Apply a label
- Create a draft reply (not send)
Rules
- Exactly one label per email.
- Drafts only; never send automatically.
How to build it
- Choose 4 to 6 labels you actually use (for example: needs reply, FYI, invoice, sales pitch, newsletter).
- Define each in one line.
- Have the model pick one label and say whether a draft is needed.
- Create drafts only for routine types.
- Review the labels daily for a week.
System prompt
Replace the parts in {BRACES}. Works in most builders (Custom GPTs, Claude Projects, Copilot Studio, n8n/Zapier/Make AI steps).
Classify this email into exactly one label:
{LABELS WITH DEFINITIONS}
Email: {EMAIL}
Return JSON: {"label": "<label>", "urgent": true|false, "draft_reply": "<only if the label is routine, else null>"}
Test before you switch it on
- A newsletter: newsletter label, no draft.
- A client question: needs reply, draft created.
New to this? Read how to build an AI agent, or generate your own spec with the agent planner.
Want a ready-made workflow for this? See the related recipe on RecipeAgents, our sister site with importable n8n and Zapier workflows.