Combining messenger chatbots with email automation is definitely something worth considering. With Facebook Messenger policies increasingly becoming more strict, SMS and e-mail stay the tools of choice for user re-activation and engagement. Add specific use cases like sending confirmations, drip content, reminders, etc and you will easily see that any chatbot designer should be using e-mails too.
While other bot platforms like Manychat rely on their native e-mail engines, Activechat makes it easy to connect your own e-mail address. It increases the credibility of your e-mails and lowers the possibility of it being filtered into “spam” or “promotions” folders.
To send emails straight from your conversation flows, you will need to use the SMTP server. Usually, it’s provided by Gmail, Amazon, Mailgun or your own web hosting company.
The data that you’ll need includes the SMTP server address, username and password, and “From:” name for your emails. Once you have it, go to “Settings – Channels”, click the gear icon in the “SMTP” tile and copy these parameters there. Once saved, your EMAIL block will become active and your chatbot will be able to send emails on your behalf.
If you’re using Gmail, Google may be blocking connection attempts from Activechat due to security policy. If that’s the case (your EMAIL block will trigger errors), sign in to Gmail and click here to allow access.
This setting may not be available for G Suite users. To fix it:
Sign in to Google Admin console
Select Security → Basic settings
Under “Less secure apps“, click "Go to settings for less secure apps"
Select the Allow users to manage their access to less secure apps radio button
Please be responsible and do not use the email sending feature to spam anybody!
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