Message Center

Motion.io's Message Center enables you and your team to manage the chat messages clients send in their portals and the comments they leave on tasks across all your active projects in one centralized location.

This article will explain how the Message Center works and how you can use it to streamline communication and respond to clients more efficiently.

👋 Tip: Did you know you can send chat messages to multiple Motion.io projects simultaneously? Click here to learn more about the "Send chat message" bulk action.

How Motion.io's Message Center Works

In your Motion.io account, the "Messages" tab in the left sidebar will display a red notification informing you of new, unread chat messages and task comments across your Motion.io projects. You can access the Message Center by clicking the notification badge or the "Messages" link beside it.

The four tabs directly underneath "Message Center" allow you to filter between different types of conversations quickly.

Inbox: The "Inbox" tab contains all chat messages and task comments clients have sent, except those archived by you or a team member.
Archived: All task comments and chat messages you or a team member click "Archive" on will appear in this tab.
Comments: Includes only clients' comments on tasks you have assigned them.
Chat: Includes only chat messages that clients have sent through their portals' "Chat" page.

📢 Note: In the Message Center, you and your team members only have access to task comments and chats in projects you are members of. Click here to learn more about adding team members to projects.

Responding to Clients in the Message Center

To respond to client communication in the Message Center, click on the task comment or chat message you want to reply to, type your message into the text box, and click "Send."

After replying to a communication in the Message Center, the green arrow will indicate to other team members who may be involved in the project that you have replied to the client.

Responding to Task Comments

When responding to task comments, the name of that task is displayed in the top left. For additional context about the task you are replying to, click the "+" icon in the top right corner to display any attached files, forms, or information.

After you write a reply and click "Post," your response will be added to the comment thread on the task where the client initially posted it.

👋 Tip: When responding to task comments in the Message Center, you can click the "wand" icon to have Motion.io's AI instantly draft a response for you. After using Motion.io's AI to draft a comment response, you have full control to edit the comment before sending it to the client.

Responding to Chat Messages

When responding to chat messages, the name of the project the client sent that message in is displayed in the top left.

After responding to a chat message in the Message Center, your response is automatically to the corresponding "Chat" page in that client's Motion.io portal.

Managing Communications in the Message Center

The options that appear in each task comment and chat message viewable in the Message Center provide additional tools for keeping client communication organized across multiple projects. The section below will explain what each option does.

Set follow up flag

Clicking the "flag" icon on a chat message or task comment will keep it at the top of your "Inbox" tab. This option is useful for messages that require additional action or follow-up, which you'd like to stay easily accessible for team members on the project.

Delete

The "Delete" option allows you to remove notifications about task comments and messages in the Message Center. This option is helpful for keeping your Inboxes organized, as it allows you to hide conversations that no longer need to be referenced (for example, conversations related to projects your team has completed).

To delete a task comment or chat message from the Message Center, click the "trash" icon.

📣 Important Note: Deleting a task comment or chat message removes it from the Message Center, but does not remove it from the project. If you delete a task comment or chat message from the Message Center, it remains accessible in the project/portal associated with it.