Email to Case in Salesforce

What Is Email to Case in Salesforce?

Email to Case in Salesforce is a feature that converts incoming customer emails into support cases. It helps support teams track, manage, and respond to customer queries in one place. This feature improves response times, reduces manual data entry, and ensures nothing is overlooked.

This automation enables companies to provide faster, more consistent support while reducing the workload for service teams. Instead of checking multiple inboxes, support agents can manage everything within Salesforce.

You can use Email to Case in two ways:

1. On-Demand Email to Case

• Uses Salesforce’s cloud-based email service.
• No installation required.
• Supports attachments up to 25 MB.
• Easier for most businesses to configure and maintain.

2. Email to Case with Agent

• Requires installation of a small agent on your local server.
• Supports attachments larger than 25 MB.
• Keeps emails behind your company’s firewall, making it ideal for industries such as healthcare or finance that require additional data protection.

Key Features

• Automatically create a case from incoming emails.
• Include email content and attachments in the case.
• Route emails to specific teams or queues using routing addresses.
• Maintain the full email conversation within the case feed.
• Set up auto-responses and assignment rules to save time.
• Link follow-up replies to the original case using threading.
• Customize case fields based on sender, subject, or keywords.

These features streamline operations and enable support agents to prioritize and resolve cases more effectively.

Step-by-Step: How to Set Up Email to Case in Salesforce

1. Enable Email to Case

• Go to Setup in Salesforce.
• In the Quick Find box, type and select Email to Case.
• Click Edit.
• Check the box to enable Email to Case.
• (Optional) Also, check Enable On-Demand Service to let Salesforce process emails directly.
• Click Save.

2. Create a Routing Address

• In the Email to Case settings, click New Routing Address.
• Fill out the form with:
  • Name: A label for this email source (e.g., Support, Billing).
  • Email Address: The address customers will send messages to.
  • Case Owner: The user or queue that will receive the case.
  • Case Priority & Origin: Choose how new cases are labeled.
• Click Save.
• Open the inbox for the routing address and click the verification link sent by Salesforce.

Routing addresses help sort incoming emails by topic or department. For example, you can use separate addresses for technical support, billing inquiries, or product feedback.

3. Configure Your Email System

• Set up your external email system (like Gmail, Outlook, or Microsoft 365) to forward messages to the Salesforce-generated service address.
• This step is key without it, emails won’t reach Salesforce.
• Ensure that SPF, DKIM, and other authentication settings are correctly configured to avoid email delivery issues.

4. Test the Setup

• Send a test email to your routing address.
• In Salesforce, check whether a case was created successfully with the email content and attachments.
• Confirm that the case was assigned to the correct queue and that automated replies were sent (if configured).

Email Threading

Email threading links incoming and outgoing emails to the correct case, ensuring the entire conversation is visible and easy to follow.

Salesforce uses reference IDs in the subject line and email headers to identify and attach emails to the correct case. Starting with Spring ’23, Salesforce offers Lightning Threading, which improves accuracy and eliminates reliance on email headers that some systems may remove.

This makes it easier to manage conversations over time and prevents the creation of duplicate cases.

Advanced Configuration Options

You can extend the capabilities of Email to Case with additional Salesforce features:

• Auto-Response Rules: Send automatic replies to confirm receipt of customer emails.
• Case Assignment Rules: Assign new cases to specific teams based on rules (e.g., product type and region).
• Email Templates: Use branded, consistent messaging for auto-replies and agent responses.
• Macros and Quick Text: Allow agents to insert pre-written responses to save time.
• Flows and Automation: Create custom workflows for follow-ups, escalations, or alerts.

Use Cases for Email to Case

Email to Case works well for many business scenarios, including:

• Customer Support Centers: Manage support requests and reduce email volume.
• Billing Departments: Handle payment and invoice-related queries.
• Product Returns and Feedback: Automatically log return requests and collect user feedback.
• Compliance or Legal Inquiries: Centralize and track sensitive communications.

Benefits of Email to Case

• Faster Case Creation: No need to create cases manually.
• Better Tracking: Keep email conversations and files linked to the correct case.
• Consistent Service: Automatically route and respond to customers based on rules.
• Improved Team Efficiency: Agents can focus on solving issues instead of entering data.
• Secure and Scalable: Choose between on-demand or behind-the-firewall options.
• Improved Visibility: Managers can view case volumes and response times.
• Stronger Customer Satisfaction: Customers receive timely responses and better support experiences.

Common Challenges and Tips

• Email Delivery Issues: Ensure your email system is configured correctly. Use verified domains and check SPF and DKIM settings.
• Duplicate Case Creation: Prevent duplicates by setting proper threading settings and reference IDs.
• Agent Overload: Use assignment rules and queues to distribute cases fairly and reduce response times.

Conclusion

Salesforce’s Email to Case feature helps customer service teams stay organized and respond more quickly. Whether handling simple inquiries or complex cases, it enables your team to work more efficiently by centralizing and automating case creation.

Enabling Email to Case and configuring it to meet your business needs can help you provide faster, more consistent customer service. This feature is scalable, customizable, and suitable for businesses of all sizes.