Inbound Email Workflow Trigger in Sparkforge

The Inbound Email workflow trigger automates actions whenever a new email lands in your mailbox. Whether the sender is an existing contact or brand new, the trigger gives you granular control over how inbound mail enters workflows — so you can capture leads, route conversations, and respond faster.

What the trigger fires on

Unlike the Customer Replied trigger (which only fires on replies to messages you sent), the Inbound Email trigger captures all inbound mail, including cold emails from senders not in your CRM. It handles:

• Cold emails: new emails from unknown senders.
• Warm emails: new emails from existing contacts.
• Customer replies: replies in an existing thread (optional, controlled by a setting).

Important: Only domains configured with Sparkforge Email or Mailgun dedicated domains can capture cold inbound emails. Two-way sync (Gmail/Outlook), shared domains, and other SMTP setups capture only emails from existing contacts.

Supported email configurations

Dedicated domain behavior

• Any address at your dedicated domain is captured. With acme.com, that includes sales@acme.com, support@acme.com, and random@acme.com.
• Each sub-account should have a unique dedicated subdomain. Sharing one domain across sub-accounts can route mail unpredictably.
• If a sub-account is configured with a non-dedicated setup, the trigger UI shows guidance that cold inbound capture will not work.

What you can do with it

• Capture cold inbound mail — first-time emails from unknown senders that the Customer Replied trigger never sees.
• Route by inbox using the To/Mailbox filter (sales@ vs. support@).
• Trigger workflows by subject line for refunds, resumes, or warmup mail.
• Filter by From, CC, body, and attachments to narrow exactly which messages enter automation.
• Control reply behavior so existing-thread replies do not retrigger workflows.

How to set up the trigger

1. Log in to your sub-account.
2. Open Automations > Workflows.
3. Create a new workflow or open an existing one.
4. Click + Add New Trigger and select Inbound Email.
5. Enter a clear trigger name (for example, "New Lead from Sales Inbox").
6. Click + Add Filters to narrow when the workflow should run.
7. Set the trigger settings: Track replies in existing threads and Automatically create a contact.
8. Click Save Trigger.
9. Add workflow actions (Send Email, Create Contact, Add Tag, Assign to User, etc.) and publish.

Trigger filter ideas

• Email Sent To: route by inbox so support@ and sales@ run different flows.
• Subject contains: auto-tag refund requests or invoice replies.
• From domain: isolate vendor emails or partner threads.
• Has attachment: capture resumes, signed contracts, or invoices.

Common pitfalls

• Cold-email capture only works on a dedicated domain. Shared domains and Gmail/Outlook sync will not capture mail from new senders.
• Reusing one dedicated domain across sub-accounts can misroute incoming mail.
• Leaving "Track replies in existing threads" on can re-trigger automation on every reply — turn it off when you only want first-touch workflows.