Customer Document Communications Tracking

Overview

The Customer Communications tab shows a complete history of all invoices and estimates sent to each customer, including email delivery status, bounce tracking, and follow-up statistics. See which documents were sent, when they were delivered, and whether emails bounced - helping you track customer engagement and troubleshoot delivery issues.

Accessing Customer Communications

1. Open any customer detail page
2. Click the "Communications" tab
3. View all invoices and estimates with send history

What You'll See

Document List

Each invoice or estimate shows:

• Document number - Invoice or estimate ID (clickable to view details)
• Status - Current document status (DRAFT, SENT, OPEN, PAID, etc.)
• Total amount - Invoice total or estimate amount
• Balance due - For invoices, shows remaining balance
• Send count - How many times this document was emailed
• Last sent date - When the most recent email was sent
• Last recipient - Email address of the last send
• Delivery status - SENT, DELIVERED, BOUNCED, or COMPLAINED

Email Logs

Click any document row to expand and see complete email history:

• Subject line - Email subject for each send
• Recipient - Who the email was sent to
• Sent date/time - When the email was sent
• Delivery date - When the email was successfully delivered (if applicable)
• Bounce/complaint date - If the email bounced or was marked as spam
• Diagnostic code - Technical reason for delivery failure
• Sent by - Which user sent the email

Following Up on Documents

Send Follow-Up Email

From any document row:

1. Click "Follow Up" button
2. Email dialog opens with subject and message pre-filled:
   • Subject: "Following up on [invoice/estimate] [number]"
   • Message: "Hi, I wanted to follow up on [invoice/estimate] [number]. Let us know if you have any questions."
3. Edit message if desired
4. Click "Send"

Resend Original Document

From any document row:

1. Click "Resend" button
2. Email dialog opens with original document details
3. Confirm recipient and message
4. Click "Send"

Understanding Delivery Status

SENT

Email was successfully submitted to AWS SES and is in transit. This is the initial state for all sent emails.

DELIVERED

Email was successfully delivered to the recipient's mail server. This confirms the email reached the inbox (or spam folder).

BOUNCED

Email was rejected by the recipient's mail server. Common reasons:

• Invalid email address
• Mailbox full
• Domain doesn't exist
• Email blocked by recipient's server

What to do: Update the customer's email address and resend.

COMPLAINED

Recipient marked the email as spam. This is tracked to protect your email reputation.

What to do: Avoid sending further emails to this address unless the customer explicitly requests them.

Tips

• Check bounce status before follow-ups - The system warns you if an email previously bounced before sending again
• Use follow-up templates - Pre-filled messages save time and ensure professional communication
• Track engagement - High send counts with no response may indicate customer needs a phone call instead
• Review diagnostic codes - Technical bounce reasons help identify systemic email issues

Questions

Q: Why does a document show "Sent" but not "Delivered"? A: AWS SES reports delivery status asynchronously. If the email was sent recently, delivery status may update within a few minutes. If it stays "Sent" for hours, the email may be stuck or rejected without a bounce notification.

Q: Can I see which emails bounced across all customers? A: Yes - the Communications tab shows bounce status for every document. Look for the red "BOUNCED" badge in the Last Status column.

Q: What happens if I send a follow-up to a bounced email? A: BlueClerk checks the Email Suppression List before sending. If the address previously bounced, you'll see an error blocking the send and prompting you to use a different email.

Q: Why would I resend vs. follow up? A: Use Resend when the original email failed or the customer lost it - they'll get the same content again. Use Follow Up when you want to check if they received and reviewed the document - it sends a new message referencing the original.