--- name: sales-missive description: "Missive platform help — collaborative team inbox merging email, SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram, live chat into a shared workspace with internal threads, collaborative drafting, task management, and rules-based automations ($14-36/user/mo). Use when setting up Missive shared inboxes for a team, Missive search not finding old emails or conversations, team can't see assigned emails or archiving affects everyone, connecting Missive to a CRM or other tools via API or Zapier, comparing Missive to Front or Hiver or Help Scout for shared inbox, or choosing between Missive Starter/Productive/Business plans. Do NOT use for comparing help desk platforms broadly (use /sales-helpdesk-selection). Do NOT use for contact center or CCaaS selection (use /sales-ccaas-selection)." argument-hint: "[describe what you need help with in Missive]" license: MIT version: 1.0.0 tags: [sales, shared-inbox, team-email, collaboration, platform] github: "https://github.com/missive" --- # Missive Platform Help Helps with Missive — a collaborative team inbox that merges email, SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, and live chat into a shared workspace. Teams collaborate with internal threads, co-draft emails before sending, convert emails to tasks, and automate workflows with rules. ## Step 1 — Gather context If `references/learnings.md` exists, read it first for accumulated platform knowledge. Ask the user: 1. **What are you trying to do with Missive?** - A) Set up shared inboxes and team spaces for the first time - B) Fix search, assignment, or automation issues - C) Connect Missive to CRM or other tools (API, Zapier, webhooks) - D) Configure collaborative drafting or internal threads - E) Compare Missive to other shared inbox tools - F) Something else — describe it 2. **How many team members?** - A) 1-5 (micro team — Starter plan fits) - B) 6-50 (growing team — Productive plan fits) - C) 50+ (scaling — Business plan fits) 3. **Which plan are you on (or considering)?** - A) Starter ($14/user/mo) — up to 5 users, email/SMS/social, team spaces - B) Productive ($24/user/mo) — up to 50 users, integrations, API, automations, basic analytics - C) Business ($36/user/mo) — unlimited users, SSO/SAML, IP restriction, advanced analytics - D) Not sure / evaluating **Skip-ahead rule**: if the user's prompt already provides enough context, skip to Step 2. ## Step 2 — Route or answer directly | If the question is about... | Route to... | |---|---| | Comparing shared inbox / help desk platforms broadly | `/sales-helpdesk-selection {question}` | | Contact center / CCaaS selection | `/sales-ccaas-selection {question}` | | Live chat strategy across tools | `/sales-live-chat {question}` | | Connecting tools via Zapier/Make/API pipelines | `/sales-integration {question}` | For Missive-specific questions, continue to Step 3. ## Step 3 — Missive platform reference **Read `references/platform-guide.md`** for the full platform reference — capabilities, pricing, data model, API endpoints, integration recipes, code examples. Answer the user's question using only the relevant section. Don't dump the full reference. ## Step 4 — Actionable guidance You no longer need the platform guide — focus on the user's specific situation. - For **search issues**: Use Gmail-style search operators within Missive. Clear filters before searching. Search by sender email address instead of name for more reliable results. - For **assignment/archiving confusion**: Archiving in a shared inbox archives for all members. Use "Close" status instead to mark conversations as resolved without removing from others' views. - For **plan selection**: Start with Starter ($14) for up to 5 users. Upgrade to Productive ($24) when you need API access, automations, or 6+ users. Business ($36) only for SSO/SAML or 50+ users. - For **onboarding**: Expect 2-3 days for basic setup, up to 2 weeks to tune rules and permissions for a 15+ person team. If you discover a gotcha, workaround, or tip not covered in `references/learnings.md`, append it there. ## Gotchas > *Best-effort from research — review these, especially items about plan-gated features and integration gotchas that may be outdated.* - **No permanent free plan.** Only a 30-day trial — no free tier like Hiver or Freshdesk. Smallest paid plan is Starter at $14/user/mo. - **API requires Productive plan ($24/user/mo).** Starter users cannot use the REST API or webhooks — must upgrade or use Zapier (also Productive+). - **Search is the weakest feature.** Users consistently report search not finding old messages, especially when searching by numbers or partial terms. Clear all filters before searching. - **Archiving affects the whole team.** Unlike personal email, archiving a shared inbox conversation removes it from everyone's view, not just yours. Use status changes instead. - **Only account owner can manage aliases.** Admins cannot add email aliases — only the account owner has this permission. - **Steep learning curve for teams.** Basic setup takes 2-3 days, but tuning rules, permissions, and workflows for a 15+ person team takes closer to 2 weeks. - **Self-improving**: If you discover something not covered here, append it to `references/learnings.md` with today's date. ## Related skills - `/sales-hiver` — Hiver platform help (Gmail-native shared inbox, AI copilot, SLAs). Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-hiver -a claude-code` - `/sales-gmelius` — Gmelius platform help (Gmail AI collaboration, Meli assistant, Kanban boards). Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-gmelius -a claude-code` - `/sales-helpdesk-selection` — Compare help desk platforms (Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom, Help Scout, and more). Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-helpdesk-selection -a claude-code` - `/sales-front` — Front platform help (AI-powered shared inbox, omnichannel, Autopilot/Copilot, REST API). Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-front -a claude-code` - `/sales-integration` — Connect tools via Zapier/Make/API pipelines - `/sales-live-chat` — Live chat strategy across tools - `/sales-do` — Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do -a claude-code` ## Examples ### Example 1: Setting up shared inbox for a support team **User says**: "We're an 8-person SaaS team. We want to set up support@company.com and sales@company.com as shared inboxes with auto-assignment." **Skill does**: Reads platform guide. Recommends Productive plan ($24/user/mo) since they need 8 users (exceeds Starter's 5-user limit) and automations. Walks through: create organization → add shared email accounts → create team spaces → set up auto-assignment rules → configure internal thread workflows. Notes that collaborative drafting lets agents co-write replies before sending. ### Example 2: Syncing Missive conversations to HubSpot via API **User says**: "How do I automatically create HubSpot contacts when we get new conversations in Missive?" **Skill does**: Reads platform guide for API endpoints and webhook setup. Provides two paths: 1) Zapier recipe using "New message" trigger → HubSpot "Create Contact" action, 2) Webhook approach: create a Rule with webhook action → POST to your server → call HubSpot API. Includes cURL example for listing conversations. Notes API requires Productive plan. ### Example 3: Search not finding messages **User says**: "I'm searching for an email from last month but Missive can't find it. I know it exists because I can see it in Gmail." **Skill does**: Acknowledges search limitations as a known issue. Recommends: 1) Clear all active filters and search again. 2) Search by exact sender email address instead of name. 3) Try narrowing with date range. 4) As a workaround, use Gmail's native search to find the message, then locate it in Missive by subject line. Notes this is the most common Missive complaint on G2. ## Troubleshooting ### Search not finding conversations or messages **Symptom**: Searching for a conversation returns no results even though the email exists **Cause**: Missive's search is its weakest feature (95+ G2 mentions). It doesn't reliably match partial terms, numbers, or old messages — especially with active filters. **Solution**: 1) Clear all filters before searching. 2) Search by exact sender email address. 3) Use Gmail/Outlook native search as a fallback to find the message, then locate in Missive by subject. 4) Report persistent search issues to Missive support — they've been improving this. ### Steep learning curve during team onboarding **Symptom**: New team members struggle with Missive's interface, rules, and collaboration features **Cause**: Missive combines email, chat, tasks, and automations in one tool — more complex than a basic email client. Basic setup takes 2 days, but team-wide tuning takes up to 2 weeks. **Solution**: 1) Start with just shared inboxes and internal threads — don't enable automations on day one. 2) Roll out features incrementally: week 1 shared inbox → week 2 assignments → week 3 rules → week 4 integrations. 3) Use Missive's onboarding resources and customer stories for team training. 4) Business plan includes personalized team onboarding. ### Conversations disappearing after archiving **Symptom**: An agent archives a conversation and it vanishes from other team members' views **Cause**: In shared inboxes, archiving removes the conversation for everyone — unlike personal email where archiving is per-user. **Solution**: 1) Use "Close" status instead of archive to mark conversations as resolved. 2) Set up team conventions: archive = permanently done, close = resolved but accessible. 3) Closed conversations remain searchable and can be reopened. 4) Consider using labels/tags to organize instead of archiving.