How to Connect Gmail or Outlook for CRM Email in CrmLeaf
All editions. Requires the CrmEmailIntegration add-on module to be enabled for your account by an Administrator. Confirm the module is included in your plan.
Availability: All editions. Requires the CrmEmailIntegration add-on module to be enabled for your account by an Administrator. Confirm the module is included in your plan.
Overview
Two-way CRM email lets your team send email to leads and clients from inside CrmLeaf and see the replies against the right deal, instead of that conversation living only in a personal mailbox. It connects to Gmail or to Outlook through Microsoft Graph, supports templates and open tracking, and keeps conversations per deal so anyone with access to the deal can see its history.
How It Works
An Administrator enables the module and completes the OAuth authorisation with Gmail or Microsoft Graph. Once connected, outbound email is sent from CrmLeaf, and replies are synchronised back and attached to the conversation for the related deal. Templates speed up repeated messages and open tracking shows whether a message was opened.
Enable module → Authorise mailbox → Send from the deal → Replies sync back → Conversation kept on the deal
- Authorisation uses OAuth with Gmail or Microsoft Graph, so you grant access by signing in to the mail provider rather than storing a mailbox password in CrmLeaf.
- Conversations are held per deal, so email sits with the sales opportunity it belongs to and is visible to whoever can see that deal.
- Email templates and open tracking are part of this module.
- This is separate from the account's SMTP override, which controls the transactional email CrmLeaf sends, such as invoice and notification email.
- It is also separate from the Email Ticketing module, which turns a mailbox into support tickets.
Who Can Use This Feature?
Administrator
- Enable the CRM email module for the account.
- Complete the OAuth authorisation with Gmail or Microsoft Graph.
- Maintain email templates for the team.
- Reconnect the mailbox if authorisation stops working.
User
- Send email to a lead or client from the deal, using a template where one exists.
- Read synchronised replies in the deal's conversation.
- Continue the conversation without leaving CrmLeaf.
Access depends on the modules and role assigned by your Administrator.
Prerequisites
- Administrator access to CrmLeaf for the setup steps.
- A Google Workspace or Gmail account, or a Microsoft account with Outlook, and administrator rights in that service if your organisation restricts which applications may be authorised.
- Agreement on which mailbox is used for CRM email, since the conversation history will be built from it.
- Leads or clients with valid email addresses, and at least one deal to test against.
For Administrators
Step 1: Enable the CRM email module
What to do: Enable the CRM email integration module for the account.
What to verify: The integration's settings screen is available.
Step 2: Prepare the mail provider
What to do: Confirm the mailbox to be used and check that your organisation permits third-party applications to be authorised against it. If your provider requires an application to be registered before OAuth can be granted, obtain those application credentials.
What to verify: You can sign in to the intended mailbox and grant access to a third-party application.
Step 3: Authorise Gmail or Microsoft Graph
What to do: Open the CRM email settings and start the connection for Gmail or for Microsoft Graph. Sign in at the provider and grant the requested access, then return to CrmLeaf.
What to verify: The settings screen shows the mailbox as connected.
Step 4: Prepare templates and test the round trip
What to do: Create the email templates your team needs, then send one email from a test deal and reply to it from the recipient's mailbox.
What to verify: The outbound email arrives from the connected mailbox, and the reply appears in the deal's conversation in CrmLeaf.
For Users
Step 1: Open the deal
Open the deal you want to email about, so the conversation is recorded against the right opportunity.
Step 2: Send the email
Compose the email from the deal, selecting a template if one applies, and send it. The message goes out through the connected mailbox.
Step 3: Follow the conversation
Return to the deal to read replies as they synchronise, and reply again from the same conversation. Set a follow-up date on the deal if you are waiting for a response.
Expected Result
Email sent from CrmLeaf leaves the connected Gmail or Outlook mailbox, replies synchronise back automatically, and the full exchange is kept as a conversation on the deal for everyone who can see that deal.
Service Organisation Context
Client correspondence during a sale or an engagement is a firm asset, not a personal one. When email sits against the deal instead of in one consultant's mailbox, a colleague picking up the account, covering an absence or receiving the handover into delivery can read what was actually promised. For consulting, implementation and agency work — where one opportunity often runs across weeks of email involving several people — that is the difference between a handover and a reconstruction. Ownership-based record visibility still governs who can read a given deal's conversation. Any CrmLeaf user working deals by email gains the same continuity.
Important Notes
- Menu names and their position can differ between product editions and can be customised for your account, so your sidebar may not match these paths exactly. Use Search or your Quick Access items if you cannot find a screen.
- This is an add-on module. Confirm plan inclusion before moving sales email into CrmLeaf.
- Connecting a mailbox for CRM email does not change the SMTP settings CrmLeaf uses for transactional email; those remain separate.
- If you want inbound email to become support tickets instead of sales conversations, use the Email Ticketing module.
- Deal visibility governs who can read a conversation, so review record visibility before connecting a shared mailbox.
Common Scenarios
Example: handover without losing history. A rep leaves and their deals are reassigned. Because the email is on the deal rather than only in a personal mailbox, the new owner can read the full exchange.
Example: consistent outreach. A team stores its introduction and follow-up messages as templates, so every rep sends the same wording and only the specifics change.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Possible Cause | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| CRM email settings are not available | The add-on module is not enabled for the account | Enable the module in module settings, or confirm plan inclusion |
| Authorisation cannot be completed | The organisation restricts third-party application access to the mailbox | Ask the mail provider's administrator to permit the authorisation, then retry |
| Replies do not appear on the deal | The mailbox authorisation is no longer valid, or the reply came to a different mailbox | Reconnect the mailbox and confirm which mailbox the client replied to |
| A User cannot send email from a deal | The role does not have access to the module or to that deal | Review the role's module access and record visibility |
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this replace my normal mailbox?
No. You continue to use your mail provider; CrmLeaf sends through it and keeps the conversation with the deal.
Can I see whether a client opened my email?
Open tracking is part of this module.
Is this the same as turning email into tickets?
No. Support mailboxes are handled by the Email Ticketing module.
Does it work with Outlook as well as Gmail?
Yes. Outlook is connected through Microsoft Graph.