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Actions within emails

Take action on tasks directly from email

You can’t - yet. But we’re working on it.

Interactive email actions would let you complete Tallyfy tasks right inside your email - approve requests, mark tasks done, add comments - without switching apps. The technology exists through Microsoft Actionable Messages for Outlook and Gmail Markup Actions for Gmail, and we’re exploring how to bring it to Tallyfy.

Tallyfy emails already include basic schema.org ViewAction markup, which gives Gmail a “View in Tallyfy” button. Interactive email actions would go further - letting you take action without leaving your inbox.

What are interactive email actions?

Buttons and forms that work inside your email. You’d approve a request, mark a task complete, or add a comment without clicking a link or opening another tab. Traditional emails make you click through to a web page. Interactive emails bring the action to you.

Microsoft Actionable Messages

Microsoft embeds “Adaptive Cards” into Outlook emails. These cards display information and let you act on it:

  • Click Approve or Reject on a Tallyfy approval task
  • Add a quick comment to a task
  • Mark a simple task as complete

When you click something in the card, Outlook sends your action back to Tallyfy to update the task. Learn more on Microsoft Learn ↗.

Gmail Markup Actions

Gmail uses schema.org markup (typically JSON-LD) in the email’s HTML to show interactive elements. Two main types exist:

  • One-Click Actions: For approvals and confirmations - one tap and you’re done
  • Go-To Actions: For actions that need a full webpage

When you click an action, Gmail sends it back to the service. See the Google Developers documentation ↗ for technical details.

How this would benefit Tallyfy users

Switching between email and web apps slows you down. Interactive emails would fix that:

  • Speed: Approve requests without login screens or page loads.
  • Focus: Handle quick actions from your inbox without breaking your flow.
  • Mobile-friendly: One-tap actions instead of logging into a web app on your phone.

Potential use cases

  • One-click approvals/rejections: Get an approval request, click Approve or Reject, done.
  • Marking tasks complete: One button in the email for tasks that just need acknowledgment.
  • Adding quick comments: Reply to the email and your comment gets added to the task.
  • Simple form submissions: Pick an option or enter a short response directly in the email.

What’s next?

This isn’t live yet - we’re still exploring. Interactive emails require strong security and consistent behavior across email clients, which takes time. We’ll share updates as this progresses.

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