How it works
When a new conversation arrives in a shared inbox, someone has to own it. Assignment can happen in a few ways:
- Manual: a lead or dispatcher reads the message and assigns it.
- Claim: teammates pick up unassigned threads themselves.
- Rule-based: conditions such as channel, language, keyword or a custom field send the thread to a specific person or group.
- Rotation: new threads are distributed in turn, as in round-robin assignment.
Whatever the method, the goal is the same: at any moment, every open conversation has exactly one name on it.
Example
A small immigration law practice gets inquiries over WhatsApp and SMS. Its rule: anything mentioning “visa” or “green card” goes to the paralegal who handles intake; existing clients stay with whoever has handled their file. One evening, an existing client texts about a missing document. The thread is already assigned to her paralegal, so it shows up in that person’s queue the next morning instead of sitting in a general pile.
When the paralegal goes on leave, she reassigns her open threads to a colleague and adds an internal note to each with context.
Why it matters for messaging teams
Chat feels informal, so it is easy to assume someone else answered. Ownership makes slow or missing replies visible: you can see which person has conversations waiting and for how long. It also makes follow-up reminders meaningful, because a reminder needs someone to remind.
Assignment is not the same as access. Several people can see a thread; only one owns it.
Common mistakes
- Assigning to a group with no individual owner, which recreates the “someone else has it” problem.
- Never reassigning. Ownership should change when shifts end, people go on leave or a deal moves from sales to service.
- Reassigning without context. Leave a short internal note so the new owner doesn’t ask the customer to repeat themselves.
- Making rules so complex nobody can predict where a thread will land.
In inChat, conversation assignment and ownership are in development as part of launch scope.