Understanding lead capture notifications

When visitors chat with your business through the web chat widget, your AI Receptionist (or custom AI) can automatically capture their contact information and notify you about new leads. This requires the Capture leads capability to be active on your AI Receptionist.

This guide explains when leads are captured, what notifications you'll receive, and how to interpret them.

Note: For lead capture to work, your AI Receptionist must be active on the channel the customer is using—whether that's an enabled web chat widget, SMS responses enabled, or a connected voice number.

When a lead is captured

A lead is captured when all of the following conditions are met:

Condition	Requirement
Visitor shares contact info	The visitor mentions their name, email, or phone number in the conversation
AI Receptionist is connected	Your web chat widget has an AI Receptionist (or custom AI) with the Capture leads capability enabled
Conversation has activity	The visitor has sent at least one message

Examples of lead capture

Lead IS captured:

• Visitor says "Hi, I'm John Smith. My email is john@email.com. I'd like a quote for landscaping."
• Visitor provides phone number: "You can reach me at 555-123-4567"
• Visitor shares partial info: "My name is Sarah" (name is captured, other fields left empty)

Lead is NOT captured:

• Visitor only asks a question without sharing any contact info: "What are your hours?"
• Visitor leaves before sharing any identifying information
• AI Receptionist doesn't have the Capture leads capability enabled

Types of notifications

New lead notification

What it means: A brand new contact has been created in your CRM.

When you see it: First time a visitor shares their contact information and no matching contact exists in your CRM.

Notification title: "New Lead: [Name/Email/Phone]"

What's included:

• Contact information (name, phone, email)
• AI-generated conversation summary
• Link to view the full conversation in Inbox

Action to take: Review the lead and follow up based on their inquiry.

Conversation update notification

What it means: An existing contact has started a new conversation or returned to chat.

When you see it:

• A known contact messages you again
• A duplicate contact situation (see below)

Notification title: "Conversation Update: [Name/Email/Phone]"

What's included:

• Contact information
• Summary of the new conversation
• Link to view the conversation

Action to take: Review what the returning customer needs and continue the relationship.

Understanding duplicate contacts and anonymous conversations

What is a duplicate contact?

A duplicate contact occurs when someone who is already in your CRM starts a new conversation from a different entry point. The system recognizes them as an existing contact rather than creating a new one.

What is an anonymous conversation?

An anonymous conversation occurs when a visitor chats without providing any contact information. These conversations appear in the "Anonymous" section of your Inbox until the visitor shares identifying details.

Additionally, when a duplicate conversation is detected, the new conversation remains in Anonymous while being linked to the original contact's conversation.

Common duplicate contact scenarios

Scenario	What happens
Same person, different browser	Visitor clears cookies or uses a new device, starts chatting again
Same person, different channel	Contact who previously chatted now texts you via SMS
Returning visitor	Someone who chatted months ago returns to ask a new question

How duplicate conversations are handled

When the system detects that a new conversation is from someone already in your CRM:

1. No duplicate CRM contact is created - The system recognizes the existing contact
2. You receive a "Conversation Update" instead of "New Lead"
3. The new conversation stays in Anonymous - The duplicate conversation remains in the Anonymous section of your Inbox
4. The original conversation links to the new one - An event is added to the contact's original conversation with a link to the new anonymous conversation
5. Contact info is NOT overwritten - The existing contact record is preserved (only missing postal code may be added)

Viewing duplicate conversations

When a duplicate is detected:

• The new conversation remains in the Anonymous section with a link to the original conversation
• The original conversation (under the contact) shows "A new conversation has occurred" with a summary and a link to the anonymous conversation
• A conversation summary also appears on the CRM contact record
• To find the new conversation, check the Anonymous section or follow the link from the original conversation

Notification summary

Notification type	When it appears	What it means
New Lead	First-time visitor shares contact info	Brand new contact added to CRM
Conversation Update	Existing contact returns	Known contact started new conversation
Conversation Update (Duplicate)	Same person, new conversation thread	System linked conversations together

What information is captured

By default, the following information is extracted from the conversation when a lead is captured:

Field	Example
First Name	"John"
Last Name	"Smith"
Email	"john@email.com"
Phone	"555-123-4567"
Address	"123 Main St, City, State 12345"

Note: Only information the visitor explicitly shares is captured. If they only provide their name, only the name field is filled in.

Tip: You can customize which fields are captured by modifying the Capture leads capability settings on your AI Receptionist.

Conversation summary

Every notification includes an AI-generated conversation summary. This summary:

• Highlights what the visitor is looking for
• Captures key details from the conversation
• Helps you prepare before following up

Example summary:

"Visitor is interested in getting a quote for backyard landscaping. They have a 500 sq ft area and want low-maintenance plants. Prefers to be contacted by phone in the afternoon."

Notification timing: new leads vs. follow-ups

New lead notifications fire only when a brand-new contact is created. If the same person messages again — from a known number, email, or device — you receive a "Conversation Update" instead of a "New Lead."

Follow-up messages from existing contacts do not trigger a notification by default. To get alerted on follow-ups, set up an Automation:

1. Go to Automations and create a new automation
2. Set the trigger to "A contact communication summary is created"
3. Add the action "Send notification" to the appropriate team member(s)

This fires after each conversation summary is generated, covering both new leads and returning contacts.

Reply-to on new lead notification emails

When you receive a "New Lead from Web Chat" email notification, the reply-to address is noreply@<your-domain>. Replying to that email will not reach your customer. Instead:

• Forward the notification to share it with a colleague
• Click the link in the notification to open the conversation in Conversations AI and reply from there

Auto-follow and unfollowing conversations

You are automatically set to follow a conversation when:

• You send a message in that conversation
• You are assigned as Salesperson to the account (follows all past and future conversations for that account)

Auto-following means you will receive notifications for that conversation even when "Only my events" is selected. To stop receiving notifications for a conversation you don't need to track, click the star (★) in the conversation header to unfollow it.

If someone other than the intended Salesperson is receiving Inbox notifications, check whether they participated in a conversation (and were auto-followed) or were assigned as Salesperson to the account.

Closed conversations reopening

When a customer sends a new inbound message on a number or channel tied to a conversation that was previously marked as closed, the conversation automatically reopens. This is expected behavior — there is no separate notification type for a reopened conversation; it appears as a new inbound message in the conversation thread.

Frequently asked questions

Q: Why didn't I get a "New Lead" notification?

• The visitor may not have shared any contact information
• They might be an existing contact (you'd get "Conversation Update" instead)
• Check that your AI Receptionist has the Capture leads capability enabled

Q: Why am I getting "Conversation Update" instead of "New Lead"?

• The visitor is already in your CRM
• This is normal for returning customers

Q: Where is this conversation? Why is it in anonymous?

• Conversations appear in "Anonymous" when the visitor hasn't shared any contact information yet
• Once the visitor provides their name, email, or phone, the conversation will be linked to a contact
• Duplicate conversations also remain in Anonymous—the original contact's conversation will have a link to the new anonymous conversation
• Check the Anonymous section in your Inbox to find these conversations

Q: Can I see all conversations from the same contact?

• There should only be one conversation per contact
• Duplicate conversations show events linking them together

Q: How quickly will I be notified?

• Notifications are sent after the visitor stops messaging for a few minutes
• This ensures the full conversation is captured before notifying you

Q: What if the visitor provides wrong information?

• You can still manually update the contact record in your CRM

Q: If a returning visitor provides updated contact info, will it update their record?

• For duplicate contacts (recognized by email/phone match), the existing record is preserved
• Only missing postal code may be added automatically
• You can manually update other fields in the CRM if needed

Q: Someone other than the Salesperson is getting Inbox notifications — why?

• Any user who sends a message in a conversation is automatically set to follow it
• Users assigned as Salesperson to an account follow all conversations for that account
• To stop receiving notifications, the user can unfollow the conversation by clicking the ★ in the conversation header

Q: I'm not getting any notifications at all — what should I check?

• Confirm your user account exists and is active in Partner Center
• Verify Conversations AI is activated for the account
• Check that notification preferences are enabled (bell icon > gear icon > enable "All events" or "Only my events")