Sometimes you need to forward an original email to another system (ERP, CRM, ...) or for archiving. That's when the PDF format shines as it retains the email's format, covering images, fonts, and layouts, a major plus for emails with intricate designs. PDFs are universally compatible, openable on just about any gadget, no matter the operating system or email client. If you need the email for legal or official stuff, a PDF can act as proof since it's tougher to tweak than an email.

Below are steps to cook up a scenario in Automatic Email Manager to convert the original email into PDF, forward the result to another email, and mark the email as read.

Let's dive in

Step 1: Create a new scenario

• Open Automatic Email Manager, select the Scenarios panel, then click on 'New scenario'. 

Step 2: Add the action 'Save and merge email/attachments in PDF'

• Set a unique temp folder to stow the generated pdf for your email/attachments. We recommend using %EMAIL_SHORT_ID% in the folder path to keep it unique, like so:

Step 3: Add the action 'Send an email'

• Fill out the email to forward to, and crucially, fill the correct folder to attach the original email converted in PDF (done in previous action). So in our example the folder path is: c:\temp\%EMAIL_SHORT_ID%\

Step 4: Add the action 'Set email flag (mark as read)'

• We tag the email as read after processing, making it super easy to spot which email's been dealt with or not.