Using variables

You can easily customize your responses or templates with dynamic content like your recipient's name by using our variables templating engine.

A response like this:

Hi {{ recipient.first_name | default: 'there' }},

… if it matches a recipient.first_name would render something like this

Hi Philippe,

… and if it didn't match anything something like this:

Hi there,

Getting started

Adding variables

Adding a variable to a response is as easy as clicking the {{ icon in the response composer:

A new modal will open where you can easily create your variable without knowing the exact syntax.

You can also create a response with dynamic content that entirely change depending if a variable is present or not.

It would look like this:

{% if recipient.first_name == null %}Hello,
{% else %}Hi {{ recipient.first_name }},{% endif %}

... if there's no recipient first name, it will render like this:

Hello,

... and if there's a recipient's first name, it will render like this:

Hi Philippe,

Build forms

When adding a variable, you don't have to use one that matches a data point provided by Missive (recipient, user). You can create a variable linked to no data, like in this screenshot:

Make sure to use underscores and dots instead of spaces.

When inserted in a draft, a form will ask the Missive user what should the value be:

Instead of using text placeholders (that you might forget to replace), this technique lets you create forms your team always has to fill in when inserting a response.

Liquid.js

Our templating engine is based on liquid.js and supports all of its tags and filters. Make sure to read the documentation if you want to go deeper and create complex logic.

Objects

recipient object

The recipient data is matched by first looking into the user contacts for matches based on the message recipient address, then on the message data itself.

Labels

Contact labels can be used to scope the search. For instance {{ recipient.work.phone_number }} would search only in phone numbers with the label work.

Object key	Description	Example
recipient.handle	Handle of the recipient(s). This depends on the message type, can be an email address, a phone number, etc.	[e-mail] [phone] @frodo
recipient.name	First and last name(s) of your recipient(s).	Philippe Lehoux
recipient.first_name	First name(s) of your recipient(s).	Philippe
recipient.middle_name	Middle name(s) of your recipient(s).	L.
recipient.last_name	Last name(s) of your recipient(s).	Lehoux
recipient.email	Email address(es) of your recipient(s).	[e-mail]
recipient.phone_number	Phone number of your recipient(s).	[phone]
recipient.url	URL(s) associated with your recipient(s).	https://missiveapp.com/
recipient.physical_address	Physical address(es) associated with your recipient(s).	123 Missive Street Quebec, QC, G1K 3B4 Canada
recipient.twitter	Twitter username(s) associated with your recipient(s).	@frodo
recipient.facebook	Facebook username(s) associated with your recipient(s).	Philippe Lehoux
recipient.nickname	Nickname of your recipient(s).	Chewbacca
recipient.prefix	Prefix(es) of your recipient(s).	Mr.
recipient.suffix	Suffix(es) of your recipient(s).	PhD
recipient.gender	Gender(s) of your recipient(s).	Male
recipient.file_as	File as value of your recipient(s).	ACME
recipient.phonetic_first_name	Phonetic first name(s) of your recipient(s).
recipient.phonetic_last_name	Phonetic last name(s) of your recipient(s).
recipient.phonetic_middle_name	Phonetic middle name(s) of your recipient(s).
recipient.custom.order_amount	Access your recipient(s) custom contact data. Both variations Order Amount and order_amount would be accessible using the same key: recipient.custom.order_amount	$99

user object

The user object data is matched with the logged-in Missive user (you).

Object key	Description	Example
user.first_name	First name of the user	Philippe
user.last_name	Last name of the user	Lehoux
user.name	Name of the user	Philippe Lehoux
user.email	Email address of the user	[e-mail]
user.avatar_url	URL of the user avatar	https://...
user.status	Status of the user	Working from home
user.status_emoji	Status emoji of the user	🏠

conversation object

The conversation object data is matched with the current conversation.

Object key	Description	Example
conversation.id	The ID of the conversation	d85eed67-5ac2-477b-aa27-521f01eb9783

message object

The message object data is matched with the current draft.

Object key	Description	Example
message.id	The ID of the message	d85eed67-5ac2-477b-aa27-521f01eb9783
message.from_handle	Handle of the sender. This depends on the message type, can be an email address, a phone number, etc.	[e-mail] [phone] @frodo
message.from_email	Email address of the sender	[e-mail]
message.from_name	Name of the sender	Philippe Lehoux
message.from_first_name	First name of the sender	Philippe
message.from_last_name	Last name of the sender	Lehoux