Trying to create a shared inbox in Google Workspace? We take a look at where traditional mailboxes fall short – and show you how Trello can help your team organize and act on email.

A shared inbox lets multiple people on one team read and send email from one, central mailbox. Shared inboxes are helpful, because they help teams to:

• Stay on top of incoming messages. Teams have a centralized space to organize and respond to emails, whether they’re handling customer support, sales, recruitment or project management.

• Maintain visibility and teamwork. With a shared inbox, collaboration is effortless because the whole team is up to date with the same information.

But if you’ve ever tried to create a shared inbox in Gmail, you’ll know that it’s not as simple or effective as it seems!

The limitations of traditional email platforms like Gmail

Traditional email service providers like Google Workspace often fall short when it comes to creating a team inbox, because they’re not designed with collaboration in mind.

Here are some of the drawbacks you’ve probably encountered trying to figure out how to create a shared inbox in Gmail:

• Miscommunication. Emails get accidentally marked as read or lost in an avalanche of other stuff.

• No clear ownership. Limited organizational tools make it difficult to assign responsibility for specific emails.

• Lack of context. Long email threads don’t give the full picture of the task at hand and the steps needed to get it done.

• Not built for teams. Gmail is great for personal use, but it doesn’t cater to the needs of team-based workflows.

Turn your Gmail inbox into a shared inbox with Trello

By bringing your emails into Trello, you’re not just sharing an inbox – you’re sharing a system that works for your team. With the Email for Trello Power-Up, each incoming email lands on your Trello board as a new card that you can assign, comment on, and move through your workflow.

Send emails directly from Trello

With your team’s emails right inside Trello, there is no more disconnect between their inbox and where the work actually happens. Your team can send, receive and reply to emails, right alongside their regular tasks and to-dos.

Never miss a message

Trello’s card-based, visual approach to collaboration makes it easy to spot new emails and monitor ongoing conversations. With full transparency for everyone involved, your team can improve response times and offer better customer service.

Easily assign, tag, and track

Every email is a Trello card, so that means your team can use built-in Trello tools to manage their emails and tasks. For example, assign team members responsible for each task, add context with descriptions and comments, and track progress visually from one central dashboard.

Minimize double handling

With a clear history of each conversation, team members can seamlessly pick up where others left off – avoiding duplicate responses and keeping customers happy.

Why teams love Trello as a shared inbox

Using Trello as a shared inbox brings order to your team’s emails. Each email lives as its own card, where you can see exactly who’s working on it, what’s been discussed, and what needs to happen next. This means teams have:

• Clarity. Manage your tasks, emails, and entire workflow visually from one single dashboard. Say goodbye to lost emails and duplicated work!

• Improved collaboration. Clearly see who’s responsible for what, and use Trello’s built-in tools to keep emails and to-dos organized.

• Better context. Email conversations live alongside internal discussions, so that everyone has a full picture of ongoing work – and the steps required to get it done.

• A team-friendly solution. Trello is designed for teamwork! Its adaptable structure lets you create email workflows that fit your unique business needs.

How to move from Gmail to a shared inbox in Trello

Let’s take a closer look at how to create a shared inbox for teams with Trello.

1. Set up your Trello board

Start by setting up Trello boards that align with your existing projects or processes. For example, a help desk, sales pipeline, recruitment dashboard or project management workflow. This makes it easier for your team to make the transition to managing emails in Trello.

Find out more about using Trello for different teams in your business.

2. Add the Email for Trello Power-Up

Add the Email for Trello Power-Up to your Trello workspace. New accounts start on a 14-day free Pro trial – no credit card info required.

Plus, with our free-forever option, you can create a shared inbox for free, so that your team can collaborate on their tasks and emails in one central dashboard.

3. Connect your Gmail to Trello

Set up a forwarding rule to receive emails from your existing Gmail inbox on your Trello board. The Email for Trello Power-Up uses this forwarding rule to create new cards from incoming emails and connect replies to existing email threads.

Learn more about how to send and receive emails in Trello with your Gmail address in the SendBoard help center.

4. Start receiving and replying to emails in Trello

You’re ready to go! Once you’re sending and receiving emails in Trello, you can customize further with templates, automations, and more.

Create a shared inbox for teams in Trello

While Gmail works well for personal emails, it wasn’t designed for team collaboration. Trello and the Email for Trello Power-Up offer smarter solution for your shared inbox, giving your team everything they need to collaborate seamlessly around email.