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Key Benefits​

Instant Response - React the moment a customer’s message lands Smart Routing - Direct conversations to the right rep or team Never Miss a Lead - Automate follow-up so no inbound message goes cold Filtered Automation - Trigger only on messages that match your criteria Zero Manual Monitoring - No need to watch the inbox around the clock

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Who Should Use It​

Sales teams - Auto-respond and assign new conversations instantly Support teams - Acknowledge inbound messages and create tickets automatically Agencies - Standardize inbound message handling across client sub-accounts High-volume operations - Keep response times fast even at scale

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Requirements​

Before using this trigger, update your messaging provider app to the latest version:
1
Go to App Marketplace → Installed Apps
2
Find your iMessage provider app
3
Click Update if available

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How to Set Up​

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Step 1: Create a New Workflow​

1
Go to Automation → Workflows
2
Click Create Workflow or + Add
3
Select Start from Scratch

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Step 2: Add the Trigger​

1
Click Add New Trigger
2
Switch to the Apps tab (not the default triggers)
3
Find and click your iMessage provider app icon
4
Select iMessage Inbound from the dropdown
5
(Optional) Add Filters to narrow when the trigger fires
6
Click Save trigger
iMessage Inbound Trigger

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Step 3: Find or Create the Contact​

Inbound messages often come from numbers that are not in your CRM yet. Every action that follows - sending a reply, assigning an owner, adding a tag - needs a contact record to act on. Add the Find Contact action right after the trigger to look up the sender. If the contact is not found, add Create Contact so the contact exists before the rest of the workflow runs. Find Contact and Create Contact are HighLevel built-in actions. They are already available in every workflow, so there is nothing extra to install.

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Find the contact

1
Click + Add below the trigger
2
Search for and select Find Contact
3
Under Fields, select Contact ID from the dropdown
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Click the tag icon in the value box and insert Whatsapp, imessage and SMS → iMessage Inbound → Contact ID
5
Click Save action
The workflow now splits into two branches: Contact found and Contact not found.
Find Contact Branches

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Create the contact if not found

Under the Contact not found branch, add the Create Contact action:
1
Click + Add below Contact not found
2
Search for and select Create Contact
3
Under Fields, select Phone from the dropdown
4
Click the tag icon in the value box and insert Whatsapp, imessage and SMS → iMessage Inbound → Sender Phone Number
5
Click Save action
Create Contact Action

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Rejoin the branches

So that new contacts run the same actions as existing ones, send the Contact not found branch back to the Contact found branch:
1
Click + Add below Create Contact
2
Search for and select Go To
3
Select the first action under the Contact found branch as the target (add that action first if you have not yet - see Step 4)
4
Click Save action
Existing contacts go straight down the Contact found branch. New contacts are created first, then jump to the same actions - no duplicate record is made either way.
Once these actions are saved, continue to your send action or any other step you want to run for that contact.

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Step 4: Add Your Actions​

With the contact in place, add the actions you want to execute when an inbound iMessage is received:
  • Send iMessage → Reply to the contact on the same channel
  • Send Email → Notify the assigned rep
  • Send Internal Notification → Alert your team inside the CRM
  • Create Task → Queue a follow-up
  • Add to Workflow / Pipeline → Move the contact through your funnel

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Step 5: Save and Publish​

1
Review your workflow
2
Click Save
3
Toggle workflow from Draft to Published

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Available Filters​

Use filters to control exactly which inbound iMessages start the workflow. Each filter can be paired with an operator (equals, contains, etc.).

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Example Use Cases​

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Use Case 1: Instant Auto-Reply​

Acknowledge every inbound message immediately. Trigger: iMessage Inbound Action: Send a reply confirming you received the message and will respond shortly.

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Use Case 2: Route by Keyword​

Send leads to the right team based on what they say. Trigger: iMessage Inbound Filter: Message contains “pricing” Action: Notify the sales team and create a high-priority follow-up task.

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Important Notes​

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Technical Details​

  • The trigger fires once per inbound message
  • Filters are optional - leave them blank to fire on every inbound iMessage
  • Executes immediately when the message is received

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Best Practices​

  • Add Find Contact as the first action, with Create Contact on the Contact not found branch, so later steps always have a contact to work with
  • Use the Message filter to build keyword-based routing flows
  • Use the Location ID filter when managing multiple sub-accounts
  • Test your workflow by sending a message to your connected number

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FAQs​

No. Filters are optional. Without them, the trigger fires on every inbound iMessage.
Yes. Use the Message or Sender filters to build separate workflows for different conditions.
Find Contact locates it and the workflow continues down the Contact found branch. Create Contact only runs on the Contact not found branch, so no duplicate contact is made.
Add them whenever the workflow can receive a message from a number that is not in your CRM yet, especially if Do not create new Contacts is enabled on the instance. If every sender is already a saved contact, Find Contact on its own is enough.

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Support​

If you need help with the setup or onboarding: