Writing the perfect email, whether it’s a first-time introduction or a complex follow-up, usually requires constant switching between your inbox and your internal notes. The SiftHub Gmail Widget eliminates this friction by bringing your AI Teammate directly into Gmail, allowing you to generate high-quality drafts that are automatically informed by the specific email or thread you are currently working on.
Getting Started: Linking Your Email
Once the SiftHub Browser Extension is installed, a SiftHub icon will appear in the bottom-right corner of every Gmail compose and reply box. Linking your email allows the AI to "read" the current thread to provide relevant suggestions.
There are three ways to connect SiftHub to your draft:
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The Gmail Widget: Click the SiftHub icon inside your Gmail compose box. This automatically starts a New Conversation in the extension, ensuring that the AI focuses solely on the current email without carrying over details from previous, unrelated tasks.
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The "Work with this email" Nudge: If you already have the SiftHub extension open, simply clicking into a Gmail compose box will trigger a nudge above your typing area. Clicking this adds the email context to your ongoing conversation turn.
The @ Button: You can also link your email by clicking the @ button in the SiftHub message bar while your cursor is active in a Gmail compose box.
Cursor Sensitivity: If you move your mouse to dismiss the "Work with this email" nudge, your active cursor state in the Gmail box may be removed, which will temporarily disable the @ button. Simply click back into your email draft to re-enable it.
Recommended Usage & Use Cases
Treat the Gmail Widget as a drafting partner that understands the specific details of your current conversation and your broader deal history.
1. Solving the "Cold Start" Problem
When starting a brand new email, the hardest part is the first sentence.
Start from Scratch: SiftHub helps you overcome the blank-page struggle by generating initial introductions and outreach based on your prospect research.
Automated Workflow Refinement: If you receive a post-call email from SiftHub and click Write follow-up, you can use the Gmail widget to further refine that initial draft. Simply link the context to your AI Teammate to tweak the tone, add specific details, or adjust the length.
2. Contextual Replies
SiftHub can help you enhance a reply by analyzing the active thread.
Current Thread Only: SiftHub only reads the content of the specific email or thread you have added as context for that turn.
Extraction Depth: For replies, SiftHub looks at the full thread history, including recipients, subject lines, and signatures, to ensure the tone and content are appropriate.
3. Inserting Your Draft
Once the AI generates a response you like, click Insert.
Rich Text Rendering: SiftHub automatically converts its suggestions into Rich Text, meaning bolding, italics, and hyperlinks will appear correctly in your Gmail draft.
No "Double Signatures": AI-generated drafts do not include signatures. This ensures that when you insert the text into Gmail, it won't clash with your existing native signature.
Under the Hood: How SiftHub Works
Broad Deal Context: Beyond the current email, SiftHub has access to your call recordings, CRM data, and past successful conversations. This deep background allows it to draft accurate responses even when you are starting from zero.
Static Context Extraction: SiftHub captures the state of your draft at the exact moment the context is enabled.
Edit Mode: Ensure Edit mode is toggled ON in the extension to see the Insert button and email-specific drafting prompts.
Privacy by Design: The information extracted from your email is used only for the current conversation turn and is not retained by the system for future unrelated tasks.
Transaction Management: Each generated draft or enhancement counts between 5 - 50 transactions, which you can track in your Usage Logs.
Troubleshooting & Expert Tips
The "Click-then-Insert" Habit: SiftHub inserts content wherever your cursor is currently active. If you have multiple Gmail windows open, always click into the correct draft box immediately before hitting Insert to ensure the text lands in the right place.
Updating Your Context: If you make significant manual changes to your Gmail draft after the AI has already generated a response, the previous context will no longer match. To update, simply remove the current context tile in the extension and re-add it to sync your latest changes.
Permission Simplicity: Unlike other integrations, you do not need to grant SiftHub special service-account access via your Gmail settings to link an email as context.
Recommended Workflow
| Step | Action | Objective |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Open Compose/Reply | Start your email or introduction in Gmail. |
| 2 | Click SiftHub Widget | Link the email and start a fresh, focused conversation. |
| 3 | Enter Your Prompt | Ask SiftHub to draft a specific response or use a pre-set prompt. |
| 4 | Review & Insert | Verify the draft in the extension, then click Insert. |
| 5 | Send | Perform a final check and hit Send. |
Coming Soon
We are expanding our native integrations to further streamline your communication:
Microsoft Outlook Support: Bringing the native drafting widget to the Outlook web and desktop interface.
Smart Attachments: One-click functionality to automatically attach recommended collaterals to your drafts.
Batch Composition: The ability to draft and review multiple follow-up emails across different threads simultaneously.
Contact your SiftHub Customer Success Manager or reach out to support@sifthub.io to request other enhancements to your email drafting experience with AI Teammate.