This video teaches you how to set up the Leadtime helpdesk so incoming customer emails are automatically turned into structured tickets. Not every customer wants to log into a portal – with the helpdesk, they don't have to.
The first step is connecting an email account. Leadtime supports Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, and IMAP. You should use a separate support mailbox rather than your personal account, so private emails don't end up as tickets in the system. The connection can be verified using a built-in test feature.
Next, you activate the helpdesk and configure the default settings: default project, task type, status, priority, assignment, and tags. Especially useful is the automatic reply – this lets the customer know immediately that their request has been received.
The video includes a live demo: an external email is sent, the automatic reply comes back, and the ticket appears in Leadtime with the complete email text. You can comment internally (invisible to the customer) and reply publicly – the reply goes out directly as an email. If the customer replies to it, the response lands back in the ticket. A closed loop.
The highlight is automatic customer assignment via domain-based routing. You configure a domain per organization (e.g., globaltech.com), and Leadtime automatically assigns incoming emails from that domain to the correct project and contact person. This works even for senders who aren't yet added as contacts. The documentation provides more details on advanced routing options such as dedicated mailboxes for individual projects.
Not every customer wants to log into a portal. Some prefer to just write an email. That's totally fine.
With the helpdesk, Leadtime automatically turns incoming emails into tickets. No copy-paste, no lost requests. The customer writes a normal email, you get a structured ticket.
In this video we'll set this up together.
Before the helpdesk can work, we need an email account that Leadtime can monitor.
I open Administration, then Workspace Settings, then Email Accounts.
Here I click "Add Email Account". You see three options: Google Workspace, Microsoft 365 and IMAP. We'll use Microsoft 365.
I click Microsoft and get redirected to sign in. I sign in with our support mailbox: support@mycompany.com.
After signing in, the account is connected. You can see it in the list with status "Active".
An important tip: Use a separate support mailbox, not your personal email account. Otherwise private emails end up as tickets in the system.
Optionally you can test the connection. Click the lab icon next to the account. Here you can send a test email, check receiving, and verify that the helpdesk import works.
Now we activate the helpdesk itself. I go to Administration, Workspace Settings, Helpdesk.
Here I switch on "Enable Helpdesk".
Now come the default settings. These apply to all emails that can't be assigned to a specific customer.
Default project: I choose our internal helpdesk project. This is where requests from unknown senders land.
Task type: I select "Support Request".
Status: "New", so we immediately see which tickets just came in.
Priority: "Normal" as the default.
Assigned to: I choose myself. This means new tickets land with me first.
Accountable: Also me. That's the person responsible for the overall resolution.
Tags: I create a tag "helpdesk". This lets me filter all helpdesk tickets later.
Now I select the email account to monitor. I activate our support mailbox.
And very important: The automatic reply. I turn it on and write: "Thank you for your message. We have received your request and will take care of it."
This way the customer immediately knows their email arrived.
I click Save. The helpdesk is now active.
Now let's test this. I send an email from an external account to our support mailbox.
Subject: "Login not working". Text: "Hello, I can't log in since this morning. Please help."
Send.
Let's check my email inbox. There's already the automatic reply: "Thank you for your message. We have received your request and will take care of it."
The customer knows we got it. Now let's look at Leadtime.
Here's the new ticket. "Login not working". Status New, assigned to me, tag helpdesk. The complete email text is in the description.
I look at this and write an internal comment: "Looks like a password problem. Let me check the account."
This is internal. The customer doesn't see it.
I check, find the problem, and now write a public reply: "I've reset your password. You'll receive an email with a new access code shortly."
I set the status to "Resolved" and click "Update".
Let's check the customer's email inbox. There's the reply: "I've reset your password..."
The email comes directly from the ticket. The customer replies to the email, the reply lands back in the ticket. A closed loop.
Now it gets really clever. What happens when you have multiple customers?
Look at the diagram. You have a central inbox, for example support@mycompany.com. Emails come from different customers: Customer 1 with domain customer1.com, Customer 2 with domain customer2.com.
Leadtime recognizes the sender domain and automatically assigns the email to the right project.
An email from user@customer1.com lands in Customer 1's project. An email from user@customer2.com lands in Customer 2's project. Without you manually assigning anything.
Here's how you set this up: I open the organization GlobalTech. Then Settings, then Helpdesk Settings.
Here I activate the organization-specific rules.
Under "When to apply" I choose: "When received from org members or contain string". I enter the domain: globaltech.com.
Now the settings for this customer: Project is "GlobalTech Support". Assigned to is our account manager for GlobalTech. Tags: "globaltech" and "premium-customer".
Save.
From now on, every email from a globaltech.com address automatically lands in the right project, with the right contact person.
This also works for senders who aren't yet added as contacts. As long as the domain matches, Leadtime finds the way.
In the documentation you'll find more details about advanced routing options, for example how to set up dedicated mailboxes for individual projects.
The helpdesk bridges email and ticket system.
Your customers write a normal email. You get a structured ticket. Replies go directly from the ticket. Domain-based routing makes sure everything automatically lands in the right project.
No media break, no lost requests, no manual forwarding.
In the next video we'll cover time tracking: how your team logs working hours and how you keep the overview.
