Client messaging lets you talk to a client about their booking request without leaving Tattoo Studio Pro. You read and reply in Inbox > Messages. The client uses their email, or a private chat page that opens from a link. They never need an account or the app.
How It Works
- A client sends a request through your booking request form.
- They get an email confirming it. They can reply to that email, and the reply lands in your Messages tab.
- When you reply, the client gets an email with your message and a link to their private chat page. They can answer from the page or by replying to the email.
- The whole conversation stays in one thread in your Inbox, on web and on mobile.
The client sees your studio’s name on the chat page and on your replies. They don’t see the names of your team members.
What Messaging Covers Today
Messaging works for requests that come in through the booking request form. Open an older request and tap Message, and you’ll see “Messaging is available for new requests.” Those requests were sent before messaging existed.
From a request, Message opens its conversation. Inside a conversation, View request (in the Conversation actions menu) takes you back to the request.
Choose Who Can See Client Messages
When messaging is on for your studio, the owner sees a card at the top of the Messages tab called Choose who can see client messages. It says: “Only people you confirm can read and reply to client messages. You can change this any time.”
Until you confirm someone, only the owner can read and reply. Nobody on your team gets access by default.
- Check the box next to each person who should see messages.
- Pick a role for each one: Staff, Artist, or Health official.
- Select Confirm. Select Not now to hide the card for later.
Health officials can read client messages but can’t send replies or assign conversations.
Confirming people asks you to sign in with your own email and password. If your studio shares a front-desk login, sign in as yourself first. The app shows “Sign in with your own email and password to do this.”
Change It Later
Go to the Team page (Team Management on mobile). The Messages access section lists your team. Each person shows Access or No access.
- Confirm gives someone access.
- Remove access takes it away. It doesn’t ask you to sign in again.
Only the owner can change this. Everyone else sees “Only the studio owner can choose who sees client messages.”
Reading and Replying
Select Messages in the menu, right under Inbox (the sidebar on web, the main menu on mobile). It opens the Messages tab of your Inbox, and its badge shows how many conversations have unread messages. You can also open Inbox and select the Messages tab. When there are unread messages, the tab shows a count, like “Messages (3)”. Each conversation with something new has an Unread dot, and opening it clears the dot.
The list has three filters:
- Open
- Closed
- Assigned to me
Each conversation shows the client’s name, a preview, and how the last message arrived: by email or in chat. A Needs review tag means a message came from an address we couldn’t confirm belongs to the client. Open the conversation to review it.
To reply, type in the message box and select Send. On web, Enter sends and Shift+Enter starts a new line. Replies can be up to 5,000 characters.
Under each reply you sent, you’ll see whether the email went out. If it didn’t reach the client, the message says so and offers Retry. The client can still read your reply on their chat page.
The thread header shows Seen with a time when the client has opened their chat page.
Assign a Conversation
Use Assigned to at the top of a conversation to hand it to the owner or to anyone you’ve confirmed. Their first name shows on the conversation in the list. Choose Unassigned to clear it. Use the Assigned to me filter to see just your own.
When a client replies, we email the person it’s assigned to. If it’s unassigned, or that person no longer has access, the email goes to the owner.
If someone loses access while a conversation is assigned to them, the thread shows “{name} no longer has access” and the list treats it as unassigned.
Photos From Clients
Clients can send photos two ways:
- Attached to an email reply
- Through Add photos on the chat page
On the chat page, a client can send up to 5 photos at a time, 10 MB each (JPEG, PNG, WebP, or GIF). Photos from email replies are limited the same way. You’ll see thumbnails in the thread. Select one to view it full size.
Only photos are saved. If a client attaches a PDF or another kind of file, it isn’t saved, and the thread shows a note such as “1 attachment wasn’t a photo and wasn’t saved.” If a photo is too big, takes too long, or goes over the daily limit, you’ll see “1 photo couldn’t be saved (too big, took too long, or over the daily limit).”
Close, Reopen, and Manage the Chat Link
Open the Conversation actions menu at the top of a conversation.
| Action | What it does | Who can do it |
|---|---|---|
| Resend link | Emails the client their chat link again. Their current link keeps working. | Anyone who can send replies |
| Reset link | Stops the current link right away and emails the client a new one. Use it if a link was shared with the wrong person. | The studio owner |
| Close conversation | The client can’t reply anymore. | The studio owner |
| Reopen conversation | Lets the client reply again. | The studio owner |
Closing asks you to confirm: “The client won’t be able to reply. You can reopen it any time.” On a closed conversation, the client sees that it’s closed and is asked to contact the studio directly. The Messages list has a Closed filter to find these.
Reset link, Close conversation, and Reopen conversation ask you to sign in again with your own email and password if you’re on a shared front-desk login. If an action is gray, point at it to see why. Typical reasons are “Only the studio owner can do this” and “Sign in with your own email and password to do this.”
What Your Client Sees
When a client opens their link, they tap Open conversation and land on a private page with your studio’s name at the top. They can read the thread, reply, and add photos.
At the bottom of the page they can:
- Stop email notifications, so they don’t get an email for each new message. They can still check the page. The conversation then shows Notifications off in your list. They can turn emails back on from the same spot.
- Reset their own link if it was shared, with This link was shared. We email a new link to the address on file.
The page asks clients not to forward their link, because anyone with it can read the conversation.
Troubleshooting
I don’t see a Messages tab
Refresh the page or reopen the app. On mobile, check that the app is up to date. If the tab is still missing, email support@tattoostudiopro.com.
A team member sees “Messaging isn’t enabled for this studio yet”
They haven’t been confirmed yet. The owner can confirm them from the Team page, under Messages access.
A request has no conversation
It was sent before messaging was available. New requests from the booking form get a conversation.
The client says they never got our email
Check the message in the thread. If it shows the email didn’t deliver, try Retry, or Resend link. Clients can also look for the email in spam. Their conversation is still on their chat page.
The client’s link says it isn’t working anymore
The link was reset or replaced. Use Resend link to email them the newest one.
Related Docs
- Booking Requests: the request form and how to review, book, and decline requests
- Staff Management: roles and the Team page
- Messages and Reminders: automated booking confirmations and appointment reminders by text, email, or both