Standard QBO summary pages include a panel for messages (sometimes labelled notes). From this panel, users can add, edit or delete messages (assuming they have appropriate permissions). Typically, most users are granted permission to add messages, but not edit or delete them.  Likewise, managers are often given the added permission of editing messages, to correct mistakes made by their subordinates.

Messages may be categorized many ways:

• Parent: most Summary pages in QBO contain a Documents panel
  • e.g. if you add messages on the summary page for Loan 12345, the messages’ parent is Loan 12345
  • e.g. if you add messages on the summary page for Foreclosure 23456, the messages’ parent is Foreclosure 23456
  • e.g. if you add messages on the summary page for Organization “Quandis”, the messages’ parent is Organization “Quandis”
• Type: as with all QBO objects, messages may be assigned a type, where the possible list of types is defined by power users
• Status: as with all QBO objects, messages may be assigned a status, where the possible statuses is defined by power users
• Template: “canned” messages may be created by choosing a template
  • permissions may be granted based on template

Messages may be sent as emails a number of ways:

• Users may specify To, Cc or Bcc email addresses when adding a message
• Message templates (“canned messages”) may pre-define the recipients of any message based on the template
• Power users may create workflow steps that call Message/SaveEmail
• Power users may schedule jobs that call Message/SaveEmail
• Developers may invoke Message/SaveEmail via RESTful API

Normally, sending an email will also save a message, so each email sent has a matching row in the QBO Message table.  If power users or developers prefer, emails can be sent without saving a Message rows; this is occasionally useful for large email campaigns.

The Message module may be configured to use any number of email providers, such as:

• Corporate SMTP servers
• Amazon Simple Email Service (SES)
• Any SMTP provider (GMail, Microsoft, etc.)

QBO can send SMS (texts) via third party APIs, including Twilio. SMS can be mixed with email-based messaging campaigns, where contacts (such as borrowers) can specify their preferred method of receiving messages, including opt-in and opt-out tracking.

Most email and SMS providers (including Amazon’s SES and Twilio) provide web hook to notify subscribers of bounces, spam reports, and such. The QBO SES and Twilio plugins support receiver pages that will flag the associated email or phone number with an appropriate status when such reports are received.