Trello Automation is a powerful utility for automations in Trello. One of the things that Trello Automation can do is automatically add a comment to a card based on triggers or rules.

This is useful because Email for Trello has a feature that allows you to send an email by adding a Trello comment. You do this by starting the comment with either the @reply or @email keyword - depending on if you are replying or starting a new email.

So, if you use the @reply / @email keyword in an automation rule to post a comment on a card, you can send an email automatically when a certain event occurs.

Email automation example

Automatically send an email when you drag a card

Here is an example of a Trello Automation rule that will send an email as soon as the card is dragged into the "Shipped" list.

Understand how the automation rule works

The rule works by adding a comment to a card based on a certain event.
@reply is a special keyword that lets the Email for Trello Power-Up know to convert the comment into an email.
It's possible to set the email recipient, subject and include Saved Replies, Variables and Custom Fields in your email. Read more about that here.

More email automation examples

Automatically send timed follow-up emails.
Create your own “Thank You” button to send an email with one click.
Create a Trello button to send an email update to multiple people at once.
Using the SendBoard reference number in Trello Automation.
Automatically respond to specific phrases in email queries arriving in Trello.
Automate your weekly email tasks

Note: The ability to send emails via a Trello comment is only available on certain SendBoard plans. See our plans and pricing here.

Opt-out of being added to the card when using @reply/@email

As explained above, emails can be automated by setting up Trello Automation rules to post Trello comments starting with the @reply/@email keyword. When the SendBoard bot posts the comment to the card, the user who created the command is automatically added as a member to the card. This is useful to be notified of any activities on the card moving forward. However, you might not want to be added to every card when an automated email is sent.

By adding the -me switch on the first line (before any line breaks) of the command, the user who created the automation rule will not be automatically added and will not watch the card.

For example: when a card is moved into list "Shipped", post comment "@email @contact -me [Order {%Order_Number%} shipped] ##shipped"

Note that the -me switch only applies to Trello automation and does not apply when manually posting a comment using @reply/@email or when sending an email from the email editor.

Trello automation quotas and limits

Trello Automation is a game changer and is available on all Trello accounts. But automation quotas and limits do apply and vary across Trello plans. Have a look at this Tello article for details on Automation quotas and limits.