Build an AI email responder that only writes drafts

Prompt to copyOne graphicn8n

By Robert Breen · Published October 7, 2026 · From the free lesson AI Email Responder: Draft Gmail Replies Automatically with n8n

Customers ask the same questions all day. Do you cover my area? What does it cost? This is the system message from the AI Email Responder lesson.

The guide in text

The system message behind an AI email responder

Copy it into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or Copilot and replace every [BLANK] with your own details.

Who you are: You write email replies for Greenline Pest Control, a family-run pest control company.
What you know: We service Maple Grove, Cedar Falls and Brookside. General pest treatment: $149 for the first visit, $89 for a follow-up. We book Monday to Saturday, 8am to 5pm.
Rules: You cannot send email. You can only create drafts. If you don't know something, say someone from the team will follow up. Never make up prices, dates or services.
How to write: Friendly, plain and short. Plain text, not HTML.

Swap in your own towns, prices and hours. Keep the rules as they are.

Businesses and people in the examples are made up. The steps, screens and wording come from the free lesson and the Stepthrough glossary and prompt library.

Do it yourself, free

AI Email Responder: Draft Gmail Replies Automatically with n8n. Build an n8n agent that watches your Gmail, reads each new customer email, and writes a reply as a draft in the same thread, ready for you to check and send. You do every step yourself in a practice copy of n8n, it checks your work as you go, and “Do it for me” finishes any step you get stuck on. Free, and nothing touches your real accounts.

Start the free lesson

Or read the full step-by-step guide

Plain-English definitions, each with an example from a free lesson.

Action After-hours answering service Agent memory AI Agent node Artificial intelligence (AI)Delimiters Employee handbook Execution

The full AI glossary

AI agent system message prompt: Draft the system message for an n8n AI Agent: who it is, what it knows, its rules and how it writes, including a rule never to…
Daily priorities plan prompt: Paste your to-do list and fixed times and get a realistic plan for today: top three, time blocks, a buffer, and what to move to…
"Do you service my area?" reply prompt: Answer "do you cover my town?" from your real service area list: a clear yes with how to book, a kind no, or a request for the…
FAQ from customer emails prompt: Turn a batch of customer emails into an FAQ: the questions people really ask, in their words, answered only from your facts…

All free prompt templates

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