CRM overview
Explore the Interlinked AI CRM — your operational hub for customer conversations, AI monitoring, manual control, inbox management, labels, notes, and team collaboration across Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp.
What is the CRM
The CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is the operational hub of your Interlinked workspace. It is where every customer conversation lands — whether the customer reached out through Instagram, Facebook Messenger, or WhatsApp. From the CRM, you can monitor your AI agent’s responses in real time, take manual control when needed, organize conversations with labels and folders, add internal notes, and collaborate with your team.
Think of the CRM as your unified inbox across all messaging channels, combined with customer context and AI management tools — everything you need to run your customer communication in one place.
Screenshot: The CRM inbox showing the three-column layout — channel tabs, conversation list, and chat view
CRM layout
The CRM is organized into a responsive three-panel layout:
Channel tabs (top bar)
At the top of the CRM, a tab bar lets you filter conversations by channel:
| Tab | Shows |
|---|---|
| All | Every conversation across all connected channels |
| Only Instagram Direct message conversations | |
| Only Facebook Messenger conversations | |
| Only WhatsApp conversations |
Conversation list (left panel)
The left panel shows your list of conversations, sorted by most recent activity. Each entry shows:
- Customer avatar and name
- Platform icon (Instagram, Messenger, or WhatsApp)
- Last message preview
- Timestamp of last interaction
- Unread message count badge
Above the list, you have access to:
- Search bar — Find conversations by customer name or message content
- Inbox folders — Switch between Open, Solved, Spam, and Archived
- Filter badges — Quick-filter by Unread status or custom tags
- Campaign button — Launch WhatsApp marketing campaigns
Chat view (center panel)
When you select a conversation, the center panel shows the full message history with:
- Date separators between message groups
- Message bubbles with timestamps
- Media content (images, videos, audio, documents, stickers)
- Delivery status indicators (sending, sent, delivered, read, failed)
- AI/Manual mode toggle
- Conversation action buttons (mark as solved, star, view contact)
Contact info panel (right panel)
Clicking “View contact” opens a detailed panel showing:
- Customer profile (name, avatar, platform, phone, email)
- Labels/tags for categorization
- Internal notes for team context
See Customer profiles, labels, and notes for full details.
How conversations arrive in the CRM
The conversation flow from channel to CRM works like this:
- Customer sends a message on a connected channel (Instagram, Messenger, or WhatsApp).
- The message is received by Interlinked through the channel connection.
- A new conversation (lead) is created in the CRM, or the message is added to an existing conversation.
- The AI agent responds automatically using your published workflow and business context.
- The conversation appears in the CRM inbox in real time via WebSocket updates.
New conversations appear instantly — no page refresh needed. The CRM updates in real time as messages arrive and as the AI agent responds.
AI and manual modes
Every conversation in the CRM has two operating modes:
- AI mode (default) — The AI agent handles the conversation automatically. The input area shows an animated “AI is managing this conversation” indicator.
- Manual mode — You or a team member handles the conversation directly. The input area activates with a text field, media buttons, and a send button.
A toggle pill at the top of the chat view lets you switch between modes instantly. See Switch between AI and manual control for the full guide, including the 15-minute AI reactivation rule.
Note
The AI/Manual toggle applies per conversation. Switching one conversation to manual mode does not affect other conversations — the AI continues handling all other active conversations normally.
Inbox folders
The CRM organizes conversations into folders:
| Folder | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Open | Active conversations that need attention or are being handled by the AI |
| Solved | Conversations marked as resolved — they move out of the Open inbox |
| Spam | Conversations identified as spam — separated from legitimate conversations |
| Archived | Conversations archived for record-keeping — removed from active inbox |
You can move conversations between folders using the action buttons in the chat view. See Manage CRM inboxes and filters for the complete guide.
CRM availability by plan
CRM access depends on your Interlinked subscription plan:
| Plan | CRM access | Included users | Extra collaborators |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | ✗ Not included | — | — |
| Starter | ✓ Full access | 1 (owner) | $15 USD/month each |
| Pro | ✓ Full access | 3 (owner + 2) | $15 USD/month each |
| Ultra | ✓ Full access | 5 (owner + 4) | $10 USD/month each |
| Enterprise | ✓ Full access | Custom | Negotiated |
Important
The Free plan does not include CRM access. To monitor conversations, take manual control, use labels, or collaborate with team members, you need a Starter plan or higher. See Plans and pricing for detailed plan comparisons.
Performance and real-time updates
The CRM is built for fast, real-time operation:
- WebSocket connections deliver new messages instantly — you see customer messages and AI responses as they happen.
- Infinite scroll on the conversation list loads more conversations as you scroll down.
- Lazy message loading in chat view loads message history efficiently, with a “load older messages” option for long conversations.
- Optimistic UI updates — Actions like sending a message or marking as solved update the interface immediately while confirming with the server in the background.
What to do next
- Learn about inbox management — See Manage CRM inboxes and filters
- Understand conversation tools — See Open and manage a conversation
- Master the AI/Manual toggle — See Switch between AI and manual control
- Organize customers — See Customer profiles, labels, and notes
- Send marketing campaigns — See WhatsApp marketing campaigns
- Collaborate with your team — See Team collaboration and CRM users
Related in Interlinked
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