Converting email threads to discussions

You can convert an Outlook email thread into a discussion in your Jive community.

Converting an Outlook email thread to a Jive discussion allows you to post the discussion with the initial email subject line as the discussion title, and convert the body of each email into discussion replies. The discussion is posted in Jive on behalf of the originator of the email thread, using the following syntax: "Posted on behalf of originator by discussion converter via Jive for Outlook." The discussion originator is also be shown as the author in Jive.

To convert an email thread to a discussion:

  1. In Outlook, select an email you want to convert to a Jive discussion.
    Your discussion will include the email you select plus all the levels above it.
  2. Right-click and select Convert to discussion on Jive, or click Create > Convert to Discussion in the Jive toolbar.
    A new email window opens. This email window controls the way your discussion will be posted.
  3. In Post By, select the account you use to connect to the community.
    This setting determines the "posted by" value displayed when you post the discussion. The author of the originating email will be displayed as the author. If you belong to more than one community, make sure that the correct username is selected.
  4. In Post To, choose where the discussion should be posted.
    You can limit the visibility of your discussion by selecting only specific people, or you can select any space or group, or the entire community. Note that the place where you post the discussion determines who can see and respond to it.
  5. If you want the discussion to be added as a question, select the Mark this discussion as a question check box.
  6. If you want participants in the email thread who are not community members to receive an email notification that the thread has been converted to a discussion, select the Notify external participants check box.
  7. Add a comment to the discussion by typing it in the message box of the email.