# Log calls and messages and read communication history

Record first contact, rate conversations, complete follow-up tasks, and distinguish CRM history from calling or messaging outside the app.

Canonical: https://docs.lead-knight.com/en/contacts/communication-history/


## What this is for

Use communication logging to record what happened with a contact, how it went, and what needs to happen next. The **Communications** tab combines logged interactions and past meetings in **History**. Meetings that have not ended or been checked in appear separately under **Meetings**.

> **Important:** **Call**, **Send email**, and **Message** open your device's calling app, email app, or WhatsApp. They do not log a conversation or prove that a call connected or a message was sent. Return to the contact to record the outcome.

## Before you start

- Open **Contacts** and select the contact to open their details.
- You need write access to **Communications**. A read-only, private, or frozen contact can prevent logging or editing.
- First-contact logging also updates the contact's progress, so it requires permission to edit the deal. Adding or completing tasks requires task write access too.
- Decide whether you actually reached the person. An unanswered attempt is not first contact.

## Record first contact

1. Open the contact's **Communications** tab and click **Log a call or message**. If no first contact has been recorded, the **First contact made** dialog opens. You can also use **First contact made** in the contact header while that button is available.
2. Under **How did you talk?**, select **Call**, **WhatsApp**, **Email**, **SMS**, **In person**, or **Other**. This describes the interaction; it does not send anything through that channel.
3. Under **How did it go?**, choose 1–5 stars. A first-contact rating is required; without it, saving shows **Missing: Rating**.
4. Enter an optional **Summary**, up to 2,000 characters. Record useful context rather than treating this as a message composer.
5. Under **What comes next?**, optionally fill **Tasks** and **Due**. Each task needs both text and a date/time. Use **Add task** for more rows or **Delete** to remove an extra row. Leave both fields blank to create no task. A first-contact save accepts at most 10 tasks, each up to 200 characters.
6. If the contact's details need correcting and you have card edit access, click **Update details**. The quick editor lets you change their name, phone, email and, when permitted, tags. Save those changes to return to logging.
7. Click **Save**. The dialog closes and the interaction appears in **History**, marked **First contact made**, with its channel, author, time, rating and any summary. First contact is recorded. If the contact is still in the first configured stage, this flow moves it to the second configured stage; it does not move a contact that is already further along back to that stage.

## Log a later conversation

1. Open **Communications** and click **Log a call or message**. After first contact exists, the title is **Log communication with {name}**, using the contact's name.
2. Choose the channel, optionally rate the conversation, and fill **Summary** if useful. A later interaction can be saved without a rating.
3. If open tasks are listed under **Complete open tasks**, select only the tasks this conversation actually completed. First-contact task-planning rows are not shown in this later-conversation flow.
4. Click **Save**. The interaction is added to **History**, and selected open tasks are completed.

## Record a call that was not answered

The unanswered-call choice is a separate shortcut, not a checkbox inside the ordinary logging dialog.

1. In the contacts table or board, click the contact's **Upcoming task** area. For a contact in the first configured stage, the dialog asks **Did the lead answer?**.
2. Choose **No answer** to save an unanswered call immediately. The dialog closes; the attempt is recorded in history and the unanswered-attempt indicator updates. There is no rating, first-contact outcome, new task or task completion attached to this attempt.
3. If the person did answer, choose **Answered** instead. This opens the logging form, including **First contact made** when first contact has not yet been recorded. Complete and save that form.

An unanswered call does not set first contact, advance the stage, change the average rating, or update **Last contact**. A first-stage contact can therefore remain **Awaiting first reply** after repeated attempts. The attempt count remains recorded after a later successful conversation.

If the contact is no longer in the first configured stage, this shortcut opens logging directly rather than showing **Did the lead answer?**. Opening **Log a call or message** from the contact drawer also goes directly to logging. Do not rate an unanswered attempt as though it were an answered conversation.

## Read and correct history

- **History** is ordered newest first and mixes communication entries with past or checked-in meetings. Upcoming meetings are ordered by their start time under **Meetings**.
- Each communication shows its channel, author and time. First contact has a **First contact made** marker; unanswered calls have **No answer**.
- For answered interactions, the author or a workspace owner/admin with communication write access can click the stars to change the rating.
- Open the entry's **Actions** menu and choose its **Summary** item to edit the summary, then **Save** or **Cancel**.
- For a rated, non-first interaction, **Clear rating** removes the rating. **Delete** is available for editable non-first entries. The first-contact entry cannot be deleted or have its required rating cleared from this menu.
- Unanswered entries do not offer these answered-conversation editing controls.

## If something goes wrong

| What you see | Why it happens | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| No communication has been logged yet | No visible CRM history exists; using external contact buttons does not create it | Log the actual conversation with **Log a call or message** |
| **Missing: Rating** | First contact needs a rating | Choose 1–5 stars and save again |
| **Missing: Tasks/Due** | A first-contact task is incomplete or its date/time is invalid | Fill both fields correctly or clear both |
| Logging is unavailable or saving is refused | Communication, deal or task permissions may be insufficient, or the contact is frozen | Ask the contact owner to review the relevant access; do not substitute a fake outcome |
| No **No answer** option in the drawer | Unanswered logging belongs to the first-stage **Upcoming task** shortcut | Use that shortcut when applicable; the ordinary dialog has no unanswered switch |
| No edit or delete menu | The entry is unanswered, is protected first contact, or you lack editing rights | Keep the original record; ask the author or authorized owner/admin about eligible corrections |

## Related pages

- [Contacts and CRM overview](https://docs.lead-knight.com/en/contacts/overview/)
- [Add a contact](https://docs.lead-knight.com/en/contacts/add-contact/)
- [Move contacts through stages](https://docs.lead-knight.com/en/contacts/move-through-stages/)
- [Schedule and document meetings](https://docs.lead-knight.com/en/contacts/meetings/)


## Log a call or message

[Log a call or message](https://kwqpaiaguxkmadaipfrf.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/guide-videos/guides/videos/J8/nadlanite-en-6d4030fd8e52.mp4)

1. After a call or message, click Log a call or message.
2. Choose how you talked.
3. Rate how it went.
4. Write a short summary of what you discussed.
5. Click Save.
6. The conversation is now in the contact’s history.