Can an AI agent create quotes and orders from customer emails in Outlook?
Yes. An AI agent can read the customer's email in Outlook, look things up in your ERP and CRM and prepare a quote or an order – but an employee approves before anything is sent.
Short answer
Yes. An AI agent can read the customer’s email in Outlook, find the customer and previous agreements, look up products, prices and stock in your ERP system and prepare a draft reply, a quote or an order. The important part is that an employee approves before anything is sent or created in the ERP.
What happens when a customer email arrives?
In many companies, sales and customer service spend a large part of the day on the same groundwork: reading the email, finding the customer, looking things up in the ERP, checking what was agreed last time and writing a reply. An AI agent can do that groundwork:
- Reads the email and works out what the customer wants – e.g. a quote, an order or a delivery date.
- Finds the customer and gathers previous agreements, orders and activities, e.g. an agreed freight price.
- Looks things up in the ERP: products, prices and stock.
- Prepares the case with a plan and a draft reply confirming quantity, delivery and price.
- Waits for approval. The employee adjusts, approves and sends.
Can you stay in Outlook?
Yes. Employees keep using Outlook as usual. The AI agent works between the mailbox and the connected systems – typically ERP and CRM.
What about errors and control?
- People approve: Before an email is sent or anything is created in the ERP, approval is required according to your rules.
- You decide the access: For each system you choose whether the agent may not use it at all, may only read, or may also write.
- Shared history: The whole team can see what has happened with a customer and who is responsible.
How BCT helps
We built Relay for exactly this task. Relay is an AI agent that brings together customer dialogue and data from your ERP and CRM, so you avoid much of the manual groundwork. Relay works with Outlook and the common ERP systems.
See how Relay works → · Read about AI and ERP →
Frequently asked questions
Does the AI agent send emails on its own?
No, not unless you decide so. Normally the agent prepares a draft and an employee approves it.
Which ERP systems does it work with?
Most common ERP systems, e.g. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, e-conomic, Uniconta, Visma, Tripletex and IFS. See AI and ERP.
Is it the same as Microsoft Copilot?
No. Copilot mainly helps with writing and summarising text. An AI agent like Relay works across email, ERP and CRM and prepares the whole case. See Copilot or a custom-built AI agent.
In short
An AI agent can take the groundwork on customer emails in Outlook: read, look things up in the ERP and prepare a quote or order. Employees spend their time approving and on the customer – not on searching for information.
Questions, or want to know what this could mean for you? Email me directly or give us a call.
Want to see what it could look like for you?
We are happy to have a no-obligation talk about your day-to-day work and where AI and software can make a difference.
