Automated email chase sequences to supplier contacts for certificates
Certly sends automated email chase sequences to your supplier contacts for certificates approaching expiry or already lapsed, each one carrying a one-click upload link and logged per send. This article walks through what has to be in place for a sequence to run, how to send a chase yourself, and how to read the log afterwards.
What this article covers
Chasing is the part of supplier certificate work that eats the week: an allergen declaration is three weeks from expiry, the contact has changed, and the thread sits in your sent items with no reply. Certly's chase sequences take that over. When a certificate reaches one of your alert thresholds, or has already lapsed, the supplier contact on the record receives an email asking for the current document, with a one-click upload link that needs no login. Every send is written to that certificate's chase log.
Read this when you are setting a plant up for the first time, when a supplier says they never received a request, or when you want to send one chase now rather than wait for the next threshold.
Setting up and running a chase sequence
- Put a real person's email on the supplier record
A chase goes to the contact email held against the supplier. Open the supplier, check the contact name and email are the person who actually holds the documents, and correct them if the address is a general inbox nobody owns. Without a contact email there is nowhere for a chase to go.
- Confirm which certificate types that supplier owes you
Chasing is per certificate requirement, not per supplier. Make sure the required types on the record, such as allergen declaration, CoA or audit certificate, match what you expect from them, so each slot has its own clock.
- Record the expiry date on the certificate you hold
Upload the current document against the supplier and certificate type with its expiry date. That date is what the sequence counts down from, and what moves the slot to expiring soon or expired on the dashboard.
- Set the thresholds the sequence should fire on
In Settings, Expiry alerts, Certly ships thresholds at 90, 60 and 30 days before expiry. Edit them, add one, or set a plant default or a per certificate type figure if an allergen declaration needs longer notice than a CoA.
- Read the chase email before your suppliers do
The alert settings carry a read-only preview of the exact chase email, subject line and body, that will be sent. Check it reads as a plain request from your plant.
- Send one now when you do not want to wait
Each supplier row on the dashboard, and each certificate on the supplier's own page, has Chase now. It sends a one-off chase immediately using the same template and mints a fresh upload link, logged like any other send.
- Check the log for what actually left
The chase history on the supplier's page lists every send with its status: sent, failed or opened. A failed send carries its own badge and a resend action, so a bounce is something you can see and act on rather than assume.
If a chase did not land
Work through it in this order.
- The log says failed. Use the resend action next to the failed entry. If it fails again, the contact email is the first thing to check.
- The log shows nothing for that certificate. Confirm the slot has an expiry date recorded and that your thresholds are set, since the sequence fires on certificates approaching expiry or already lapsed.
- The supplier says it went to spam. Chase emails are delivered through Amazon SES by default. On the Unlimited plan you can send chases from your own connected mailbox instead, which is what keeps them out of a supplier's spam folder.
- Still stuck. Email support@usecertly.com with the supplier name and the date you expected the chase to go, and we will look at the log with you.
One thing to keep in mind when you report status upwards: Certly tracks certificate dates and reminds the people who hold the documents. It does not verify that a certificate is authentic and it does not guarantee regulatory compliance, which is why the disclaimer sits on the dashboard and the audit PDF.
Questions
Which certificates does an automated sequence chase?
Certificates approaching expiry, at the thresholds you set, and certificates that have already lapsed. The sequence runs against the supplier contact held on each supplier record.
Does the supplier need a Certly login to respond?
No. The chase carries a one-click upload link that works without a login. It is single use and expires on its own.
Can I chase a certificate we have never received at all?
A requirement with no document on file shows as missing on the dashboard. You can send a request for it yourself with Chase now on that supplier's page, and the send is logged the same way.
Where do I see what was sent to whom?
On the supplier's page. Every chase is logged per send with the recipient, the time, and whether it was sent, failed or opened.
Can I change when the chases go out?
Yes. The thresholds start at 90, 60 and 30 days before expiry and are configurable in Settings, Expiry alerts, as a plant default or per certificate type.
Can I see the wording before it reaches a supplier?
The alert settings show a read-only preview of the exact subject line and body that will be sent, so you can check how it reads.
Is automated chasing on every plan?
Automated chase emails and no-login upload links are included from Starter at £149 a month, which covers 50 suppliers on one site. Sending chases from your own connected mailbox is on Unlimited at £399 a month. Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial and no card.