sales-shortwave

What this skill does

# Shortwave Platform Help

Helps with everything related to using Shortwave — an AI-native Gmail client that replaces your inbox with natural language search, plain-English AI filters, Ghostwriter voice-trained drafting, split inbox organization, and MCP consumer support for connecting external tools. Founded by ex-Googlers as a spiritual successor to Google Inbox.

## Step 1 — Gather context

If `references/learnings.md` exists, read it first for accumulated knowledge.

Ask the user:

1. **What are you trying to do with Shortwave?**
   - A) Set up Shortwave for the first time
   - B) Configure AI filters or split inbox
   - C) Improve Ghostwriter draft quality
   - D) Connect MCP servers (Notion, HubSpot, etc.)
   - E) Set up Tasklet automations
   - F) Compare Shortwave to alternatives
   - G) Troubleshoot AI search or performance
   - H) Something else — describe it

2. **Which plan are you on (or considering)?**
   - A) Business ($24/mo) — standard AI, 3 AI filters, 5-year search
   - B) Premier ($36/mo) — advanced AI, 10 filters, unlimited search
   - C) Max ($100/mo) — expert AI, 50 filters, live training
   - D) Enterprise (custom)
   - E) Free trial / not sure yet

**If the user's request already provides most of this context, skip directly to the relevant step.** Lead with your best-effort answer using reasonable assumptions (stated explicitly), then ask only the most critical 1-2 clarifying questions at the end.

## Step 2 — Route or answer directly

If the request maps to another skill, route:
- Choosing a meeting note-taker → "Run: `/sales-note-taker {user's original question}`"
- AI executive assistant comparison → "Run: `/sales-alfred {user's original question}`"
- CRM integration strategy → "Run: `/sales-integration {user's original question}`"
- Meeting scheduling strategy → "Run: `/sales-meeting-scheduler {user's original question}`"

Otherwise, answer directly from the platform reference below.

## Step 3 — Shortwave platform reference

**Read `references/platform-guide.md`** for the full platform reference — capabilities, pricing, plan gates, MCP consumer setup, Tasklet, integrations, and competitive positioning.

Answer the user's question using only the relevant section. Don't dump the full reference.

## Step 4 — Actionable guidance

You no longer need the platform guide — focus on the user's specific situation.

**For improving Ghostwriter drafts:**
1. Send more emails manually — Ghostwriter learns from your writing style over time
2. Higher plans get better AI models (Standard → Advanced → Expert intelligence)
3. Use snippets to save and reuse prompts for common reply types
4. If tone is consistently wrong after 2+ weeks, your sent history may not reflect your desired style

**For AI filter issues:**
1. AI filters use plain English rules — be specific ("Move newsletters to a Newsletter label")
2. Business plan allows only 3 filters — upgrade to Premier (10) or Max (50) if you need more
3. Over-eager labeling is common early on — refine your filter language to be more precise
4. Filters cannot trigger external actions — use Tasklet for cross-app automations

**For MCP consumer setup:**
1. Requires Business plan or higher
2. Go to Settings → AI Integrations → Add custom integration
3. Supports remote MCP servers (URL) and local servers (command + args)
4. Max 40 tools simultaneously — more tools may degrade AI assistant performance
5. MCP support is tool-calls only — resources, prompts, and sampling are not supported

If you discover a gotcha, workaround, or tip not covered in `references/learnings.md`, append it there.

## Gotchas

*Best-effort from research — review these, especially items about plan-gated features and pricing that may change.*

- **Gmail only.** No Outlook, Apple Mail, Yahoo, or IMAP support. If you use Outlook, Shortwave is not an option — consider Superhuman or Fyxer instead.
- **MCP consumer, not server.** Shortwave connects TO external MCP servers (Notion, HubSpot, etc.) — it does not expose an MCP server for other tools to connect to. No programmatic way to read/write Shortwave data from outside.
- **No public API, no webhooks, no Zapier/Make.** The only automation path is Tasklet (sister product) or MCP consumer integrations.
- **AI filter limits are plan-gated.** Business: 3 filters, Premier: 10, Max: 50. If you need heavy automation, you may outgrow Business quickly.
- **"Sent with Shortwave" signature** appears on lower-tier plans. Check settings to remove it on paid plans.
- **Tasklet is a separate product.** Tasklet (tasklet.ai) handles workflow automation with 3000+ app integrations, webhook triggers, and browser automation — but it's distinct from the Shortwave email client.
- **14-day trial, no permanent free tier.** Some sources mention lower-priced personal plans ($7-8.50/mo) but the current pricing page shows Business ($24/mo) as the entry point.
- **Self-improving**: If you discover something not covered here, append it to `references/learnings.md` with today's date.

## Related skills

- `/sales-superhuman` — Superhuman email client (keyboard-driven, MCP server, CRM integrations). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-superhuman -a claude-code`
- `/sales-newmail` — NewMail AI email assistant (voice-trained drafting, task extraction, daily briefings, $15-30/mo). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-newmail -a claude-code`
- `/sales-spark-mail` — Spark Mail cross-platform AI email client (Smart Inbox, Gatekeeper, team collaboration, free tier). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-spark-mail -a claude-code`
- `/sales-fyxer` — Fyxer AI email assistant (inbox organization, AI drafting, meeting notes). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-fyxer -a claude-code`
- `/sales-hey` — Hey privacy-first email service by 37signals (Screener, Imbox/Feed/Paper Trail, no AI, $99/yr). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-hey -a claude-code`
- `/sales-mimestream` — Mimestream native macOS Gmail client (Gmail API-powered, tracking prevention, no AI, $50/yr). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-mimestream -a claude-code`
- `/sales-sanebox` — SaneBox server-side email filtering (smart folders, any email provider, $7/mo). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-sanebox -a claude-code`
- `/sales-inbox-zero` — Inbox Zero open-source AI email assistant (auto-labeling, rules API/CLI, self-hostable, $18/mo or free). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-inbox-zero -a claude-code`
- `/sales-clean-email` — Clean Email inbox cleanup (bulk actions, Auto Clean rules, Unsubscriber, $29.99/yr). Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-clean-email -a claude-code`
- `/sales-alfred` — alfred_ AI executive assistant (email triage, reply drafting, task extraction)
- `/sales-note-taker` — Choose a dedicated AI meeting note-taker. Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-note-taker -a claude-code`
- `/sales-do` — Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install:
  `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do -a claude-code`

## Examples

### Example 1: Connect an MCP server to Shortwave
**User says**: "How do I connect my Notion MCP server to Shortwave so the AI assistant can pull context from my workspace?"
**Skill does**:
1. Confirms user needs Business plan ($24+/mo) for MCP consumer support
2. Walks through Settings → AI Integrations → Add custom integration
3. Explains remote vs local MCP server configuration (URL for remote, command+args for local)
4. Notes 40-tool limit and performance tradeoffs with multiple servers
5. Warns: MCP support is beta and limited to tool calls only
**Result**: User has MCP server connected to Shortwave with clear understanding of limitations

### Example 2: Compare Shortwave to Superhuman for inbox productivity
**User says**: "