This article explains how a lead moves to the In Communication stage on its own, what triggers the move, which leads don't move, and what happens if a lead in that stage becomes idle.
What starts it
A message in either direction:
The contact replies to you — by text, email, or any other channel ClinicMonk™ handles.
Someone on your team replies to the contact.
Either one starts it, with no conditions attached. It doesn't matter what the message says, which conversation it belongs to, or how old the original message was. A reply to a nurture email sent months ago counts the same as a reply to a consult reminder from this morning.
There's no delay. The move happens as soon as the message is sent or received.
What happens
ClinicMonk™ finds the contact's most recent lead.
It checks two things about that lead: that it's in your Client Journey pipeline, and that it isn't already in the Consult Booked stage, which is excluded from this move.
If both are true, the lead moves to In Communication.
That's the whole automation. Nothing is sent, nobody is notified, and no tags are applied.
Which leads don't move
A lead already in Consult Booked. That stage is deliberately left alone, so a lead that has reached it stays put no matter how much back-and-forth happens afterward.
Updated seven-day guidance: implementation not yet verified
The intended change requested on October 14, 2026 is to replace automatic Lost marking after seven idle days in In Communication with an internal reminder to the admin or intake coordinator. They would review the lead and decide whether to manually mark it Lost or leave it In Communication. Deployment in the live workflow has not yet been verified. Read the seven-day guidance for more detail.
How a lead leaves In Communication
A booking moves the lead to Consult Booked, and a paying client can be marked Won:
They book a consult call, which moves the lead to Consult Booked.
They're marked Won, once they've become a paying client.
The intended seven-day process would send an internal reminder for the admin or intake coordinator to review the lead. They would choose whether to manually mark it Lost or leave it In Communication. Deployment of this change is not yet verified.