Set Default Values for Properties
Default values let you set a fixed value for a Notion property that applies to every email saved through a destination. This is useful for tagging, categorizing, or setting an initial status without any manual work.
How to Configure Default Values
- Go to your Destinations page in the Quicktion dashboard
- Click on the destination you want to configure
- Scroll to the Default Values section
- Choose a Notion property and enter the value it should always receive
- Save your changes
You can set defaults for as many properties as you need.
Supported Property Types
Default values work with these Notion property types:
| Notion Property Type | What You Set |
|---|---|
| Select | Choose one of the existing select options |
| Multi-select | Choose one or more existing multi-select options |
| Checkbox | Checked or unchecked |
| Rich Text | A fixed text string |
| Number | A fixed number |
| URL | A fixed URL |
Property types like Title, Email, and Date are better suited for property mappings since their values typically come from the email itself.
How Defaults Interact with Mappings
A property can have both a mapping and a default value, but the mapping always wins. Here's how it works:
- Mapping exists and email has data -- the email data is used, the default is ignored.
- Mapping exists but email data is empty -- the default value is used as a fallback.
- No mapping, only a default -- the default value is always applied.
This means you can safely set defaults as fallbacks without worrying about them overwriting real email data.
Practical Examples
Tag emails as "Inbox"
Set a default on a Select property called "Status":
- Property: Status (Select)
- Default value: Inbox
Every email saved through this destination starts with Status = "Inbox". You can then triage in Notion by changing the status to "Read", "Action Required", etc.
Mark emails for review
Set a default on a Checkbox property:
- Property: Needs Review (Checkbox)
- Default value: Checked
Every saved email will have "Needs Review" checked. Uncheck it in Notion once you've handled it.
Categorize by source
If you have multiple destinations (one for receipts, one for newsletters, one for client emails), use a default Select or Multi-select to label them:
- Receipts destination: Category = "Receipt"
- Newsletter destination: Category = "Newsletter"
- Client destination: Category = "Client"
This gives you automatic categorization without any email rules or filters.
Add a fixed note
Set a default on a Rich Text property:
- Property: Source (Rich Text)
- Default value: "Saved via email forwarding"
Useful for distinguishing how pages were created when your Notion database has entries from multiple sources.
Tips
- Default values only apply to new emails. Changing a default won't update pages that were already created.
- If the select option you want doesn't exist yet in your Notion database, create it in Notion first, then refresh the property list in Quicktion.
- Combine defaults with mappings for a complete setup: map the email-specific fields (subject, sender, date) and set defaults for everything else (status, category, flags).