FEATURE

Every conversation, call and booking with a client, in one view

Allio is a photography CRM with texting, calls, email and Facebook and Instagram messages in one client thread, for portrait studios on one $297 plan. Open a client in Allio and their conversations sit together on one screen: the Instagram DM from Sunday, the form they filled in, this morning’s text and the call recording in between. Anyone on your team can pick up where the last person left off, without opening four apps or asking the client to repeat themselves.

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$297 per month. Card required. AI and phone usage is billed at cost, on top of the $297.

Hands on a desk phone beside an open notebook.
Real Allio conversation view for one client: the team inbox on the left, the client's thread with two call recordings, messages and pipeline updates in the middle, and their contact details on the right
Real Allio account: one client's thread with two call recordings, messages and pipeline updates, and their contact details alongside.

What you see in one view

Every client has one thread. Whatever channel they use, it lands there in the order it happened:

  • Texts, sent and received from your studio number, not a personal mobile.
  • Calls, with the recording and a transcript when call recording is switched on.
  • Email, synced both ways from your Gmail or Outlook inbox.
  • Facebook and Instagram messages, answered from the same box as everything else.
  • Form fills and website chats, logged against the client, or on a new client record for a new enquiry.
  • Pipeline moves, showing each time the enquiry changes stage.
  • AI replies, shown in the thread with an AI marker.
  • Notes and tasks on the client record, for your team only.
  • Contact details and bookings on the same record, so nobody opens another app to check a date.

Setup notes: texting needs carrier registration before it can send, which can take a few weeks. Instagram needs a Business or Creator profile linked to your Facebook Page. Call recording needs the notice and consent your clients’ locations require.

Real Allio inbox: one client's thread with replies about a Facebook and Instagram giveaway, an AI drafted message, an opportunity created in the pipeline and a recorded call
Real Allio account: the same client earlier on, with giveaway replies, an AI drafted message and a new pipeline opportunity.

Call them from the same screen

The phone is built in, so there’s no second app. Open the dialer over the client’s thread and the call goes out on your studio number. The call lands in the same thread, with its recording and transcript when recording is on, so the next person sees what was said.

No copying numbers across and no personal mobiles. See how the studio phone system handles incoming calls, voicemail, recording and call reporting.

Real Allio conversation view with the dialer open over a client's thread, ready to call from the studio's business line
Real Allio account: the dialer open over a client's thread, calling from the studio's business number.

Built for a team, not one inbox owner

Assign conversations. Give a conversation to a team member, by hand or automatically, so every enquiry has an owner.

See what’s unread and unanswered. Filter by unread, by team member or by channel, so you can see what still needs a reply.

Internal notes. Leave a note on the record for the next person (“Mum prefers texts after 3pm”) without the client seeing it.

No per seat fee. Add your whole front desk. Allio is one plan at $297 a month, whatever the team size.

Why one view matters for a portrait studio

A newborn enquiry might start as an Instagram DM, move to a phone call, and finish with a text confirming the session. When those live in three apps, the next person to speak to the client starts from nothing. When they live on one screen, the owner can see what every client was told.

Two colleagues talking a client conversation through over coffee.

How it compares

Dubsado connects two-way Gmail and Outlook email. Pixieset Studio Manager can send and receive email. HoneyBook keeps email and, with its paid add-on for members in the US and Canada, texts in each project’s timeline. We couldn’t find Facebook or Instagram messages in the inbox on any of their product pages (checked 2026-10-22).

Unified inbox questions

What is a unified inbox?

A unified inbox brings messages from every channel, such as texts, email, calls and social messages, into one place. In Allio each conversation is also attached to the client’s record, so the history follows the client, not the channel.

Can I see a client’s whole history in one place?

Yes, for the channels you’ve connected. Open the client’s conversation and their texts, calls, email, Facebook and Instagram messages, form fills, pipeline moves and AI replies are in one thread, with their contact details alongside. Messages from before a channel was connected may not come across.

Can I call a client from the inbox?

Yes. Open the dialer from the conversation and the call goes out on your studio number. The call is added to the same thread, with its recording when call recording is switched on. See the studio phone system for the details.

Can I reply to Instagram DMs from Allio?

Yes. Your Instagram needs to be a Business or Creator profile (a Business profile linked to your Facebook Page), with message access switched on in Instagram’s settings. Once it’s connected, DMs arrive in the inbox and you can reply from there.

Can several team members use the same inbox?

Yes. Everyone on your team works from the same inbox, conversations can be assigned to a person, and there’s no per seat fee.

Do I need to change my email address?

No. You keep your studio email address. For the best delivery, use your own sending domain rather than the shared default. You can connect a Gmail or Outlook inbox for two-way email.

Keep reading

Sources

Public (competitor facts, checked 2026-10-22):

1. Dubsado: dubsado.com/llm-info (two-way Gmail and Outlook email)

2. Pixieset Studio Manager: pixieset.com/pricing-studio-manager/ (“send and receive emails”)

3. HoneyBook Business Phone and SMS: help.honeybook.com/en/articles/15123809 (texts stored in project timeline alongside email)

See every conversation in one place.

The trial is seven days, card required, and you can be in within minutes.

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Want the story first? Read who built Allio and why, or see what a call about Allio covers.

$297 per month. Card required. AI and phone usage is billed at cost, on top of the $297.