Transactional emails are something that everyone with an email address has received at least once in their life. But not everyone understands what they are, how they’re used, or how they should be structured within your email strategy. As an email service, we’d feel a little guilty if we didn’t devote some time to helping out those who might not know the basics.
Let’s get right to it and address some common questions.
Transactional emails are automated, personalized messages triggered by specific user actions within an application or website. They provide important information related to an existing transaction or account activity and help maintain your company’s customer relationship by confirming you’ve received their request or are responding to their action. Some common examples of transactional emails include:
These are just a few of the different types of transactional emails, but the core of transactional messages is that they’re action-triggered. They rely on email automation rather than being sent by a real person in real-time.
Unlike promotional campaigns, which are designed to market and persuade, transactional emails exist to inform and support. Here are the core characteristics that make transactional emails unique:
Recognizing these differences makes it easier to see where transactional emails fit alongside your marketing efforts, ensuring both types of messages serve their purpose effectively.
Transactional emails are user-action-triggered, but traditional marketing emails aren’t. Some examples of marketing emails include:
These can be sent to a bunch of customers at once. But you wouldn’t want to send one customer’s receipt to your whole email list, would you?
Email marketing campaigns have recently leaned into a more automated approach with different content drip strategies. Usually, these drip campaigns rely on a high amount of personalization to drive clicks.
Transactional emails usually have a high engagement rate because user actions trigger them. Your subscriber expects to get this email from you and, as such, is much more likely to open it. Don’t waste this opportunity to make a good impression!
Some transactional best practices are:
We’ll unpack each of these below.
It’s tempting to use a no-reply email address. We know. After all, transactional emails are automated confirmations of user actions on your web page or in your app. You don’t want to receive a customer response for every automated email.
But as we mentioned above, transactional emails see a high amount of customer engagement. You can use these automated emails as an opportunity to invite your customers to start a conversation with you. Besides, if your customers really want to get in touch, they will. Why add friction to their user experience?
Well-written, clear subject lines and preheader text serve two purposes. Firstly, they’ll make it immediately obvious to your subscriber why you’re reaching out. If they’re waiting for an email confirmation from you, this will remove friction from their experience.
Secondly, clear subject lines will help to keep you out of the spam folder. And if your subscriber expects an email from you, you want to make sure they don’t have to dig through their spam folder to find it!
“Oops! What was my password again?” Password reset emails are automated messages triggered by user requests to securely reset their passwords. They’re among the most common transactional emails and the most functional of all emails.
Abandoned cart emails are the dark horse of email marketing campaigns. They’re automated reminders sent to users who leave items in their shopping cart without completing a purchase, encouraging them to return and finalize their order.
Welcome emails are automated, personalized messages sent to new users upon registration to welcome them and encourage early engagement, playing a key role in managing customer relationships right from the start.
Order confirmation emails confirm a purchase and provide detailed order information to the customer. But just because they’re functional doesn’t mean they have to be plain!
The invoice email is similar to an order confirmation email, but instead of confirming a purchase, you’re reminding your subscriber that a payment is due or was recently made.
Separate from invoices, payment confirmation emails act as digital receipts. They let customers know their payment was processed successfully, offering clarity and documentation for their records.
Customers appreciate knowing where their order is in the process. Shipping notifications provide peace of mind by confirming that a package is on its way, often with tracking details for extra transparency.
When a new user signs up, an account confirmation email reassures them that their registration went through. It often includes helpful details like login info, next steps, or security tips.
Whether it’s for a newsletter, SaaS tool, or premium service, subscription confirmation emails validate that a user has successfully signed up. They can also highlight benefits of the subscription and what to expect next.
After an interaction, like a purchase or support call, feedback request emails invite users to share their experience. They help customers feel heard and also can provide valuable insights for your business.
When customers open a support ticket, update emails keep them in the loop. Whether their issue is “in progress” or “resolved,” these messages build trust by showing that your team is on it.
User invitations help expand your platform’s reach, allowing current customers to invite teammates or friends to join. These emails are transactional in nature but can also carry a touch of virality when done well.
Since transactional emails have a high engagement rate, here’s your opportunity to start a conversation with your subscriber and point them to your social media presence or open up other avenues of communication. You don’t want to slam them with a promotional email disguised as a transactional email, but they might find their way to another purchase after engaging with your social media.
Usually, transactionally emails are welcome. Usually. Every customer is different, and some might find it a bit overwhelming to get an email every time they’ve browsed your website and left items in their cart. Add an option in your transactional emails to allow your customers to adjust their email preferences so they don’t unsubscribe from your emails completely or mark your emails as spam.
A transactional email might be an automated message, but it should still match your brand’s tone and visual identity. First of all, it’s a good idea to maintain quality throughout all your communications. Second, since your customers are waiting for your email, they’re on the lookout for something that matches your brand’s tone and visual identity. Make it easier for your subscriber to pick out your email from the crowd.
Your deliverability often relies on what type of email you are sending. When you place an order on an eCommerce website, you expect an email receipt in your inbox shortly after you make the purchase.
Poor deliverability can keep that receipt from landing in the inbox and instead banish it to the spam folder. If you don’t receive that confirmation email, you might suspect that the order didn’t go through, making it imperative that those transactional emails land in the inbox.
Email deliverability is paramount for transactional messages, and there are several ways you can go about ensuring that they make it to the inbox and reach the right recipients:
And transactional emails tend to have very high engagement, meaning they have high open rates and click-through rates, improving your deliverability.
Whether you’re just starting your email sending for your application or are planning to migrate your entire email ecosystem, you need to consider several factors when selecting a new transactional email service provider.
Having the ability to send how you want, whether that’s via SMTP relay or Email APIs, should be the first qualifier for your email provider. From there, think about your sending needs. Do you need add-ons like an email validation tool, or would an HTML template editor serve you better? These factors rolled together with your budget will help you determine which provider best suits you.
And that’s the quick and dirty of transactional emails! We’ve given you some best practices and examples to help get you started.
Whether or not you plan to create dozens of email campaigns or set up simple notification emails, transactional emails are just one component of your overall email program and customer experience. Are you looking to start sending transactional messages? We can help with that. Head on over to Mailgun to start sending today.
