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writing-a-confirmation-email

How to Write the Perfect Confirmation Email

Ally Patterson

To maintain the success of your business and keep a strong connection with your customers, confirmation emails are an important step. But what do you say to a new customer who is booking an appointment or registering for a class or service with your business? Is a simple confirmation message sufficient or should include more information? In this guide, we’ll help you think through essential elements of a confirmation message that you will want to include.

What is a confirmation email?

Confirmation emails help to affirm and inform your customers about an action they have taken with your business. Whether they have signed up for a service or updated information on their profile, these messages allow you to let them know you received their action, and it is being processed on your end. It also offers a way for you to stay connected and share next steps or actions that can be taken on their customer journey.

These emails are typically automated responses, but there is a lot that you can do with them. It’s crucial to avoid generic text, and instead focus on how you can leverage this email as a part of your over-arching marketing strategy.

What you should include in confirmation emails

Confirmation emails can be taken in many different directions. It all depends on what information you want to relay to your audience, and this can vary depending on what actions they have already taken, as well as what you anticipate them to do next. However, it is important that you make the most of these emails and craft messaging that enhances your customer journey.

Here are 10 sections that you can include when drafting a confirmation email for your business (Remember that you can have many different confirmation emails that serve various needs, so these sections can take on different forms in specific emails):

Confirm the user action

First and foremost, these emails confirm what a client or customer has just done with your business. It’s critical to let them know that you are aware of their sign up, canceled service, purchase, or whatever action they took with your business. This eases your customer’s mind and shows that you are in tune with their actions. This critical first step in a confirmation email allows you to begin communicating with your consumer audience.

confirming user action

Make a personal connection

Through these emails, it’s your opportunity to connect on another level with your audience. Make sure your confirmation uses the style and tone of voice that fits your company, and let it relay your business’ persona to the customer. Adding personal touches, as simple as including the customer’s name at the beginning of the email, will help them feel important and seen by you – regardless of the size of your company or corporation.

Thank them for signing up

Showing gratitude is always a good idea. It reveals to your customers how vital their business is and how much you appreciate them. Depending on what action your customer has taken, a thank you could also include a discount code or promo for their next purchase or session. This simple gesture can help you bring them back for more business in the future and gives them an incentive for choosing your business versus others.

thank the user for their action

Provide helpful resources

Depending on what action or services you are offering, these emails are a great opportunity for you to provide even more resources to your customers. You might include your company’s blogs, articles, or any other type of resource you produce to inform the customer on their journey. This could also be a chance for you to integrate videos or product demos if you want to further their onboarding experience in a more immersive way.

Give clear action steps or call to actions

With all your confirmation emails, make sure you point customers in the right direction. Want them to sign up for another class or session, or maybe purchase something else? You can include calls to action (CTAs) throughout your email to direct them to another actionable step within your business. At the very least, you’ll want to create an easy way for them to use the email to get back to your website. If you don’t have any particular next steps, a simple CTA might be to direct them to ways they can cancel or change their appointment time if needed.

Leverage images when helpful - communicate quick concepts

Want to relay a message but don’t want to crowd your email with too much text? Remember to include images that capture concepts for your business model. Visual people will appreciate this, and it may draw them in more than a catchy phrase. For example, if you sell products or have particular case studies, include those in the email as a way of increasing engagement.

incorporate images

Optimize the subject line

Subject lines are the first thing that your customer will note on a confirmation email, and it directly influences the email open rate. Poor subject lines will reduce the likelihood that your emails will get opened. Making sure you get your message across clearly and succinctly in the subject line is crucial. Choose what is more important to tell your customer, or tease information you’re providing in the emails that they will be intrigued by. Then, follow through by providing that in the body of the email.

Provide an easy unsubscribe option

Some people don’t appreciate receiving emails from every business they’ve interacted with, and your emails may end up hurting your business in the long run. That’s why providing a clear and easy way to unsubscribe from emails is important. Otherwise, people may flag your emails as junk – which can hurt your email deliverability. An easy unsubscribe option allows people who don’t want to receive automated emails to remove themselves without any hassle on their part

A/B Test Emails

In order to test what works for your business and what elements will be the most successful moving forward, it’s always smart to run A/B tests. This allows you to send out two different versions of your email and see which has the higher open rate and click percentage. Using platforms, such as Litmus, helps you segment your customers and get the most conversions from your copy.

Now that you’ve learned a little bit more about what you can do with a confirmation email, it’s time to get started! Show your customers you’re paying attention to their actions, appreciate their business, and look forward to moving them forward in their customer journey.

TimeTap offers a variety of emails that are all customizable within our appointment booking and registration software. Schedule a demo to learn more.

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