Everything You Need to Know About Confirmation Emails
Email marketing automation is a highly efficient element of your marketing strategy. When it comes to creating high-quality confirmation emails, you need to implement top-notch tactics.
While a confirmation email is something many marketers take for granted, without a smart approach, it may hinder your entire sales and marketing campaign.
A confirmation email isn’t just a tool for confirming clients’ actions, it’s a way to build trusted relationships, improve retention rates, and uphold your brand’s reputation. Let’s take a closer look at different aspects of confirmation emails and how to keep them working toward the company’s profitability.
What is a Confirmation Email?
Confirmation emails are transactional messages. They are usually sent automatically when a customer takes a certain action. It can go out when a customer confirms an order at an online store, sign ups for a mailing list, subscriptions for a newsletter, registrations for an event, bookings for a trip, and much more.
The main goal of a confirmation email is to:
- Make sure the customer didn’t take an action by mistake
- Show the customer that you are processing their request.
Confirmations emails don’t just confirm actions, they can give customers instructions about further steps or give them an opportunity to cancel. These emails are beneficial both for the sender and the recipient because many actions taken online are accidental.
Without a confirmation email, you may end up with an unwanted order and an unhappy customer down the line. Setting up the automatic confirmations can save you time and money.
4 Common Types of Confirmation Emails
Different types of confirmation emails exist to simplify interactions with your customers and keeping them happy with your service.
1. Order Confirmation Email
This is the most popular confirmation email type. It goes out after the client makes a purchase in an e-store. Regardless of the type or amount of purchase, the email confirms the actions taken.
The order confirmation message gives the customer peace of mind that the purchase is being processed. Meanwhile, it allows the buyer to make changes to the order if, for some reason, the purchase was done by mistake.
Such emails are usually automatically generated. They should contain such information as:
- Customer’s name
- Order number
- Order details
- Purchase amount
The order confirmation emails should also mention the next steps, if any, the customer should take to get the product or service. It could also explain what you, as a store owner, plan to do next. For example, “the order will be delivered by {date} or “visit the website to choose a delivery option.”
Purchase confirmation emails are an excellent place to offer the customer supporting products. If the person just purchased ski boots, the email can have a link to ski hats, skis, jackets, and other related products you are selling.
2. Registration Confirmation Email
Visitors get this type of confirmation email when they register to get a product or a service on your website. For example, they sign up for a newsletter or register for a webinar.
These registration confirmation emails are highly important because signups are often whimsical. When a customer gets an email in the inbox, they have an opportunity to rethink the registration.
In case they decide that it’s not necessary, customers can always opt out, thus preventing misunderstandings in the future. Meanwhile, you can still keep their address on your email list for further marketing efforts.
When you email confirmation for event registration, it should have the following information:
- Customer’s name
- Event description
- Event date
- Confirmation number (if applicable)
You should make it simple to opt out of the event and describe the consequences of such actions. In case of a webinar, you may need to explain that the fee is non-refundable (if it’s part of your TOS). If you are confirming newsletter signup, don’t forget to explain how much they are missing out in case of a cancelation.
Just like with the purchase confirmation email, you can use the opportunity to market other products and services that logically go with what the customer registered for.
3. Booking Confirmation Email
Booking confirmation emails go out to customers who made an online booking. Such bookings can vary from a hotel and plane tickets to dinner or a doctor’s appointment. The key goal of a booking confirmation email is to make sure the customer made the right decision. Meanwhile, it gives the consumer peace of mind about the upcoming travel plans.
The booking confirmation email should include the following:
- Customer’s name
- Booking date
- Confirmation number
- Location
These emails can also contain such important information as directions, currency exchange options (for overseas travel), travel tips, and much more.
When the customer makes a booking, you get a variety of important information about them. Based on this data, your marketing tools can suggest what to add to this type of email.
For example, if a customer books a flight to London, you can offer car rental suggestions. Even if you don’t deal with car rentals, you can collaborate with a company that does, thus forming efficient partnerships.
4. Subscription Confirmation Email
Subscription confirmation emails are especially important because they remind the customer what to expect from your company. When they get a newsletter, they should understand where it comes from. Otherwise, it may end up in the spam folder, thus hurting your reputation, open and bounce rates, and marketing ROI.
The subscription confirmation email should contain the following information:
- What your company does
- What newsletters are about
- Link to your website
You may even want to include a previous newsletter if it’s not too outdated to give the recipient an understanding of what to expect. There should also be an option to opt out of the newsletter, even if the subscriber decides to cancel the newsletter subscription, their email address stays on your email list for further marketing efforts.
These emails are an excellent opportunity to show your personality and tone of voice and start building a closer relationship with the prospect.
A subscription confirmation email could also be a double opt in. If a person signs up for your newsletter, you can send an email asking them to confirm the subscription. This way you can be 100% sure that it wasn’t accidental.
How to Send a Confirmation Email
Be it a booking confirmation or registration confirmation, there are several ways to send confirmation emails. While it’s possible to send confirmation emails manually, it’s easy to miss the occasion to do so. That’s why it’s imperative to set up a process that sends confirmation emails automatically. And make sure that each of the addresses is valid with the email validation tool.
Here are important tips to consider when sending confirmation emails
1. Create a Different Address
When you are dealing with a large flow of customers or visitors, you should consider splitting the email stream into two. You should have a separate IP address for your marketing and confirmation emails.
The reason is simple. Marketing emails tend to have a worse reputation than transactional emails. Many of them end up in spam folders or get deleted without being opened. Meanwhile, confirmation emails tend to have an excellent open rate since they go out in response to the sender’s actions.
If you use two different IP addresses for marketing and confirmation emails, the reputation of the former won’t hurt the latter.
2. Pay Special Attention to Your Content
While the content of a confirmation email isn’t always aimed at conversions, you still need to take the time to improve its quality.
- Create a clear subject line so the recipient understands what the email is about. Otherwise, it may end up in the spam folder.
- Even if you plan to promote some products in the confirmation email, don’t make it outright sale-oriented. It can hurt the chances of ending up in the clients’ inbox.
- Make sure to keep your brand tone of voice in the confirmation email.
- Focus on keeping the transactional email’s content personalized. It can help you build a closer relationship with your clients.
- If you need the recipient to take action, include a clear and easy-to-notice Call to Action.
The next step before sending confirmation emails is to double-check the content so it doesn’t look out of place. While some information will be inserted automatically, it shouldn’t appear generic. For example, avoid he/she or Mr/Mrs references. Allow the email to read “Dear John”, instead of “Dear Mr. Smith.”
3. Make it Mobile Friendly
The importance of catering to customers who use mobile devices is higher than ever. Even Google is making an emphasis on mobile-friendliness. In 2021, it will index the mobile version of websites first so a poor mobile setup will affect the site’s rankings.
Pay special attention to the mobile-friendliness of your confirmation email. There is a good chance your clients will use smartphones to read it.
4. Avoid Images and Videos
Video content is great for marketing. However, when it comes to registration or order confirmation emails, it can be bad for the user experience. Consumers aren’t looking for another marketing email when they book a hotel or register for a webinar. By inserting images and videos into the email, you can put them off.
Meanwhile, media content may affect the loading time of an email, frustrating the user even further.
5. Include Useful Buttons
If you want the visitor to take some steps to follow up with bookings or order confirmation emails, you need to include a clickable link or button to make the process easier. A confirmation email isn’t something consumers are ready to spend too much time on. That’s why it should be crystal clear and concise.
When you send a confirmation email, consider adding links and buttons to encourage the recipient to follow your brand on social media. This can help nurture your relationship with clients across various channels.
A confirmation email sent to the consumer should also contain a link to your website where the client can either check the order, track it, or browse another product or service.
6. Work on the Subject Lines
Subject lines in the confirmation email should be crystal clear. They should contain as much information about your email as possible.
A good example of a subject line could be: We confirm your order#109380.
While an email sent to a consumer should provide sufficient details about the order, they shouldn’t reveal 100% of the information. Otherwise, the recipient may not open them, thus hurting your email reputation and open rate.
Confirmation Email Examples
A good registration confirmation email example would be:
“Hello, James!
We are so glad you registered for our webinar “7 Aspects of Emotional Intelligence”.
Webinar date: 01.01.2021
We will send you another reminder on 31.12.2020
Buttons/links:
- Check out our webinar schedule for next week
- Add our email address to your address book
Signature with relevant links and cancellation options.”
An excellent booking confirmation email would sound like this:
“
Hello, James!
Thank you for booking a room at our hotel. We’ll be happy to see you on 01.01.2021 – 10.01.2021.
If you’d like to learn more about the wonderful city of London, please check out these websites:
Link: car rental, guided tours, restaurants, etc.
Buttons:
- Check out our well-equipped conference rooms
- Add our email address to your address book
Signature with relevant links and cancellation options.”
An order confirmation email example:
“Hello, James!
Thank you for your order! Your fleece jacket already on the way. Your order number is 1234567. It should arrive by 01.01.2021. The total amount charged to your credit card: $50. If you have any questions, please let us know!
Buttons:
- Check out these fleece pants to go with your jacket
- Find out about our amazing deals.
Signature with relevant links and cancellation options.”
The Takeaway
Confirmation emails are an integral part of your sales and marketing effort. They help you build trusting relationships with clients, keep your email list clean, and avoid misunderstandings. By automating the confirmation process, you can improve your marketing strategy and contribute to the company’s profitability.
