A transactional email is an email that is triggered by an action of the recipient. You send it to a customer in response to an activity they triggered on your website or application. It is a one-to-one message that is always unique to the recipient.
You don’t need to obtain explicit permission to send this type of email because the recipient has already provoked the action. It’s the antithesis of marketing emails for which you’d need explicit consent or risk getting blocklisted for spam.
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Who Sends Them?
Any business that interacts with customers via email sends some kind of transactional messages, including:
- Online retailers
- Mobile game developers
- Social media platforms
- Fintech platforms
- Travel booking websites, etc.
Businesses send this type of message to communicate important and time-sensitive information to their customers. These messages are often automated; you create templates that are filled in and sent in response to specific user actions.
Types Of Transactional Emails
There are numerous types of such emails. Below are just a few popular examples.
1.Welcome messages
You send this email to a customer immediately after they create an account on your website or application. The message welcomes the new user and introduces them to your platform. You can use the opportunity to tell customers what to expect from you and why they should stick to your product or service.
2.Password reset
A user can choose to reset their account’s password. To complete this process, you’ll need to send the user a message with a unique link to change and confirm their new password.
3.Order confirmation
You send this message to a customer who orders an item from your online shop. It confirms that they have placed an order and should include all relevant order details like price, number of purchased items, expected delivery date and so on.
4.Delivery notice
This message is associated with delivering an item to a customer who ordered it from your store. It alerts the customer that delivery has taken place, so that they can collect their item from a parcel terminal. It should include the delivery date, time, and instructions for the customer to pick up their item.
5.Legal updates
You send this message to alert users of any legal changes you’ve made to your website, e.g., service terms and conditions. It’s necessary to alert users of such changes so they won’t claim unawareness if any disputes arise.
6.Account notification
You send this email to notify users of any changes to their account, like password or username changes. It’s essential to inform users of account changes so that they can immediately react if a malicious actor is behind the change.
Best Practices and Recommendations
- Subject line: The subject line is the first thing an email recipient sees, so it should be helpful and relevant. The recipient should understand the purpose of the message by reading the subject line. For example, a password reset email should simply read “Reset your password”. Avoid fluff and unnecessary words in the subject.
- Design: The email should be easy to read and understand. The text should be concise and spaced clearly. Images must be arranged neatly and not interfere with text. Optimize the content for mobile displays because most emails are now read on mobile devices.
- Personalization: This involves using subscriber data to send messages unique to them. For example, you can begin a message with “Dear [Customer’s first name]”. By their very nature, transactional emails are always personalized to a degree.
- Replies: You should always process responses to the messages you send to customers, even if you do not normally expect them in a particular scenario. This way, they can quickly contact you to clarify errors and ask essential questions. Feedback fosters excellent customer relationships.
Conclusion
We have provided an answer to the question “What is transactional email?” and a few tips on sending effective emails. You can follow these tips to improve customer interactions, which, in turn, drive higher sales.
