What is a Transactional Email? A Comprehensive Guide to Personalized Business Messaging
Transactional emails are follow-up emails sent in response to a user action — for example, an order confirmation after a purchase.
These emails are the most relevant marketing emails and have higher unique open rates (53%). A reason for this is natural — the recipients have already engaged with your brand and are looking forward to transactional emails.
While marketing campaigns and email newsletters showcase promotions, tell brand stories, and sell products, transactional emails are more communicative. Let’s learn what is a transactional email, its key characteristics, email messages primary use, real-world applications, and best practices related to transactional emails below.
What are Transactional Emails?
A transactional email is an email sent regarding a recent brand interaction, for example, password recovery, account confirmation, or shipping updates.
Although these emails look similar to promotional emails, they are entirely different sides of email communication.
Promotional email communication includes:
Unlike commercial emails, transactional campaigns do not try to sell or advertise products or services.
What is a Commercial Email?
A commercial message is primarily sent to promote, sell, or advertise a product or service. These types of emails rely heavily on email branding and include solid incentives to encourage action.
Which of the Following is an Example of Transactional Information?
- Shipping and delivery notifications,
- Password reset emails,
- Account verification emails,
- Payment receipts,
- Travel updates
- Insurance transactional mail.
These emails are sent from a reliable transactional email system and are triggered by specific user actions, and promotional emails are sent to bigger audiences.
In most cases, recipients are expecting transactional emails since they contain important information related to their request. The unique part is transactional emails, even if forwarded, will contain specific user information that may be irrelevant to the receiver.
Main Components of Transactional Emails
A transactional email is also known as an operational email. As the name suggests, transactional emails involve various aspects and steps for success.
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| Recognized sender address | Company name, brand name, brand email address. |
| Recipient information | Recipient name and validated email address. |
| Subject line | Summarize the content of the transactional email. |
| Email header and branding | Proper header design, the brand logo with brand colors. |
| Body Content | Thank you messages, Brand-related visuals, CTA and tracking links, Bullet points or lists, Testimonials, and reviews. |
| CTA | Thank you messages, Brand-related visuals, CTA and tracking link, Bullet points or lists, Testimonials, and reviews. |
| Footer | Contact information, legal information links, unsubscribe options, and social media links. |
Including these components in your transactional emails ensures smoother processes for the brands and better clarity for the customers. These elements may be different for marketing emails.
Marketing vs Transactional Email
Here are the main distinctions between the two:
| Aspect | Transactional Emails | Marketing Emails |
|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | Provide information related to user interaction. | Promote products, events, and services to increase sales. |
| Recipient expectation | Expect emails as soon as they sign up or perform an action. | Do not necessarily wait for the messages. |
| Content focus | To send useful information related to the user. | Uses CTAs and promotional messages to engage customers. |
| Frequency | Sent only after an action. | Sent multiple times |
| Conversion goal | Intend to inform the user. May contain up-selling or cross-selling of products. | Built to persuade customers to buy. |
| Legal compliance | Governed by email laws focused on transactional messages. | Subject to marketing and anti-spam laws. |
Above all, transactional emails play a major role in building customer trust and retention. They add a positive brand experience, enriching online interaction as a whole.
Key Characteristics of Transactional Emails
The most prominent feature of the best transactional emails are the quick reactions they cause, which makes them more valuable than other types of emails in customer communication.
Here are the most common features of transactional emails:
- Personalization: Transactional emails always address the recipients by their names and move on to specific information about their specific interactions. A high level of email personalization makes it relevant, and the recipient is likely to engage, given that they expected such an approach.
- Timeliness: These emails are sent immediately after the user interaction. For example, password reset emails arrive in the inbox right after the user clicks on the “forgot password” button, prompting an immediate reaction. Knowing the best time to send emails in general can also help avoid overwhelming customers.
- Relevance: Since transactional emails are sent after an action, they are always concrete and relevant. The chances that a recipient who triggered an email won’t engage are low because of this.
- Lack of commercial content: Transactional emails serve to distribute information and pertinent data. They usually don’t contain promotional content. By prioritizing email engagement and relevance, you can safeguard your IP reputation.
- Include information: The primary purpose of these emails is to inform the recipients about the next steps in their engagement with the brand. For instance, they will contain shipping confirmation orders or various appointment details.
- Transactional emails gdpr: Transactional emails follow regular requirements such as CAN-SPAM or GDPR, and are required to use customer data for a limited purpose (transactional emails are similar to data processing since they contain customers’ personal information). In addition, these emails automatically adhere to email security protocols and email security best practices since they contain critical user information. Here’s your GDPR compliance checklist to ensure a smooth transactional email workflow.
Besides holding information related to customers, transactional emails also have unique uses in everyday life.
How to Use Transactional Emails?
Transactional email marketing fulfills customer’s expectations and strengthens user interaction with the brand’s online services. Even though they may involve commercial information, they are, in essence, non-commercial emails.
Follow the steps to properly use transactional emails in business communication:
- Understand the purpose of transactional emails; are they account-related or activity notifications, or other?
- Choose a reliable transactional email service.
- Integrate with your existing application.
- Design your transactional emails.
- Ensure compliance with CAN-SPAM and GDPR.
- Test emails and optimize them.
Types of Transactional Emails
Transactional emails cover various aspects of customer interaction, such as reviews and shopping confirmations. However, their uses extend beyond these basic actions.
Here is a short breakdown of how transactional emails are used, per industry.
1. Account Management Emails
These types of emails help manage user accounts and login. For example, a transactional email is sent to a new user for account creation and verification. They may also include password resets, such as username to help regain access to their accounts.
2. Payment Processes Emails
These types of transactional emails directly correspond to payments and processes. For example,
once a customer places an online order, they receive information on the number of items, cost, and delivery dates. Transactional emails also send information about the shipping times, tracking links, and return FAQs.
3. Trigger Emails
Trigger emails are sent after a user triggers messages based on specific events, such as credit card usage or when they are tagged on a social media post.
4. Lead Magnet or Resource Download Emails
Download emails deliver content a user requested via emails. For instance, a flight itinerary to PDF or ebooks and whitepapers.
5. Update Emails
These are emails that deliver important information, such as reports, digests, or summaries. Think social media notifications sent as a single email.
Real-World Applications of Transactional Emails
Brands use transactional emails to answer order queries, even before customers bring them up. For example, ”order arriving late” notifications to help customers track their product. Here are examples of brands that made effective use of transactional emails.
1. New Account Details: Slack
When a user signs up for a platform, they expect a welcome message and an email with account details. Account detail emails include primary information such as username, password, and a link to the website.
In the below email example, Slack includes a greeting, a link to the app, and tips to get started. This is a good example of a transactional email that benefits the user.
2. Confirm Your Email: Vevo
Confirmation emails are sent to verify the recipient’s email address. The primary purpose of confirmation emails is to know that the recipient is a real person and they have consented to receive information. The automation process activates with the ”sign up” trigger.
Similar to the brand below, it is best to use simple language and include relevant content for transactional emails.
3. New Download: Gumroad
Transactional emails also inform the users about new sales, downloads, or disputes. In this example, the transactional email is sent to a creator to notify them of a new download.
To make your transactional emails more user-friendly, use easy-to-read typefaces, and pastel colors with lots of white space (the space surrounding the elements).
4. Purchase Email: Etsy
Along with the purchase information, a transactional email may also contain up-selling or cross-selling products. Although transactional emails are not commercial, a few brands may choose to utilize this opportunity to promote relevant products.
There are numerous ways to personalize your transactional email templates. The following example also includes a note from the owner, which establishes a connection with the customer.
5. Reservation Confirmation: Airbnb
Reservation emails confirm the booking status and are a requirement for travel businesses. These emails are part of transactional emails, preparing customers for the upcoming journey.
Being transparent in your transactional emails increases trust in your business. For example, AirBNB communicates the current status through reservation receipt email. It also includes necessary information such as the photo of the place of stay, booking status, payment, dates, and FAQs.
Transactional Email Services: Picking the Right Platform
Most email clients facilitate scalable transactional email sending. For example, gmail transactional emails are straightforward and can be set up using GMass SMTP service.
We’ve outlined the top 5 transactional email service below.
| Transactional Email Service | Key Features | Pricing |
|---|---|---|
| Campaign Refinery | ‣ Highest email deliverability rate. ‣ Advanced transactional email automation and segmentation. ‣ Templates and personalization. | Plans start at $99 monthly for unlimited contacts. |
| SendGrid | ‣ API for sending emails. ‣ Advanced analytics. | Paid plans start at $19.95 monthly. |
| Postmark | ‣ Message events tracking. ‣ High-speed delivery. | Basic plan starts at $15 monthly. |
| Amazon SES | ‣ Scalable ‣ Flexible integration. ‣ DKIM/SPF support. | $0.10 per 1000 emails sent. |
| Mandrill (Mailchimp) | ‣ Email tracking template management. ‣ Built for transactional emails. | $20 for 1000 emails sent. |
Transactional Email Software Reviews
Let’s take a closer look at what users say about common transactional and email sending services:
Transactional Email Deliverability — The Trust Star For Your Brand
Transactional email deliverability refers to the ability of your messages to reach customers’ primary inboxes instead of the spam folders. Whereas, transactional email delivery refers to the process of your recipients’ servers receiving the emails.
Here are key aspects of transactional email receiving:
- Accuracy preservation: Emails should be accurate about customer information and free of errors. Consider customers’ email marketing journey to send relevant information.
- Security: The system must maintain the confidentiality of sensitive customer data throughout the process. Eliminate bad email marketing practices by adhering to strict security protocols.
- Compliance adherence: Transactional emails may be subject to email marketing transactional emails regulations, including CAN-SPAM and GDPR Act. The system must adhere to legal regulations and follow best practices for sending emails.
- Trust building: The recipients must be confident that the transactional emails they receive are from a legitimate email sender and trusted source.
- Transparency: The sending system must be open about data handling and usage of sensitive customer information.
- Consistency: Timely delivery and consistent performance are critical to gaining user trust and preserving brand credibility. In addition, use stable email branding to help consumers recognize your brand easily.
Campaign Refinery’s Transactional Email Strategy
Campaign Refinery provides maximum security standards for transactional email sending and other email types. All emails our clients send out are stamped with DKIM and include a one-click unsubscribe button.
To maintain speed and accuracy, Campaign Refinery’s sending system batches thousands of emails and sends them simultaneously. This ensures that all transactional emails reach recipients within seconds of being sent.
Unlike email clients who store your emails in the outbox before sending them, Campaign Refinery directly sends huge volume of emails concurrently. We also ensure that your transactional emails are sent after specific triggers and not assigned randomly.
How to Set Up Transactional Email Campaigns?
The processes and requirements are similar to building any healthy email campaign. Transactional emails are easier to set up because most workflow is automated.
You’ll notice that the prerequisites for a successful transactional email campaign are the same as the ones for other campaigns.
Here are the steps toward a successful automated transactional email campaign:
1. Verify Your Sending Domain
The first step to setting up a transactional email is verifying your email sending domain. To do this, first set up your DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail), and SPF (Sender Policy Framework) records in the DNS settings. Authenticating your sending domain prevents spoofing and data breaches and helps bypass spam filters.
2. Set up SMTP Access
SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) is an internet protocol that allows the transmission of emails. Transactional emails are sent through SMTP for added reliability and consistent delivery. If you have your transactional emails for marketing set up with an email sending service, the transactional email service provider will provide API and SMTP access to send transactional emails consistently.
3. Transactional Email Templates
As the next step, it is important to design transactional email templates that reflect your brand identity. You may use HTML or design templates from ESPs to build it. Mostly, these templates have built-in fonts and design elements, making it easier to choose the best font for emails.
Some of them may also have standard email sign-off options, helping you re-use them for different emails. Also, ensure transactional email unsubscribe links to allow users to opt-out when necessary.
4. Configure Email Sending Settings
Before sending transactional emails, set up the sender name and email address, reply-to address, and where your emails will return if bounced. Through this process, it is always critical to maintain legal compliance for secure transactional mailing.
5. Set up Tracking and Monitoring
Like any other email sequence, setting up tracking and monitoring is essential for transactional emails. Furthermore, check key email metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and bounce rates for effective email communication. To get a detailed view of the analytics, use the best email tracking software.
6. Transactional Email Automation
Sending emails as soon as a customer takes action is only possible by automating your transactional emails. Automation allows you to send emails as soon as a customer interacts with your brand. It is vital to set up a proper automation flow for an uninterrupted delivery of transactional emails.
Automation also helps you set up triggers for various actions the user may take. For example, an account verification email after the customer has signed up. Or shipping confirmation email after the checkout process.
While automation can help you regulate consistent email sending, it usually does not allow users to reply to an email. These messages are one-way, also called no-reply emails and do not require users to take action.
7. Test Emails
Before sending live transactional emails, test content, design, and delivery setup. Additionally, test on various devices to ensure the emails are optimized for each.
Implement mobile email marketing to avoid costly email marketing mistakes.
8. Optimize Email Deliverability
While sending transactional emails, it is imperative to ensure high deliverability. Send relevant content and constantly monitor sender reputation.
For more information, read our elaborate guides on:
9. Regularly Review and Update
Review your transactional email setup periodically to ensure better open and click rates and overall compliance.
Transactional Emails Best Practices
Transactional emails are confidential and require continuous refinement.
Here are the best practices below to keep your transactional emails effective:
1. Personalization
It is highly critical to include the recipient’s name and other personal information in your transactional emails. In addition, event-specific information for the users should be included.
For example, you may send a thank you email after a customer has purchased a product that says: “Hi [customer name], welcome to [brand name] family. Thank you for buying our best-seller (product name). We hope you find it useful. For questions or assistance, please contact our support team“.
2. Audience Segmentation
Although transactional emails refer to interaction-specific content, it is important to utilize email list segmentation. Start by dividing your audiences into groups based on specific criteria such as age, position in the email marketing funnel, etc.
The best way is to gather user data and then segment your audience according to the following categories:
- Demographic segmentation: Age, gender, Income, education, etc,
- Behavioral segmentation: Purchase history, browsing history, engagement with previous emails,
- Geographic segmentation: Time zone, languages, geographical location,
- Engagement level and engagement metrics: Active users, inactive users, occasional users,
- Purchase frequency: One-time buyers, regular shoppers, etc,
- User preferences: Communication preference, frequency, etc,
- Lifecycle stage: New users, returning users, loyal customers,
- Transaction type: Purchase, registration, notification, appointment, etc.
Campaign Refinery, for example, provides segmentation tools to create filters based on your predefined criteria. Our latest audience groups segmentation feature allows you to group audience segments for a single email campaign.
3. Automation
Automation is the process of streamlining workflows with minimal human interaction. It involves setting up triggers for each event. When the event occurs, the software sends the emails to the recipients.
Setting up automation emails for every audience segment is crucial for timely delivery.
The triggers must be activated when a user interacts within the defined criteria. Hence, paying attention to the email content and triggers set for each action is necessary.
Different b2b marketing automation platforms allows you to set up effortless workflows. You can choose from a range of free to paid tools to employ proper automation workflows.
4. Maintain Timeliness
Transactional emails must be sent immediately after the user’s action to ensure relevance and usefulness. Delaying transactional emails by a few hours can decrease trust in your brand and disrupt the overall user experience.
5. Clean Design
Since transactional emails carry significant information, it is mandatory to use a readable email format and follow email design best practices.. Using colors and interactive elements is acceptable if they provide value to the user. Furthermore, check your email sizes and ensure proper email format.
6. Include Appropriate Links
Include order tracking and other relevant links based on the user’s action. Having this information helps users have easier access to data in one place.
7. A/B Test
Refining emails according to data is a great way to identify gaps and create content that is useful for the customers. A/B test, email subject lines, CTAs, and email templates to check the effectiveness of your transactional emails.
8. Tracking
Email campaign metrics are helpful to understand and maximize your email marketing performance. Track key campaign metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and number of email marketing subscribers.
9. Authentication
Phishing and spoofing are hard to deal with, especially with transactional emails. Implementing authentication mechanisms like DKIM will add secure emails and protect your sender reputation.
10. Work With a Reliable ESP
To fine-tune your processes and build a system, work with a transactional ESP that is known for higher deliverability and performance.
Campaign Refinery provides cutting-edge transactional email tools and features, including automatic list cleaning and credit system that make your email marketing efforts easier.
11. Use a Dedicated IP Address
A dedicated IP address sends all your emails from a unique address that belongs to you. Using a dedicated IP address ensures your emails are reaching the intended recipients, increasing email deliverability rates.
However, you may also use a shared IP address if you trust the sender you’re sharing it with. At Campaign Refinery, we handle a large volume of shared and dedicated IP addresses with safety and security.
12. Monitor Your Sender Reputation
Maintaining a good sender reputation is essential for higher delivery rates. Authenticate and periodically check your sending domain reputation. Follow email best practices such as maintaining a low bounce rate, legal compliance, and lower spam complaints for increased email deliverability.
Implementing email best practices will help you achieve higher deliverability and open rates for your transactional emails..
If you are looking for expert help, you are welcome to optimize your transactional emails with us.
Sending Transactional Emails With Campaign Refinery
As you prepare to send transactional emails, Campaign Refinery can help you set up your workflows, validate recipient addresses, maintain list hygiene, and provide the highest deliverability in the market.
Campaign Refinery makes it easy to integrate tools and features into your transactional email campaigns.
Our automation and linking features include dynamic content and links that automatically change URLs and support highly targeted automation workflows.
With the user-friendly interface and easy-to-use templates, you can set up transactional campaigns effortlessly. Once you set up the process, the Cleaning Validation Tool checks for email bounces and fixes it. The layers of validation help achieve and retain the highest deliverability rate.
After using our deliverability settings for a month, a client was able to re-engage 60% of the customers. They revived a dead email list and built a healthy one filled with opportunities for higher ROI.
Apply to become our client and see your email revenue grow!
Need More Information? — Download the Inbox Formula Now!
We have seen the highest results for our customers, and we want to help you achieve maximum results from your email marketing, too. To help your emails consistently hit the inbox, our founder, Travis Ketchum, has packed his expertise in the Inbox Formula — a comprehensive, actionable guide on how to increase your deliverability by yourself.
And you can have it for free, today — download the Inbox Formula here.
After reading our deliverability guide, you’ll have sufficient knowledge to consistently get higher open rates, click-through rates, and conversions.
Happy emailing!
FAQ
What is transactional email marketing?
Transactional email marketing refers to emails triggered by specific user actions, such as making a purchase or resetting a password.
What should you do when an email contains both commercial and transactional content?
If an email has both commercial and transactional content, determine the primary purpose of the email. Most transactional emails can contain marketing messages as part of the email.
What is an operational email?
An operational email is also known as transactional email and is sent to a customer with critical information regarding the action they took. For example, booking reservations or appointment reminders.
What is e-commerce transactional email?
E-commerce transactional emails are automated messages triggered by user actions, such as password reset or delivery confirmation.
What is open source transactional email?
Open-source transactional emails refer to software solutions that allow developers to send transactional emails using open source databases.
Is the transactional email pricing same for all ESPs?
No, the transactional email pricing can vary with email service providers based on infrastructure, features offered, and support levels.
What is a transactional email generator?
A transactional email generator is a tool or service used to send automated messages in response to a user’s action on your website or e-commerce platform.
What is transactional email design?
It refers to the process of visually creating an email template to let users view the critical information at a glance. Keeping it simple with fewer colors and design elements will allow recipients to focus on the core message.
