How to not sound like a robot in your email notifications

Why do email notifications suck so much

There’s no way anyone has the energy to pen out thousands of quirky, heartfelt, meaningful notifications.

But that’s no reason to give in and let the blandness take over.

LIKE THESE GUYS HAVE.

Why personalising notifications matter

Your notifications don’t have to be just notifications; a robotic note letting them know that an event has occurred.

Notifications can be another opportunity to charm your users and keep them hooked to your product.

How to personalise your email notifications

• Make meaning • Use a proper reply-to address • Don’t bother users with every detail • Translate for multi-lingual users • Write it yourself, occasionally

#1 Make Meaning

Even if it’s just a simple notification, make it useful to your users.

Don’t send them emails that they can just mark as read without a second thought.

Instead of a simple “Your queue’s empty” email, they make meaning by offering you suggestions

on what to share next.

Take Buffer, for example.

#2 Use a proper reply-to address

Sometimes, customers like to reply to your emails with suggestions, FAQs and problems.

Except they can’t.

Because your reply-to address is “no-reply@applepie.com”.

An email with an address like that might as well read, “I don’t give a damn.”

Except, Rhett said it best.

Most brands do this because they don’t want to deal with the deluge of out-of-office emails. We don’t blame them.

Get a ticketing system that will allow you to set up rules to automatically delete out-of-office emails from inbox.

#3 Don’t bother your users with every detail

Making sure your users are in the loop is not the same as sending your users a notification for everything.

Don’t clog their inbox.

#3 Don’t bother your users with every detail

Only send what is necessary.

Rule of thumb: Send a notification only if the user’s input is required. Else don’t.

#4 Translate for multi-lingual users

A “Je t’aime” will win over your French customers better than a plain ol’

“I love you”.

A lot of translation services mangle it though. It doesn’t always work out as well as it did for Jamie and Aurelia.

So, just use professional translators for the translations.

#5 Write it yourself occasionally

Shake things up every now and then by writing some notifications yourself.

It might be something as small as a P.S note or a “Hi there!” but it’s the thought that counts.

Your common sense tells you Quibb’s welcome email is automated.

It’s not. She actually takes the time and effort to send people a quick “hi!”.

Customer support is an art. Not a science.

But if you are, let us know. Write to us at love@freshdesk.com and we promise that you’ll be rewarded handsomely.

Of course, this SlideShare doesn’t have all the answers. We’re not omniscient.

Behind every SlideShare is a great blogpost

Read more about how to sound human in your email notifications over at the Freshdesk blog: http://blog.freshdesk.com/how-not-to-sound-like-a-robot-in-your-email-notifications/