Transactional messages are a key customer touch point and one that many retail marketers have no visibility into as the messages are sometimes sent out through the retailer’s ecommerce platform instead of its ESP.

As you prepare for the holidays, take a look at your transactional messages. Do they present your brand appropriately and are they consistent with your other marketing campaigns? Are you using them to acquire new subscribers and cross or up sell? If not, it’s time for an update.

Transactional emails have some of the highest open rates. And, unlike other email messages, customers actually hold on to these messages and use them as reference points. Here are some ways to improve upon your transactional messages:

Acquisition – don’t assume shoppers are opting-in to your email list when they place a purchase. Instead, include a prominent call-to-action in your transactional messages asking customers to subscribe, like in this example from Ballard Designs:

Cross-Sell and Upsell – Present the transactional information first, but use the rest of the space to recommend related products based on the customer’s purchase or browse history. Studies show that the majority of second purchases occur the SAME DAY as the first purchase, so take advantage of the opportunity to get shoppers back to your site to make an additional purchase.

Build Loyalty – Keep customers shopping by including loyalty points and rewards in your transactional campaigns. The easier you make it for customers to redeem points, the more they’ll shop with you.

Other ideas for transactional campaigns

Transactional campaigns aren’t limited to order and shipping confirmations. Here are some ideas to get even more mileage out of these triggered campaigns:

• Confirmation messages – order, pre-order, shipping, delivery, scheduled appointment
• Notifications – cancellation, return, refund
• Receipts/payments – eReceipt, payment authorization, payment decline/fraud prevention
• Account – online account creation, password request, email change, profile/preference update
• Additional ideas – in-store pick up availability, eGift card received/used, trade-in request

Questions about your transactional messages? Let us know!