If your customers opt to receive emails from your business, a good portion of those emails are likely going to be automated. This saves a lot of time and effort, but if it’s not done well then it can come across as mechanical and stiff, which can put your customers off. 

Instead, all of your emails (even the automated ones) should be an extension of your business’ brand and tone, so here are some great ways to make auto reply emails sound more human.

1. Have a strong subject line

Every email needs a strong subject line to let your customers know what the main point of the email is. Some examples include:

• An order confirmation
• A reminder of what’s in their basket
• An acknowledgement 

Whatever it is, your subject line should compel them to open the email and read it. 

2. Be personal

Try and always use the customer’s name in the emails that you send them. You can have an email template where only the name of the customer and how you address them (Mr./Mrs./Ms., etc.) changes. 

This makes customers feel like the business cares enough to tailor their emails, and has proven to improve click-through rates substantially. 

Beyond this, you can also customize what types of emails you send to certain customers, based on information that they’ve given you (such as their gender, age, and even ethnicity) to make sure that you’re sending them content that’s as relevant to them as possible. 

3. Use the right words

There are three main ways in which you can use the ‘right’ words:

• Conveying your business’ brand – whatever the brand of your business is, try and choose words that will align with it. For example, if your brand is posh and expensive, you’ll probably want to word your emails more formally rather than colloquially. If your brand is young and youthful, a few trending words and references to pop culture would work well.
  
• Being concise – you can often say what you’re trying to say in less words than you think you need. Customers don’t want to read long letters and absorb information best when it’s in small, digestible chunks, so try and say only what you need to and do away with the “fluff”.
  
• Coming across as ‘feeling’ – let your customers know that there are people behind your brand and not robots. Rather than using bureaucratic words like “ensure”, you could use words like “check”, or “make sure”. Try and also use ‘feeling’ words like “love”, “sorry”, and “happy”. 
  
  

4. Let customers know if they need to take action (and how to)

Some emails might require customers to take action. Let them know what action they need to take, when they must take it, and how they can go about doing it. 

Some great examples are:

• Completing a payment
• Needing to provide more information
• Letting them know how best to contact you
• Confirming an email address
  
  

5. Offer them discounts

Everybody loves discounts. Let your customers know that you care for them by offering them discounts regularly. Some of the best times to offer discounts are as a(n):

• Incentive to sign up for the mailing list
• Welcome gift
• Birthday gift
• Incentive to shop with you again if they haven’t for a while
• Reward for spending above a certain amount on your website
• Incentive for inviting friends to purchase from your business
• Becoming a member
• Reaching different membership levels

And so on. Offering discounts and vouchers means that you’re showing your customers that you appreciate them supporting your business. 

6. Ask for feedback

Communication should be a two-way street. Ensure that you are sending your customers emails that allow them to give you feedback. 

You can do this by emailing them a link to a Google form, which is the easiest way to go about it, or send them an interactive email where they can send you feedback that way. 

This allows your customers to feel like they are involved and that your business really cares about them. 

Although no replacement for human connection, emails with a bit of the human touch can go a long way to avoid alienating your customers. Of course, any kind of customer service is an art, and it takes time to get it right. 

If you’re still struggling with handling emails to customers, you could always reach out to us – SheHelps offers comprehensive world-class customer service that’s entirely done for you, so you’ll never have to worry about another wooden-sounding email ever again. Get in touch with us today for more info!