Delivering Delight: Best Practices for Engaging Shipment Notification Emails

Branded shipment notifications, often undervalued, can drastically boost brand identity and customer relations. Believe it or not, 85% of customers prefer email updates, which enjoy a 65% open rate according to AfterShip's research. The reason is simple: automated, branded updates from AfterShip keep customers up-to-date on delivery status and relieve customer support teams.

And the result? Vivino witnessed a 50% drop in WISMO tickets.

Now, the million-dollar question: what makes an effective shipment notification?

Let's dissect the essential components and examine real-world examples.

1. Communicate key delivery stages during the process

With AfterShip’s rule-based notification workflows, customers will always be well-informed, reducing customer frustration and enhancing the overall post-purchase experience. The ability to send multiple shipment updates in the post-purchase journey helps keep customers informed at all stages.

Inform customers once the package is shipped

Did you know that 41% of customers expect their orders to arrive within 24 hours? 82% of customers said it was important for retailers to proactively communicate every fulfillment and delivery stage. After checkout, your customers may be anxious to know when their package will be shipped.

To reduce WISMO requests, it is best to let customers know when their goods are handed to the carrier or if some items are "partially shipped." If any exceptional circumstances arise during transit, you may want to keep customers in the loop so they won’t panic or send angry emails to your support team.

Allow customers to be prepared for delivery

Several days into transit, your customers eagerly anticipate the arrival of their packages. It's advisable to update them on whether the package is "out for delivery" or "available for pickup."

In certain regions, such as the US, age verification is required for receiving specific items like wine and luxury goods. So it's even more crucial to enable customers to plan ahead and make necessary arrangements for receiving their packages, thereby reducing the likelihood of failed delivery attempts.

Additionally, unforeseen circumstances can occur during transit. You may also want to notify customers if the estimated delivery date (EDD) is revised or missed to avoid over-promising.

Tackle shipments that are experiencing exceptions

Businesses can conveniently access all shipments in a centralized portal with AfterShip. Besides automated notifications, with a few clicks, you can filter the shipments that need special attention and manually send them notifications.

For example, by selecting a desired template, you may want to personalize the communications for certain types of customers, for certain products, in certain regions, with certain carriers, or more. This proactive approach also helps maintain brand loyalty.

2. Deliver experiences that reflect the brand style

By personalizing shipment notifications with their brand's messaging and design, businesses can create a cohesive post-purchase experience that reinforces their brand identity and enhances customer engagement.

Here are some ways to achieve that:

Match the style to the brand voice and design

AfterShip provides several templates businesses can use as a starting point for shipment notifications. These templates come with an easy drag-and-drop editor that allows businesses to customize the design of their shipment notifications quickly.

Moreover, businesses can edit themes, colors, and fonts to match their brand perfectly. This level of customization ensures that the shipment notifications align with the brand's voice and design, creating a personalized experience for the customer.

Smoothen the experience with mobile-friendly templates

It's important to ensure that shipment notifications can be viewed on any mobile device, such as a phone or tablet, without altering the formatting since most customers tend to read emails on their mobile devices. Ensure your customers have the best experience where the pictures and fonts don't shift sizes or distort when viewed on mobile.

With AfterShip, businesses don't have to worry about this issue, as the platform ensures that all shipment notifications are optimized for mobile viewing. This feature, by default, enables customers to view the notification easily, regardless of the device they are using, ensuring a positive customer experience and reducing frustration.

3. Make your emails more intriguing

By providing personalized, branded messaging and design, businesses can connect emotionally with their customers, reinforcing their brand identity and building customer loyalty. Here are some things you can try using AfterShip:

Keep subject lines short and sweet

Short and simple subject lines make it easy for customers to quickly understand the purpose of the email, increasing the chances of them opening it. Industry standards show that subject lines with around 7 words perform the best and that shorter subject lines increase the open rate by 12.5% and the click-through rate by 75%.

With AfterShip, businesses receive an average open rate of 65% on shipment notification emails. By using clear and concise subject lines, Baked by Melissa ensures its customers are engaged and informed throughout the shipping process, increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty. One study shows that the open rate is 12.5% higher, and the click-through rate is 75% higher for shorter subject lines.

Use recognizable and readable email addresses

Establishing a consistent "from" email address is crucial, so customers know where the email comes from and can quickly identify it in their inbox. When shipment notifications come from a recognizable email address, customers are less likely to mistake them for spam or overlook them altogether.

Moreover, having all shipment notifications come from 1 email address reduces the chances of customers searching through their inboxes for relevant emails, ensuring they get all important updates about their package delivery.

Make your tracking link stand out

The tracking link is a critical touchpoint that directs customers to the tracking page, where businesses can provide more marketing opportunities and cross-sell or upsell additional products. By making the tracking link eye-catching and prominent, businesses can increase the likelihood of customers clicking on it and engaging with the brand further.

For example, SpeedyTire implemented this strategy and saw a 24% increase in click-through rates (CTR) of their shipment notification emails. By prioritizing the tracking link in their email design, SpeedyTire increased customer engagement and improved the post-purchase experience, increasing customer loyalty and revenue growth.

Brand Your Shipment Notifications with AfterShip

With automated and personalized shipment notifications, businesses can ensure customers remain engaged throughout the shipping process and deliver exceptional customer experiences.

AfterShip Tracking simplifies this process by offering a comprehensive suite of features and customizations that enable businesses to create branded and optimized email notifications. In the meantime, it reduces WISMO for the support teams.

Businesses can also leverage AfterShip Tracking’s data analytics to reveal relevant notification metrics and performance over time. This makes it easy to evaluate the customer experience, adjusting and formulating better communication strategies. With the best practices mentioned above, businesses can deliver exceptional CX easily.