The challenge of transactional emails: achieving context

I’ve been doing a piece of work to improve the transactional emails that we send to customers.

The challenge of transactional emails: achieving context

At first glance transactional emails seem simple. They are just about providing simple information to update a customer, right? Actually, the more you think about it the more complex it becomes. Does the email contain the right information? Is it presented in the right way? Does it clearly indicate if the customer needs to do something, and if so does it explain how to do and what will happen because of it? Is the email sent at the right time? Does the email contain too much information or not enough? Do customers want to receive an email as soon as an update on the status of their order is available or would they prefer it at the most convenient time, especially if they need to do something? Should the email be trying to seamlessly fit into the customers life and just be there when they need it or should it be trying to interrupt them and get them to pay attention to the message in the email?

Trying to understand the context of transactional emails for all customers is really interesting and difficult. I don’t know if it’s something you could ever get right for everyone. That’s the challenge of context.