As email continues to remain an effective method for most brands to communicate directly with customers, companies face an uphill battle in making sure their messages stand out. And when it comes to emailing CX survey invitations, the stakes are even higher—you need to engage customers in order to gain insight on their experience.
With high email usage rates across geographies and demographics, more and more brands are complementing (or replacing) survey entry codes printed on receipts with email invitations. This methodology has several advantages, as it helps garner:
- Higher response rates
- A more representative sample
- More actionable data
It also means smarter, more customized surveys. Since you already capture a substantial amount of transaction data about the customer’s visit, surveys can be more targeted to individual experiences and get right to the good stuff. Customers will appreciate the shorter feedback process, and you can benefit from richer insights.
But before you can get to that impactful feedback, you have to get the customer engaged in your email. There are several steps to ensuring your email invitation stands out, such as drafting action-oriented subject lines, keeping messages succinct, and optimizing design for increased engagement. But one of the most important ways to draw in your customer is personalizing your invitation. Here are a few ways to do that:
Create a conversational tone
This may sound simple, but it can be a challenge to write a template message that doesn’t sound—well—templated. Take the time to use language that relates to your customer. You don’t want it to be too casual, but you also don’t want it to be generic and boring. Not sure where to start? Sort through your own inbox—it’s probably full of messages from other companies trying to get your attention. Flag the ones that stick out to you and use them as inspiration.
Make it sound like it’s from an actual person
If you’re emailing your customer, you know their name. So use it. Better yet, incorporate it into the subject line. Sometimes it’s small gestures like this that can be enough to grab their attention. You can also address the email from a more prominent member of your organization. Seeing the signature of a managing partner or CEO adds a personal touch that is appealing to respondents. In fact, our research shows that including a personal signature leads to a 1.7X increase in response rates compared to generic emails sent from brands.
Use purchase data to heighten visit recall
It may require a bit more programming, but customizing your email invitation with transactional data can have a big impact. By using information on what your customer purchased, you’re able to target responses about specific items and guarantee your frequent customers are providing feedback on the right visit. Something specific like “Are you happy with your new dining room table?” is more engaging than “Are you happy with your recent purchase?” This could entice your customer to click on your survey and provide more targeted and helpful feedback on that particular experience.
Just the beginning
Personalizing your message is just one step in making sure your email engages your customer. For more, download our white paper: Cut through the inbox clutter: 7 best practices for email survey invitations.
