How to write and optimize order con­fir­ma­tions

An order con­fir­ma­tion is a written document con­firm­ing the ac­cep­tance of an order for a service or product. In this article we’ll be looking at email order con­fir­ma­tions as these are the most used form today. An email order con­fir­ma­tion should contain all the details relating to the order such as the service or product purchased, customer details, the order number and so on. There are also a few things to avoid doing, some of which are regulated by the gov­ern­ment. Let’s take a closer look.

What is an order con­fir­ma­tion?

An order con­fir­ma­tion confirms an order made by a customer to them. It is a document that acts as a cer­ti­fi­ca­tion that an order has been placed. It may be an order for a product or service. In terms of products that are sold online the order con­fir­ma­tion will generally be sent via email.

One of the purposes of an order con­fir­ma­tion is to provide the customer with precise in­for­ma­tion about the order placed. This allows both parties, buying and selling, to double-check whether an oversight or mistake has been made. As a rule, both can cancel or modify the order. As a provider, this is the beginning of customer care, in other words, your customer re­la­tion­ship man­age­ment.

Is an order con­fir­ma­tion mandatory?

It is not mandatory to send order con­fir­ma­tions to customers after orders have been received. However, it is generally good practice to do so. An order con­fir­ma­tion serves to provide customers with peace of mind that the order has actually been received. Par­tic­u­lar­ly in E-Commerce it can be helpful and re­as­sur­ing for customers to get an order con­fir­ma­tion. For purchases on the web, an order con­fir­ma­tion is usually sent by e-mail.

When should an order con­fir­ma­tion be sent?

As a provider or supplier, you are obliged to respond as quickly as possible to an incoming order with an order con­fir­ma­tion. This is in the best interest of good customer service and therefore promotes customer loyalty. If customers do not receive a con­fir­ma­tion within a short time frame, they may suspect that a problem has occurred with the order. In the worst case, they may decide to purchase the product elsewhere and cancel the order with you.

What should an order con­fir­ma­tion contain?

There are some important details to include in an order con­fir­ma­tion to ensure that your customers see the in­for­ma­tion they need:

• Mode of address to your customer – in line with your branding
• Name and full address of the company
• Billing address of the buyer
• If ap­plic­a­ble, different delivery address of the customer
• Exact de­scrip­tion of the goods or products
• Quantity of the goods or products
• De­scrip­tion of the goods or products, i.e. color, size, material
• Net unit price and total amount
• Delivery method (standard or express delivery, pick-up) and delivery time
• Shipping costs, if ap­plic­a­ble
• Final invoice total
• Desired payment method (e.g. PayPal, credit card, direct debit)
• Display of the cor­re­spond­ing value-added tax or sales tax

It’s not mandatory, but an imprint can be a good addition here, too. A link to your data pro­tec­tion in­for­ma­tion could also be included in your order con­fir­ma­tion.

It is also advisable to provide contact details for any queries or com­plaints in order to make it easier for your customers to contact you.

What should be avoided in order con­fir­ma­tions?

You should bear in mind the CAN-SPAM law, which caps the ad­ver­tis­ing content in trans­ac­tion­al emails at 20 percent, meaning that 80 percent must be trans­ac­tion­al in­for­ma­tion.

In online commerce, email cor­re­spon­dence with customers after an order has been completed is often used to request ratings or newslet­ter sub­scrip­tions. This is ac­cept­able, as long as this content doesn’t go over the 20 percent mark. This applies to product ad­ver­tis­ing as well as to other forms of self-promotion such as rating requests, ref­er­ences to social media sites or newslet­ter reg­is­tra­tions.

How do you optimize an order con­fir­ma­tion?

Order con­fir­ma­tions mainly serve the purpose of con­firm­ing that an order has been placed. However, they can also strength­en your brand’s re­la­tion­ship with your customers. Studies suggest that order con­fir­ma­tions have a much higher en­gage­ment and open rate and generate more sales than mass emails sent for marketing purposes. Op­ti­miz­ing your order con­fir­ma­tion can also be worth­while in terms of your marketing strategy. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Per­son­al­ize your subject line

Address your clientele using a personal tone. Avoid simply listing data and facts. A kindly worded “Thank you for your order” is more engaging and pleases the recipient if it appears together with the useful in­for­ma­tion.

Ensure a clear and outlined structure

A clear structure not only provides an overview, but also shows pro­fes­sion­al­ism. Your customers will ap­pre­ci­ate a clear order con­fir­ma­tion in which all in­for­ma­tion is available at a glance. A table, for example, is ideal for this.

Include rec­og­niz­able elements of your brand identity

Your logo should def­i­nite­ly appear in your order con­fir­ma­tion! Placing it in the forefront of the minds of your clientele will increase the recog­ni­tion value of your brand.

Keeping your corporate identity in mind, be sure to match the tone of the text to your company, your clientele, and the pre­sen­ta­tion of your products.

Include the relevant contact details

Fur­ther­more, it is advisable to clearly list the necessary contact data in your order con­fir­ma­tion. Then your customers can easily contact you if they have any questions.

Optimize your content for mobile use

Many order con­fir­ma­tions are read on mobile devices. Therefore, make sure you have an optimized or re­spon­sive design. Use mobile-optimized elements such as touch-sensitive buttons, a good font size, and a single-column layout to ensure good read­abil­i­ty on smaller screens.

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