Customer service agents deal with growing volumes, queries, complaints, and responses daily. Thankfully, most of them are not unique or unheard of.
Keeping a vault of ready-to-use customer service email templates handy can save you a lot of time, speeding up your team’s response times, improving your customer satisfaction, and helping you deliver a positive customer experience.
From dealing with complaints, and nudging along subscriptions, to guiding customers through trials, we’ve provided 8 customer service email templates your team can use to improve your customer experience and optimize your customer-facing team’s email productivity.
Your product’s quality and price are essential for your business’s success. Offering quick, responsive customer service gives you word-of-mouth referrals and repeat business that marketing simply cannot provide.
On the other hand, poor customer service is costly: a report by NewVoiceMedia found that US companies lost business worth $62 billion in a single year – all due to slow and inadequate customer service.
So, what do your hard-to-please customers want from your business? Simple, fast, and personal responses to their questions!
Because of its convenience, email is central to everyday communications, particularly in business. With mobile technology’s popularity, email communication will only increase in popularity as one of the best ways for companies to engage with their customers.
In a report by LivePerson titled “Connecting with Consumers” and based on a survey involving over 5,700 consumers in the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Australia, 60% of consumers prefer customer service via email.
With so many customers preferring one method of communicating with you, it should go without saying that you must take bold action to improve the email performance of your customer-facing teams.
While there is an overwhelming preference to use email as the primary channel for service queries, most customers have specific standards they expect during email interactions.
Most of these requirements are related to how quickly their queries can be resolved.
A SuperOffice report reveals that, on average, companies take 12 hours to respond to their customers’ emails. A whole day is a long time for a customer to wait for a response, and there are good reasons for your company to be concerned if it takes that long to reply.
A study conducted by inContact shows that only 43 percent of consumers were happy with their most recent email service interaction, with those who were satisfied revealing that email response time was a key factor.
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When properly utilized, email communication can be a highly effective customer care channel that offers several advantages:
🔵Start with a friendly greeting to set the tone.
🔵Clearly state the purpose of your email and get straight to the point.
🔵Be empathetic, understand the customer’s concern, and offer a solution or answer to their query.
🔵Keep it concise, using clear and straightforward language.
🔵Personalize your response and sign off with a warm closing.
🔵And hey, don’t forget to proofread before hitting that send button!
With these tips, you’ll be crafting customer service emails like a pro in no time.
Writing customer service email responses from scratch is time-consuming and labor-intensive.
To optimize your customer-facing team’s email performance, you should maintain a bank of email response templates that can quickly be adapted and applied to a broad range of inbound customer queries.
Here are examples of customer service email response templates to give you a head start:
😡Responding to an angry, dissatisfied customer
Sometimes, a customer could be so angry that there’s little room to fix the situation directly. A straightforward, candid, as well as non-confrontational approach that leaves the door open for discussion is best:
Dear [Client Name],
I am sorry to find out that you were unhappy with your experience with our company. Your satisfaction is always our priority, and I apologize sincerely if our company didn’t demonstrate that to you.
While we understand your frustration, we would like to have another opportunity to rebuild your trust in our organization.
Please let us know more about your concerns as well as how we can assist you in the future.
Best,
[A.N. Other]
Customer Service Manager
😅🗣️💬Explaining delayed delivery
A common issue customers face is packages that do not arrive when scheduled. Delivery delays are challenging for service teams, especially if you work with third-party delivery partners. An email taking a supportive tone is your best option:
Dear [Customer Name],
I am sorry that your package has not arrived, and I understand your frustration.
I am tracking your package via USPS, and the current tracking status is [tracking status]. If you want to track its status, please visit: [link].
If you do not receive your delivery by [date], please get in touch with me by replying to this message.
[Company] sincerely apologizes for the inconvenience.
Regards,
[AN Other]
Customer Service Representative
💡Guiding a customer through a minor feature
If you have a client who needs step-by-step help to perform a simple task, you must assess the situation to be clear about what they require. A calm request for information is required:
Hi [Customer Name],
Thank you for your note. We are always happy to help you.
However, I do not quite follow your request for help with [feature name]. Is there any chance that you could provide a screenshot as well as offer a bit more detail? That would be super helpful.
I will do my best to help.
Many thanks,
[AN Other]
🧑💻Responding to a web form submission
When a visitor fills out a form asking for information, this customer service email template satisfies their need for a quick response — even if you require more time to offer a more detailed answer.
Hello [visitor name],
Thank you so much for getting in touch! We want to confirm that we received your request for information regarding our services, and we will contact you within [x] hours with a comprehensive response.
However, if you require immediate assistance, do not hesitate to call our helpline [phone number].
Sincerely,
The [company name] team
📄Instructions to a user signing up for a free trial
Below is a great customer service email template to give a new user signed up for a free product trial with quick tips to get them up to speed.
Hello [username],
Congratulations, you’re in! You have [x] free days to try out all that our [service/product] has to offer.
To get you started, here are some quick tips that will help you make the most of your trial period:
[1st User tip]
[2nd User tip]
[3rd User tip]
If you have any questions, reach out to our team. Our representatives are standing by to offer any help you need.
Cheers,
[AN Other]
Customer Support Team Leader
🔔Subscription renewal reminder
If your customer’s subscription to your service is due to expire, you need to inform them as soon as possible. So you do not catch them by surprise. Use this customer service email template:
Hello [customer name],
Can you believe how quickly a [time] has passed? We just wanted to give you a friendly reminder that your [service] subscription with our Company is due for automatic renewal on [expiry date].
You do not need to take any action at this time if you want to continue enjoying [the product/service].
For any inquiries on your subscription, simply reply to this message.
Regards,
[company name] team
❌Cancellation confirmation
For customers who no longer require your product or service, you need to offer a speedy confirmation that you have cancelled their subscription. The customer service email template will help your company create a paper trail.
Dear [client name],
This message is confirmation that we have cancelled your [service name] account with [company name], effective on [termination date].
[You may choose to add a statement on whether the customer will still have access to the service until what should have been the renewal data, or if you will discontinue access immediately.]
Although we are sad to see you go, we will be standing by if you need our service in the future. For any questions or to reactivate your account, visit our website or contact us at [phone number].
Sincerely,
The [company name] team
🔄Confirming a refund
As a customer, waiting for a refund after a complaint can be highly stressful. This email template lets your customers know you are processing their rebates.
Dear [customer name],
Following our discussion, I have requested our finance department to credit your account with a full refund regarding your complaint. We will credit your amount within [x] days.
Once again, I regret that [product/service] did not meet your expectations. Please reach out to us if you require any help in the future.
Sincerely,
[AN Other]
Customer Service Lead, [company name]
Optimize your customer-facing team’s email response times 🚀
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