15 Templates to Write Awesome Customer Service Emails

Good customer service matters more than ever to consumers. We know, for example, that “50% of customers increase their purchasing with a brand after a positive customer service experience,” and that “67% of customers would pay more to get a better customer service experience,” thanks to data gathered by Hubspot.

That said, providing a great customer experience is harder than it’s ever been, as consumer journeys become increasingly omnichannel. Data from Marketing Week, for example, suggests that “15 years ago the average consumer typically used two touch-points when buying an item and only 7% regularly used more than four. Today consumers use an average of almost six touch-points with nearly 50% regularly using more than four.”

Supporting more channels, including alternative email clients with the same number of resources means being strategic about how and when you communicate. Customer service email templates can be one tool in your arsenal that saves you time, without compromising the level of care you provide to customers.

What consumers want from customer service experiences

Think back to the positive – and the not-so-positive – customer service experiences you’ve had, and some best practices become obvious. If you’ve had a problem with a product or service you’ve purchased, for example, you know how important receiving a fast response to your issue is.

Data backs this up. According to one survey from Toister Performance Solutions, “A one hour email response time will meet the expectations of 89 percent of your customers. Companies aiming for world-class customer service should respond within 15 minutes or less.” The bad news? Average response times for corporate emails top 12 hours.

Using resources like these, we further know that consumers:

Want their customer service experiences to be personalized using information stored within their account.
Don’t want to have to repeat themselves to multiple customer service representatives (though this is still common, especially for companies using several different support channels).
Want to be presented with solutions – not empty talk.

Customer service email templates can be used to fulfill each of these desires efficiently – as long as you use them thoughtfully. Treat them as a starting point to help you respond to customers faster, but make sure your email templates are clear and professional, that they are well written, and that you’re optimizing them to provide fast, personalized service.

15 customer service email templates to test

Surely you’ve searched for some cover letter ideas to impress a potential employer. Think about these templates in a similar light.

Ready to get started and find out the best service quote? Below, you’ll find 15 different customer service email templates to test, arranged by group. Pick and choose the ones that are most relevant to your business, then customize them to your specific needs. Make sure you choose an appropriate email sign-off, too.

Buyer stage templates

1. Email response to a website form query submission

Use it when: someone has filled out a form on your website, asking for more information. This template can be sent immediately after the form is completed, satisfying visitors’ desire for fast response times – even if you need more time to get your full response together.

Hello [name],

Thanks so much for reaching out! Just confirming that we’ve received your request for more information, and will be in touch within [XX] hours with a more complete response.

If you need immediate assistance, feel free to call us at [phone number].

Sincerely,

[signature]

2. Free trial instructions

Use it when: a new user has signed up for a free trial of your product or service.

Hello [name],

Congrats! You’re in. You’ve got [XX] free days to test out everything [our product or service] has to offer.

A couple of quick tips to help you get the most out of your trial period:

[Getting started tip #1]
[Getting started tip #2]
[Getting started tip #3]

Any questions? Our team is standing by to help get you up and running. Reach out if we can help in any way.

Cheers,

[signature]

3. Welcome message

Use it when: a new customer has signed up for your product or service.

Hello [name],

Glad to have you onboard, and can’t wait to show you what makes [our product or service] so special.

To help you get the lay of the land, we recommend that all new customers take the following three actions:

[Step #1]
[Step #2]
[Step #3]

I’ll be your primary point of contact at [our company], so please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.

Cheers,

[signature]

Get more welcome templates

4. Account manager introduction

Use it when: you want to pass off a new customer from a sales rep to their new account manager.

Hello [name],

All of us here at [our company] are glad to have you on board. To help get you started, I’m pleased to introduce you to your new account manager, [name], who is cc’d on this email.

[Name] will take it from here, and will be helping you get up and running. It’s been a pleasure working with you, and if there’s anything I can do to help in the future, just let me know.

Sincerely,

[signature]

5. Upcoming renewal reminder

Use it when: an existing customer’s subscription period is coming to a close, and you don’t want them to be surprised by the renewal charge.

Hello [name],

Can you believe it’s already been [a time period]? I just wanted to give you a heads up that your subscription with [our company] is coming up for renewal on [date].

There’s nothing you need to do at this point to keep enjoying [our product or service]. If you have any questions, just reply back to this message.

Sincerely,

[signature]

Post-purchase templates

6. Referral request

Use it when: you’ve proven your value to your customer, and you want them to help you connect with other prospective customers.

Hello [name],

It’s been a pleasure working with you over the past [time period], and I hope you’re continuing to enjoy [the benefits of our product or service].

Just a quick favor to ask of you – do you know anyone else who [is experiencing a similar pain point]? We’re always looking for new companies to help, and I’d appreciate anyone you can refer us to that might benefit.

Thanks much,

[signature]

7. Thanks for the referral

Use it when: an existing customer shares a referral lead with you.

Thanks [name]! I appreciate you sharing [referee’s name]’s contact information and will reach out ASAP to see if they could benefit from [our company’s product or service].

If you think of anyone else in the interim, please send their information my way.

Thanks again,

[signature]

Design your own templates

LiveAgent gives you the power to design your own customer email templates, thus helping you to improve the customer service. Curious about all the opportunities?

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8. Review request

Use it when: you want to ask happy customers to leave a review for you on Google, Yelp or any other review directory.

Hi [name],

I hope you’ve been enjoying [our product or service]. If you don’t mind, would you please share your experiences with it by leaving a review for us on [specific review site]?

We know people rely on reviews more than ever, so we appreciate any feedback you’re able to share about us there.

Thanks much,

[signature]

Customer problem templates

9. Cancellation confirmation

Use it when: you want to provide former customers with confirmation that their cancellation has been processed (in addition to creating a paper trail for your company).

Dear [name],

This message serves as confirmation that you have canceled your service with [our company], effective on [date].

[Include a statement on whether customers will continue to have access until what would have been their renewal date, or if access will be discontinued immediately.]

While we’re sad to see you go, we’re standing by in case you have a need for [our service] in the future. Reach out to [phone number] or visit [website] to reactivate your account.

Sincerely,

[signature]

10. Acknowledging a complaint when you don’t have an answer yet

Use it when: you want to respond immediately to an issue that’s been raised so that the customer feels heard, but you don’t yet have a concrete answer on the solutions you can offer.

Hello [name],

I am so sorry to hear you aren’t happy with [whatever the complaint is about]. Although we strive for 100% customer satisfaction, it’s clear we’ve fallen short in this instance – and that’s unacceptable.

I am researching the issue now and will be in touch within [XX] hours with any options that may exist for making it right. If you’d like to speak immediately, you can reach me at [phone number].

Sincerely,

[signature]

11. Responding to a complaint with a proposed solution

Use it when: you’ve come up with a solution as a response to the template above (or modify the first paragraph to send this template as your first contact following a complaint).

Hello [name],

I’m sorry again for your experience with [whatever the complaint is about]. I can understand how frustrating it must have been to be expecting [something] and receive [something different].

After looking into the issue, I’m pleased to be able to offer you the following options:

[Option #1]
[Option #2]
[Option #3]

I’ll take your lead on how to proceed from here, but I hope one of these solutions will help make up for the challenges you’ve experienced.

Sincerely,

[signature]

12. Refund processing

Use it when: a customer with a complaint has requested a refund, and you want to confirm that it’s being processed.

Dear [name],

As we discussed, I’ve requested that a refund be issued to your account in response to [your complaint]. You should see the amount credited to [your original payment source] within [time period].

Again, I’m sorry that [our product or service] didn’t meet your expectations. If we can help in any way in the future, please reach out.

Sincerely,

[signature]

Get more Customer Service Templates

Industry-specific customer templates

13. Out-of-stock notification

Use it when: you have to tell a customer that a product they purchased is not in stock.

Hello [name],

I’m sorry to share that a product you ordered recently is no longer available:

[Product name + details]

I expect we’ll have more inventory available on [date]. If you’d like, I can hold your order to be processed then. Otherwise, I can issue you a refund now.

I understand that this is disappointing, and I hope we can make it up to you with [some kind of incentive]. If you have any questions, please reply back to this message or call me at [phone number].

Sincerely,

[signature]

14. Proactive tech support outage notification

Use it when: you want to proactively let customers know you’re aware of a tech outage and are working on a solution.

Hi [name],

If you’ve tried to log on to [our service] recently, you already know that we’re currently dealing with an unexpected outage.

We’re hard at work fixing the issue, and we expect to have everything back up and running by [deadline]. In the meantime, please accept our sincerest apologies for any issues created by the outage and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions.

We’ll let you know about future updates on the issue ASAP.

Sincerely,

[signature]

Knowledge = power

Tech outage is a serious issue for every business. Inform your customers about the current situation and future actions steps by implementing customer email templates by LiveAgent. Save every resource.

Start your journey today Schedule a Demo

15. Feature development timeline notification

Use it when: a customer has requested a new feature you aren’t able to put into development in the near future.

Hello [name],

Thanks again for reaching out to [our company] to suggest [the new feature they proposed].

Unfortunately, although we love the idea, we aren’t able to add it to our development calendar at this point due to competing priorities. If or when that changes, we’ll reach out with more information.

We appreciate your insight and suggestions. Keep sending them our way!

Sincerely,

[signature]

Getting started with customer service email templates

Obviously, the 15 customer service email templates shared here may not cover all of the unique situations you’ll encounter, and they won’t all be relevant to your business. For example, situations like announcing price increase may arise which require a more specific approach. Or if you don’t have a tech product, for example, you won’t need to notify customers about unexpected outages or let them know that proposed features aren’t being developed.

Use them not as word-for-word templates, but as starting points to create messages that are better suited to your situation. Improve your personal skills and the result will be corresponding. Put a little effort into building out customer service email templates that are appropriate for your business, and you’ll be able to reduce the work required to respond to their issues without compromising the quality of the service they receive.

Update: Due to the high demand, we have created a section with hundreds of customer service templates for different use cases.

Discover more templates:

Guest Post Author

Sujan Patel

Sujan Patel is a partner at Ramp Ventures, makers of Mailshake, Pick, VoilaNorbert, and Right Inbox. He has over 14 years of marketing experience and has led the digital marketing strategy for companies like Salesforce, Mint, Intuit and many other Fortune 500 caliber companies.

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