How to write and optimise 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. For 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 they placed. This allows buyers and sellers to double-check whether an oversight or mistake has been made. As a rule, both parties 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’s 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 eCommerce 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 should respond as quickly as possible to an incoming order with an order con­firm­a­tion. This is in the best interest of good customer service and promotes customer loyalty. If customers don’t receive a con­firm­a­tion shortly after they placed their order, they may suspect a problem 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. colour, 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’s 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 you avoid order con­firm­a­tions?

You should bear in mind the Privacy and Elec­tron­ic Com­mu­nic­a­tions Reg­u­la­tions 2003 prohibits sending un­so­li­cited marketing emails. Marketers can only include marketing content where consent has been given, such as by sub­scribers opting into your email news­let­ter.

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 consent has been given before by the recipient. If users only gave consent for specific purposes, marketers must honour this. UK companies should also be familiar with the GDPR to avoid hefty fines for misuse of customer data “GDPR”).

How do you optimise 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. Op­tim­ising your order con­firm­a­tion can also be worth­while in terms of your marketing strategy. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Per­son­al­ise 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 alongside useful in­form­a­tion.

Ensure a clear 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 re­cog­nis­able 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 your company, your clientele, and the present­a­tion of your products.

Include relevant contact details

It’s also advisable to list your contact details in your order con­firm­a­tion. This way your customers can easily contact you if they have further questions.

Optimise your content for mobile use

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

Please note the legal dis­claim­er relating to this article.