UX Writing Challenge 3: Write Confirmation Emails

Write confirmation emails that a car rental company sends to confirm reservations.

Scenario

A person reserved a midsize SUV rental car online for his upcoming trip to Atlanta.

Guiding Principles​

• Gather benchmarks to understand what car rental companies include and don’t include in their confirmation emails. Look for opportunities to create better experiences.
• Write emails in a way that developers can use image placeholders and variables to send custom emails
• Keep layouts and copy consistent to reduce the cognitive load and increase brand affinity and recognition
• Avoid information overload
• Make the email scannable
• Simplify to amplify

Task 1

Write an email that confirms the car rental reservation. The email is sent immediately after booking and should get the driver excited about the experience.

Assumptions

• The style guide recommends title case and all caps for buttons
• The car rental company has a loyalty club to earn points and get rewarded
• Drivers have already agreed to the rental agreement
• When cars are reserved, the email includes an estimate of charges. When cars are returned, the email includes total charges.

Task 2

How would the copy change if the car rental company wanted to personalize the email and create a more empathetic brand voice? Also, how could you improve the product naming?

Assumptions

• Tone of voice dimensions are casual, respectful and enthusiastic
• Tone of voice is trustworthy, informative and conversational
• The car company offers a price match guarantee
• There are iOS and Android apps

Task 3

How would the email change once the driver returned the car? How could you entice the driver to use this service again?

Assumptions

• Drivers and businesses will need a detail-rich, PDF receipt for their records
• Customer retention is paramount. Repeat customers are loyal and cheaper to acquire than new customers.
• Discounts incentivize repeat customers
• Rental history can be used to personalize recommendations for locations, cars or both

Final Thoughts

At first, Task 2 was the most challenging to write because I wasn’t sure where or how to improve personalization, brand voice and product names without complicating the message with excess copy.

Eventually, I added rental details in the subject line along with relevant emojis (which also make subject lines scannable). In addition, I added the driver’s name, more helpful language, plus product names (Pink Diamond Club, Pink Match Guarantee).

Combined, all of these adjustments help to create a more engaging and unique experience.

This challenge was originally published on Jeff Shibasaki’s website.