How To Change Order Email In Woocommerce

How to Customize Your WooCommerce Order Emails: A Beginner’s Guide

WooCommerce is a fantastic platform for selling online, but sometimes its default settings need a little tweaking to perfectly match your brand. One crucial area is the order confirmation emails your customers receive. These emails are a vital touchpoint, confirming their purchase and setting the tone for their experience with your business.

This guide will walk you through how to change order emails in WooCommerce step-by-step, even if you’re a complete beginner. We’ll cover everything from basic tweaks using the WooCommerce settings to more advanced customization options.

Why Customize Your WooCommerce Order Emails?

Think of your order confirmation email as a digital handshake. It’s your chance to:

• Reinforce your brand: A personalized email with your logo and brand voice makes a stronger impression.
• Provide clarity: Ensure your customers have all the necessary information about their order, shipping, and payment.
• Reduce customer support inquiries: Clear and comprehensive information can prevent common questions about order status and delivery.
• Upsell and promote: Include targeted product recommendations or special offers to encourage repeat purchases.

Imagine you’re buying a handcrafted leather journal. Receiving a generic, plain-text email from WooCommerce would be disappointing, right? A customized email, reflecting the artisan’s brand with a beautiful design and a personal touch, would significantly enhance your experience.

1. Basic Customization within WooCommerce Settings

The simplest way to make changes is directly within the WooCommerce settings panel. This method is perfect for small tweaks and doesn’t require any coding.

• Navigate to WooCommerce > Settings > Emails. Here, you’ll see a list of all the different email types WooCommerce sends, including:
• New Order
• Cancelled Order
• Failed Order
• Order On-Hold
• Processing Order
• Completed Order
• Refunded Order
• Customer Invoice/Order Details
• Customer Note
• Reset Password
• New Account
• Click on the email you want to customize. For example, click on “Processing Order” to edit the email sent when an order is being processed.
• Edit the Email Settings: You’ll find options to change:
• Email Subject: Make it clear and concise. For example, instead of just “Processing Order,” try “[Your Store Name]
• Your Order is Being Processed!”
• Email Heading: This is the main heading displayed at the top of the email.
• Additional Content: This is where you can add extra text to personalize the email. You can use HTML to add basic formatting. For example, you might say: “Thank you for your order! We’re working hard to get it shipped to you as soon as possible.”
• Email Type: Choose between HTML, Plain Text, or Multipart. HTML offers the best formatting options.
• Copy to (CC) and Bcc to (BCC): Add email addresses to receive copies of the emails.
• Customize the Email Template: Click the “Manage” button next to the email type you want to customize. Scroll down to the “Email Template” section. Here you can customize header image, email footer text and base color of the email.
• Click “Save Changes” to apply your modifications.

Example:

Let’s say you want to add a personal touch to the “Processing Order” email. You could change the “Additional Content” to:

“Hi [Customer Name],

Thanks for your order from [Your Store Name]! We’re currently processing your order and will let you know as soon as it ships.

You can view your order details here: [Order URL]

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Thanks,

The [Your Store Name] Team”

2. Using WooCommerce Email Customizer Plugins

For more advanced customization without coding, WooCommerce email customizer plugins are your best friend. These plugins provide drag-and-drop interfaces and pre-built templates to create professional-looking emails.

Here are a few popular options:

• Kadence WooCommerce Email Designer: A free and user-friendly plugin with a drag-and-drop interface.
• YayMail
• WooCommerce Email Customizer: A powerful plugin with advanced features like conditional logic and custom fields.
• Email Customizer for WooCommerce by Themehigh: Offers a wide range of customization options and pre-designed templates.

How to Use a Plugin (Example using Kadence WooCommerce Email Designer):

1. Install and activate the plugin. Go to Plugins > Add New and search for “Kadence WooCommerce Email Designer.”

2. Navigate to WooCommerce > Email Customizer.

3. Select the email type you want to customize.

4. Use the drag-and-drop interface to add, remove, and rearrange elements. You can add your logo, change colors, and add custom text.

5. Preview your changes before saving.

6. Save your changes.

Reasoning: Plugins offer a visual way to customize emails. They allow you to:

• Add your logo and branding: Create a consistent brand experience.
• Customize the layout: Arrange elements to create a visually appealing design.
• Add custom content: Include special offers, promotions, or personalized messages.
• Preview your changes: See how the email will look before it’s sent to customers.

3. Advanced Customization: Overriding Email Templates with Code

If you’re comfortable with coding (PHP and HTML), you can achieve even greater control by overriding the default WooCommerce email templates. This method allows you to completely customize the email structure and content.

Steps:

1. Locate the Default Email Templates: WooCommerce email templates are located in the `wp-content/plugins/woocommerce/templates/emails/` directory.

2. Create a “woocommerce” Folder in Your Theme: Inside your active WordPress theme’s directory (e.g., `wp-content/themes/your-theme/`), create a folder named “woocommerce.”

3. Create an “emails” Folder Inside the “woocommerce” Folder: Inside the “woocommerce” folder, create another folder named “emails.”

4. Copy the Template You Want to Customize: Copy the specific email template file (e.g., `email-header.php`, `email-footer.php`, or a template for a specific order status email) from the WooCommerce plugin directory to the `wp-content/themes/your-theme/woocommerce/emails/` directory.

5. Edit the Copied Template: Open the copied template file in a text editor and make your desired changes. Remember to use HTML and PHP.

Important Considerations:

• Don’t modify the core WooCommerce files directly! Your changes will be overwritten during updates.
• Back up your theme files before making any changes.
• Use a child theme: This prevents your customizations from being lost when you update your parent theme.

Example:

To customize the email header, you would copy `wp-content/plugins/woocommerce/templates/emails/email-header.php` to `wp-content/themes/your-theme/woocommerce/emails/email-header.php`. Then, you could edit the `email-header.php` file in your theme to add your logo or change the header styling.

Reasoning:

• Complete Control: Overriding templates gives you the ultimate control over the email’s appearance and functionality.
• Advanced Customization: You can add custom logic, dynamic content, and integrate with other plugins.

Tips for Creating Effective WooCommerce Order Emails

• Keep it concise: Avoid overwhelming your customers with too much information. Focus on the essentials: order details, shipping information, and contact information.
• Use a clear and professional tone: Maintain a consistent brand voice throughout your emails.
• Make it mobile-friendly: Ensure your emails are easily readable on mobile devices.
• Test your emails: Send test emails to yourself to ensure they look and function correctly.
• Track your results: Monitor your email open rates and click-through rates to identify areas for improvement.

Conclusion

Customizing your WooCommerce order emails is a simple yet powerful way to enhance your customer experience and reinforce your brand. Whether you choose basic tweaks within the WooCommerce settings, leverage the power of email customizer plugins, or dive into advanced code customization, the goal is the same: to create emails that are informative, engaging, and reflective of your brand’s identity. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can create order emails that leave a lasting positive impression on your customers. Remember to always test your changes and back up your files before making any modifications. Good luck!