How do I use dynamic templates for transactional emails?

Dynamic templates let you send one email design and fill in the subject/body with data at send time, instead of creating a separate template for every transaction type.

How it works

You create a template with placeholders like:

• {{first_name}}
• {{order_number}}
• {{total}}

Then when you send the email, you pass a JSON payload with the values for those placeholders.

Example:

{
  "first_name": "Ava",
  "order_number": "12345",
  "total": "$49.99"
}

The email renders as:

Hi Ava, your order #12345 totaling $49.99 has shipped.

Typical setup steps

1. Create the template

   • Write the email subject and content
   • Add variables/placeholders where content should change

2. Define your data model

   • Decide which fields your app will send for each email type
   • Common examples: name, order ID, reset link, invoice amount, date

3. Send the email with dynamic data

   • Your app passes the template ID plus the personalization data
   • The email service merges the template and data before sending

4. Test with sample payloads

   • Verify missing or optional fields
   • Check formatting for dates, currency, and long text

Example use cases

• Order confirmation
• Password reset
• Shipping notification
• Invoice or receipt
• Account verification
• Appointment reminders

Best practices

• Keep templates modular: separate header/footer from content
• Use fallback values for missing data
• Validate your payload before sending
• Avoid overloading templates with too many conditionals
• Preview with real examples to catch layout issues

If you mean a specific email provider

The implementation differs depending on the platform, for example:

• SendGrid Dynamic Templates
• Mailgun templates
• Amazon SES templates
• Postmark templates
• Brevo / Mailchimp transactional templates

If you tell me which service you’re using, I can give you the exact steps and code example.