Failed payment email template for SaaS you can copy

When to send it

The same day the payment fails. The usual cause is dull: an expired card, a new card number, a bank being careful. The sooner they hear, the easier it is to fix, and the less the email needs to say.

Write it as if the card is the problem and the person is not. Nearly always, that is true.

The email

Subject: Your [Product] payment did not go through

Hi {{first_name}},

The payment for your [Product] subscription did not go through. It is usually an expired card or a new card number.

Your account is still working. To fix it, update your card here: [link to your billing page]. It takes about a minute.

If something else is going on, or you meant to cancel, tell me. Reply to this email.

Sam

Two variations

A reminder a few days later, if the card has not been updated:

Subject: Still need to update your card

Your [Product] payment still has not gone through. Your account stays active until [date], and then it pauses. You can update your card here: [link]

If you would rather stop, that is fine too. Reply to this email and tell me.

Sam

The last note, on the day access changes:

Subject: Your [Product] account is paused

Because the payment did not go through, your account is paused as of today. Your [work] is safe, and the moment you update your card it all comes back: [link]

Sam

What to avoid

• Threats in the first email. "Your account will be suspended" is for the last note, and only if it is true.
• Blame. Skip "you failed to pay". Say the payment did not go through.
• No link to update the card. The email exists to put that link in front of them. Make it one click from the email.
• Three emails in one day. Spread them over a week.
• Saying the account is paused when it is not. Say what is true on that day.

How Kicklace sends it

Connect Stripe under Settings, Connections, with one restricted key and no code (Stripe has the steps). Kicklace only reads Stripe. It never charges anybody and never changes a customer, a price or a payment.

When Stripe reports a failed invoice, Kicklace records a failed payment on that person and marks the subscription past due. A side road on your Lifecycle map can start from it, and the email goes to whoever lands there. It is an account email, so it goes unless the address bounced or the person complained.

The sequence can have more than one step: an email, a wait of a few days, then the second email. Kicklace stops a sequence for somebody the moment they move on from its stage.

Kicklace writes a first version in your voice, and you change whatever you like. Nothing sends until you switch it on. Before you do, it shows who would have got it over the last 30 days, and you can send yourself a test. Each person gets each email once. The Stripe failed payment email guide goes through the Stripe side in detail, and the demo shows the map on your own site with no sign-up.

FAQ

How soon should I email after a failed payment?

The same day. A card that failed this morning is easy to fix this afternoon. A week later, the person may have forgotten what the charge was for.

How many reminders is too many?

Two or three over about a week is plenty. After that, the next message is the one that says what changed on their account.

Does Kicklace charge or retry the card?

No. Kicklace only reads Stripe. It never charges anybody and never changes a customer, a price or a payment. If you want a trial ending email too, it comes from the same connection.