Email Templates
Email templates let you create reusable messages that you can send to students, guardians, or groups. Each template supports merge fields that automatically personalize the email with the recipient's information.
Creating an Email Template
- Navigate to Settings → Emails & SMS.
- Templates are organized into two sections: General email templates (for messages you send manually) and Registration email templates (sent as part of the registration flow). Click Add email template in the section where you want the new template — the section you choose determines the template type.
- Fill in the template details:
- Name -- A descriptive name for internal reference (e.g., "Welcome Email" or "Schedule Change Notice").
- Subject -- The email subject line. You can use merge fields here too.
- Body -- The main content of your email. Use the rich text editor to format your message, add links, and insert merge fields.
- Save the template.
Give your templates clear, descriptive names so you can find them quickly when sending emails. For example, "Fall Semester Welcome" is easier to find than "Template 1."
Template Merge Fields
Merge fields are placeholders that get replaced with real data when the email is sent. Wrap them in curly braces.
Available in All Templates
| Merge Field | Description |
|---|---|
{organization_name} | Your school's name |
{recipient_name} | The full name of the email recipient |
{recipient_first_name} | The first name of the recipient |
{student_name} | The full name of the student |
{customer_name} | The customer (billing) account name |
{unsubscribe_url} | A link that lets the recipient opt out. What it opts them out of depends on which email it's in -- see Unsubscribe Links and Opt-Outs below. |
Available in the Lesson Reminder System Email Only
The Lesson reminder system email (in the System emails section of Settings → Emails & SMS) has additional merge fields related to the upcoming lesson:
| Merge Field | Description |
|---|---|
{lesson_category} | The lesson category (e.g., "Piano Lesson") |
{lesson_date} | The date of the lesson |
{lesson_start_time} | The start time |
{lesson_end_time} | The end time |
{lesson_duration} | The lesson length in minutes |
Merge fields are case-sensitive. Use exactly the token shown above (with curly braces and lowercase text) — typos will leave the token in the email as-is.
Example:
Hi
{recipient_first_name},Just a reminder that
{student_name}'s lesson is coming up this week. We look forward to seeing you!
When the email is sent, the merge fields are replaced automatically:
Hi Sarah,
Just a reminder that Emma's lesson is coming up this week. We look forward to seeing you!
Editing an Email Template
- Go to Settings → Emails & SMS.
- Find the template you want to edit and click on it.
- Make your changes to the name, subject, or body.
- Save the template.
System Emails (Customizable)
Conductly has exactly two customizable system emails, listed in the System emails section of Settings → Emails & SMS. Click Edit on either one to change its subject line and body:
- Lesson reminder -- Sent automatically before each scheduled lesson to remind families about the upcoming session. Whether it's on, its timing, and whether it also sends by text are configured on Reminder Settings (Settings > Reminders), not here -- this page only edits the email's subject and body.
- New enrollment instructor notification -- Sent to an instructor when a new student enrolls in one of their sessions. It supports its own merge fields for the instructor, student, guardian, and session details.
Be careful when editing the Lesson reminder. Make sure the essential information (lesson date, time, and the {unsubscribe_url} link) is still included. Removing critical details could confuse your families.
Unsubscribe Links and Opt-Outs
The {unsubscribe_url} merge field points to a different opt-out depending on which email carries it:
- In the Lesson reminder system email, it opts the recipient out of lesson reminders only. Everything else they receive from you is unaffected.
- In any other template (including one you write yourself), it opts the recipient out of your emails going forward. Their lesson reminders are unaffected and keep sending.
Either way, opting out never affects transactional email -- invoices, overdue notices, payment receipts, refunds, password resets, and registration/portal-setup emails always go through, regardless of opt-out status.
Instructors can use an unsubscribe link too, not just students and guardians.
There's no self-service way for someone to opt back in once they've unsubscribed. To check or change someone's email opt-out status, open their Student or Guardian detail page and look for the Email pill -- it shows Opted In or Opted Out and toggles when clicked.
Transactional Emails (Automatic, Not Customizable)
Conductly also sends a variety of transactional emails that are not editable as templates — they're sent automatically by Conductly's backend based on system events:
- Welcome — Sent when a new user account is created
- Invite — Sent when an admin invites a new team member or family
- Password Reset — Sent when a user requests a password reset
- Invoice — Sent when an invoice is emailed to a family
- Overdue Invoice — Sent when an invoice is overdue
- Payment Receipt — Sent after a successful payment
- Payment Refund — Sent when a refund is processed
- Payment Method Expiring / Expired / Failed — Sent when a stored card needs attention
You cannot edit the content of transactional emails directly. If you need to change their branding (sender name, reply-to address, school logo), do that in Settings → School Information and Settings → Emails & SMS.
Sending Emails to Students and Guardians
You can send emails from several places in Conductly:
- From a student or guardian's detail page -- Choose Send Email to compose a message using one of your saved templates.
- From a group's detail page -- Choose Send Email to message all members of the group at once.
- From the calendar -- Email an event's participants from the event popover.
- From an overdue-invoice notification in the Inbox -- Open an Invoice Overdue or Multiple Invoices Overdue notification and click Contact Customer under Quick Actions to open the customer's email drawer directly. See Inbox & Notifications for details.
- From a new-lead notification in the Inbox -- Open a New Private Lesson Interest Form or New Marketing Form Submitted notification and choose Send Email under Quick Actions to reply directly to the lead. See Inbox & Notifications for details.
For every other notification type, the Inbox remains a feed only -- you cannot compose or reply to emails from it.
When composing an email:
- Select a template (or start from scratch). If your school has any Registration templates, the dropdown groups them separately from General templates, mirroring the two sections on Settings → Emails & SMS.
- The merge fields will be pre-filled based on the recipient.
- Review the message and click Send.
After sending, a toast appears with an Undo option. You can configure how long emails wait before actually sending (from immediately up to 5 minutes) in Settings → Emails & SMS, and cancel any queued message from the Pending emails section there.
Sending a Registration template does two things a General template or hand-typed email doesn't: it moves the recipient's student to the Registration Sent status (unless they've already progressed further), and it always goes through even if the recipient has opted out of your emails -- registration emails are treated as transactional, like invoices and receipts.
Sending emails to a group is a great way to communicate schedule changes, holiday closures, or recital information to everyone at once.
Best Practices
- Keep templates focused. Create separate templates for different purposes rather than one template that tries to do everything.
- Use merge fields. Personalized emails are more effective and feel more professional.
- Double-check merge fields. Typos in a merge field leave the raw token (e.g.,
{student_name}) in the sent email, so review your template carefully before using it with real contacts. - Update templates seasonally. Review and refresh your templates at the start of each semester to keep information current.