Custom email template

Jake Sawyer

Updated October 09, 2026 14:15

SatisMeter supports a long list of email providers, but yours might not be on it. You can still send an email-template survey through your own provider. To do that, add your provider's merge tags to SatisMeter's anonymous email template, and then import the template into your provider. This article walks you through each step and shows you how to fix merge tags that don't work.

Before you start

Merge tags must match the email provider you send with. Each provider uses its own merge tag syntax, so a template built for one provider doesn't work with another.

If your provider is on SatisMeter's list, pick that provider's template in the survey designer. Use the custom template in this article only when your provider isn't on the list.

Step 1: Downloading the anonymous template

Start from the anonymous template, which works with any provider:

Open your survey's designer and go to the list of email providers.
Select Anonymous.
Download the email template.

Step 2: Finding your provider's merge tags

Many email providers support merge tags, although they might call them by a different name, such as template variables. Merge tags act as placeholders for each recipient's personal information, so you can personalize your emails.

Example: Your provider's merge tag for a recipient's name is {{NAME}}. Your template includes "Hi {{NAME}}". When your provider sends the email, "Hi {{NAME}}" becomes "Hi Alice" or "Hi Frank".

SatisMeter uses merge tags to receive each recipient's user ID, name, and email, and attaches them to their response. That way, you can see which user left each response and filter responses on the Dashboard.

Look for your provider's merge tags in their documentation, or contact their support team.

If your provider doesn't support merge tags, skip Step 3 and import the anonymous template as is. SatisMeter still collects responses and generates statistics as usual. The only difference is that responses are anonymous. You can't identify the user who left a response or filter responses on the Dashboard.

Step 3: Adding merge tags to the anonymous template

For this example, say your provider uses these merge tags:

User ID: {{USER_ID}}.
Email: {{EMAIL}}.
Name: {{NAME}}.

Open the anonymous template in a text editor. Use the editor's search feature to find every link that starts like this:

https://app.satismeter.com/survey

These are survey links. Recipients follow them to answer the first question and complete the rest of the survey. Each survey link already contains some URL parameters, such as token=...&campaign=.... Leave those parameters unchanged, because SatisMeter uses them to identify your survey.

Add your merge tags as URL parameters at the end of each survey link, with an ampersand before each one: &userId={{USER_ID}}&email={{EMAIL}}&name={{NAME}}. The link ends up looking like this:

https://app.satismeter.com/survey?...&userId={{USER_ID}}&email={{EMAIL}}&name={{NAME}}

All three parameters are optional. If your provider doesn't support one of them, leave it out.

Important: Use your provider's real merge tags, not the example tags above. Keep the existing URL parameters unchanged, and update every survey link in the template.

Step 4: Importing the modified template

Import your custom template into your provider's account. If you're not sure how, search your provider's documentation for "Import HTML template", or contact their support team.

Tip: Send the survey to a few test users before you send it to real users. That way, you can confirm the template and its merge tags work.

If the template doesn't work or a step isn't clear, contact our support team by email or through the chat bubble.

Fixing merge tags that show literally

A merge tag that shows literally in a sent email means the template doesn't match your provider. For example, if recipients see @EMAIL@ (dotmailer syntax) instead of their email address, the wrong provider template was picked.

To fix it, do one of the following:

If your provider is on SatisMeter's list, select that provider's template in the survey designer.
If you use a custom template, replace every merge tag with your provider's exact syntax, as described in Step 3.

Letting SatisMeter send the emails instead

SatisMeter can also send survey emails itself. For a SatisMeter-sent email survey, keep these points in mind:

Each recipient needs an email trait. See Custom user traits for how traits work.
SatisMeter starts sending emails at 15:00 UTC each day.
Reminders are off by default. When you turn them on, SatisMeter sends a reminder one week after a person becomes eligible.
SatisMeter sends reminders to at most 2% of the project's users per day.

For setup steps, see Launching your first email survey and Email reminders.