Smart Emails
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Getting Started

9 articles Manfred By Manfred

What is Smart Emails?

Smart Emails is a visual editor for all 52 supported Shopify notification templates — including order confirmations, shipping updates, returns, gift cards, customer notifications, POS receipts, and Shopify Messaging automations. How does it work? Smart Emails works in two phases: 1. Design phase — Choose a preset and customize colors, fonts, buttons, logo, footer, sections, and content in the visual editor. 2. Installation phase — Generate your templates in Smart Emails, then copy and save the primary-language HTML in the corresponding Shopify notification. Shopify does not allow apps to replace the primary notification body automatically. 3. Live phase — After installation, many day-to-day settings are read from Shopify Metafields when an email is sent. Structural changes still require a new export. What makes it different? - 30 professional presets — 10 design sets with three coordinated color variations each - 52 supported Shopify templates — transactional notifications, POS emails, staff notifications, and selected Shopify Messaging automations - Live settings — colors, buttons, footer, banner, and other Metafield-based settings can update without replacing the primary template code - Auto-translation — choose from 33 supported languages and use up to 20 email languages in one shop design set - No code — you never see HTML, CSS, or Liquid Additional languages are translated with Google Cloud Translation. Smart Emails can automatically install localized bodies for the 44 notification templates Shopify exposes for translation when their primary templates are already installed.

How do I install Smart Emails?

Installing Smart Emails on your Shopify store takes less than a minute. 1. Visit the Smart Emails listing in the Shopify App Store. 2. Select Add app. 3. Review and approve the requested permissions. 4. Shopify opens the Smart Emails dashboard. Note: Smart Emails needs permission to read relevant shop data, including products, orders, and branding, to create realistic previews. Generating an export does not replace a primary Shopify notification automatically. You decide which primary templates to install.

How do I choose a design preset?

Smart Emails comes with 30 preset variations — 10 professionally designed base sets, each with three coordinated color variations. The displayed variation names depend on the selected base set. 1. Open the Smart Emails dashboard. 2. Browse the presets. Each preset shows a full preview. 3. Select the preset you want to use. 4. Select your primary language. 5. Start editing. Every preset includes coordinated colors, fonts, buttons, spacing, footer settings, and section defaults. You can customize everything afterwards — the preset is only the starting point. Important: Applying another base preset changes the design and structure used by your templates. Save a design snapshot first if you may want to return to the current version. Structural changes require a fresh primary-language export.

How does the editor work?

The Smart Emails editor opens inside Shopify and has three main areas: - Settings panel — Edit text, colors, images, spacing, and section-specific options. - Canvas — A live visual preview of the currently selected template. - Toolbar — Open global settings, switch preview width, undo or redo changes, send a test, and start an export. Making changes 1. Select a section in the canvas. 2. The matching controls open in the settings panel. 3. Make your changes. The canvas updates immediately. 4. Wait until the saving indicator has finished before leaving the editor. Switching templates Use the template picker to switch between all 52 supported templates. Global design settings such as colors, typography, buttons, logo, and footer are shared. The section structure and template-specific text can differ by template. Desktop and mobile preview Use the Desktop/Mobile toggle to preview different widths. A real test email remains the final check because Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail, and other email clients use different rendering engines. Primary and secondary languages The primary-language editor contains the complete design and structure controls. Secondary-language editors focus on translated text. Design changes are inherited from the primary design so all languages remain visually synchronized. Important: Auto-Save protects your work, but a completed save does not automatically replace the primary HTML stored in Shopify when the structure has changed.

Do I need coding knowledge?

No. Smart Emails is a fully visual editor — you don’t need any coding knowledge. Everything is done through visual controls like color pickers, dropdowns, and toggles. For advanced users, there is an optional custom Liquid code field per section for special display conditions. But for normal use, you never need to touch code.

Where do I find my emails in Shopify?

Your Shopify notification emails are here: 1. Open Shopify Admin → Settings → Notifications. 2. Find the notification you want to install, such as an order confirmation or shipping update. 3. Open the notification to preview or edit its email body. This is where you paste the HTML code from Smart Emails during the export process.

What changes go live instantly?

Smart Emails uses Shopify Metafields for supported live settings. These values are read when Shopify creates an email. Structural changes remain part of the installed HTML and require a new export. Instant (no re-export) - Colors (background, text, links, buttons) - Typography (font family, sizes) - Button styling (filled, outline, radius) - Header logo (image, size, alignment) - Footer text (legal, copyright, social links, free text) - Message Banner (text, colors, on/off per template) - Supported marketing-section content and visibility, including discounts, products, gift cards, and reorder settings - Per-language footer, Shop Links, Message Banner, and marketing text stored in locale-specific Metafields Requires re-export - Adding or removing sections - Changing section order - Switching to a different base preset - Converter updates that change the generated HTML structure Important: Primary template HTML cannot be replaced automatically through Shopify's API. When Smart Emails shows a re-export notice, copy the newly generated primary-language code to Shopify. Supported installed secondary-language bodies can then be synchronized automatically.

Complete Setup: From Preset to Multilingual Shopify Emails

Use this checklist when setting up Smart Emails for the first time. 1. Choose the primary language Your primary language is the source for the design, template structure, and automatic translations. Choose the language in which you normally write and maintain the email content. 2. Choose and customize a preset Select one of the 30 preset variations, then open the editor. Configure global colors, typography, buttons, logo, Shop Links, footer, and any marketing sections. Review the individual structure and text of the templates you plan to use. 3. Send a test email Open a template and choose Test Mail in the toolbar. Enter an email address, send the message, and check the result on desktop and mobile. Test important links, images, footer content, and both light and dark mode. 4. Generate the primary templates Click Export to Shopify. Smart Emails saves the design and generates the HTML for every template available on your plan. 5. Install the primary language in Shopify Go to Exports, select a template, and copy its code. Open the Shopify destination shown by Smart Emails, replace the notification body, and save it. Repeat this for each primary template you want to use. Shopify does not allow an app to replace the primary notification body automatically. This copy-and-save step is therefore required once per primary template and again after structural changes. 6. Add secondary languages Return to the Smart Emails Home page and click Add Language. Select the required languages and confirm. Smart Emails then: - creates a language-specific design set - copies the primary design - translates supported text with Google Cloud Translation - enables and publishes the locale in Shopify - installs the translated body_html for every supported, translatable primary template already installed You do not manually export the secondary-language versions. Smart Emails offers 33 interface and email-content languages. A shop can keep up to 20 email languages in one design set, including its primary language. Add only the languages that the shop actually uses. 7. Check Email Status Open Email Status to verify which primary templates and language versions are present. If a language was added before a primary template was installed, install the primary template first and then run the offered synchronization. 8. Trigger a real Shopify notification Create a test order or trigger the relevant notification. This final test verifies Shopify Liquid data, customer-language selection, the subject line, and the email body together. Current limitation: Smart Emails automatically installs translated email bodies for the 44 notification templates Shopify exposes for translation. Shopify notification subject lines are separate and are not currently translated by Smart Emails.

How Do I Add, Move, and Delete Sections?

Each of the 52 templates has its own section structure. Select the template you want to change before adding, moving, or deleting a section. Add a section 1. Select a section in the canvas. 2. Click the + control at the position where the new section should appear. 3. Choose one of the sections available for that template. 4. Configure its content and settings in the settings panel. The list is template-aware. Sections that do not make sense for the current Shopify notification are hidden, and sections that may only appear once cannot be inserted twice. Move a section Select the section and use its up or down controls. Smart Emails respects required positions. For example, the footer remains the final section. Delete a section Select the section and click its delete control. Required sections and globally managed sections can be protected from deletion. Publishing structural changes Section additions, deletions, and order changes alter the generated HTML. After making one of these changes, generate a new export and replace the primary template code in Shopify. Installed secondary languages can then be regenerated automatically from the updated structure. Tip: Undo is available if you remove or move a section by mistake, provided you have not left or reloaded the current editor session.