How to Use Personalization Tags Correctly in Email Marketing

Hello [reader_first_name]

Sounds weird, right? That’s what the readers feel when your personalization tags fail in the emails you send… - say something like this

Personalization in email marketing is a powerful way to improve engagement, but when done incorrectly, it backfires.

This guide shows you how to use personalization tags the right way — so your emails feel natural, smart, and error-free.

What are personalization tags?

Personalization tags are dynamic placeholders in your email that pull in contact-specific data at the moment an email is sent.

Common examples include:

• {{first_name}} becomes John

• {{company}} becomes Acme Corp

• {{location}} becomes New York

Basically, instead of writing personalized messages for each recipient, you design a flexible email that adapts to each recipient using the data you already have in your contact database.

Why do personalization tags fail?

Despite being simple in concept, many marketers misuse or overlook important tag details. Here are common issues:

• Wrong tag format for the email platform (e.g., using {location} instead of [location])

• No fallback values, resulting in empty fields

• Inconsistent or uncleaned data (e.g., “test”, “john doe”, “N/A” in your contacts data)

• Typos in tag names (e.g., {{frist_name}})

Why common fixes don’t always work

When personalization breaks, many teams go for temporary approaches that may reduce visible issues in the short term.

But they do not create a stable foundation for long-term personalization across campaigns, segments, and channels. These include:

• Manually cleaning lists on a one-off basis

• Using only first-name personalization to stay “safe”

• Adding delays to workflows without fixing root logic

• Relying on the ESP to catch and correct errors

When personalization breaks, many teams rely on temporary fixes. While these may resolve visible issues for now, they will not prevent future mistakes.

To truly fix personalization errors, you need to follow the practices outlined below.

How to use personalization tags correctly

Here are some tactics you can use to implement personalization tags effectively:

1. Know your platform’s tag syntax

Every platform has its own personalization tag format. So you must always refer to your platform’s documentation before building templates. Even a single missing brace can prevent the tag from rendering.

For instance:

• Mailmodo uses ${First name}

• Mailchimp uses |FNAME|

• Klaviyo uses variations like {{ first_name|title }}

2. Always use fallback values

Fallback values define what should appear in the email when the actual data is missing in the contact list. Without them, the blank fields or broken greetings become visible to the recipient.

For example, Hi {{first_name | fallback:"there"}} renders as “Hi there” when the first name of the subscriber is unavailable.

If you’re using an ESP like Mailmodo, adding fallback values is easy. Once you add personalization tags in your template, the system automatically asks you to define a default value so every email renders clean even if the data is missing.

3. Clean and standardize your contact data

Personalization is only as good as the data mapped to it. Before you rely on tags at scale, make sure your contact records follow consistent standards.

Some good practices include:

• Consistent capitalization across names and locations.

• Removing junk values like “test,” “demo,” or keyboard mash.

• Verifying that all CRM fields map correctly to your ESP

4. Test with multiple contact scenarios

Never test personalization with a single ideal contact. You need to see how your email behaves across realistic data conditions.

Run tests for:

• Contacts with complete as well as incomplete profiles

• Contacts missing key fields

• Edge cases with unusual names or blank attributes

These tests surface broken fallbacks, spacing issues, and formatting problems before they reach a live audience.

5. Go beyond first-name personalization

First name personalization is only a starting point. Many of the strongest personalization moments come from behavioral and contextual data.

So, you must use multiple attributes to make your personalization more effective. You can personalize with:

• Location using {{city}}

• Plan or tier using {{subscription_plan}}

• Recent activity using {{last_product_viewed}}

Implementing these strategies is easy if you’re using an easy-to-use ESP like Mailmodo. Mailmodo also supports advanced personalization with live elements like images that update based on user behavior and real-time event data. This allows your emails to stay relevant even after they land in the inbox.

Final thoughts

When used with care, personalization tags make your emails feel relevant and human. When handled casually, they signal automation errors and weaken trust.

The difference comes down to a disciplined setup. Clean data, correct syntax, reliable fallbacks, and real-world testing form the foundation of dependable personalization.

With platforms like Mailmodo supporting conditional logic and dynamic content, you gain more control over how personalization shows up and when it adapts.