Dunning email templates, ready to paste

Day 0: the first notice

Subject: Your [Product] payment didn't go through

Hi [First name],

We tried to collect [amount] for [Product], but [reason in plain words]. It happens to everyone.

[What to do: “Adding your new card takes under a minute.”]

[Button: Update payment]

Day 1: the short reminder

Subject: Quick reminder about your [Product] payment

Hi [First name],

A quick follow-up: [amount] for [Product] is still pending because [reason].

[What to do]

[Button]

Day 3: after the retry

Subject: Reminder: [amount] still due to [Product]

Hi [First name],

Your [amount] payment for [Product] is still open. We tried the card again, without success.

[What to do]

[Button]

Day 5: final notice

Subject: Keeping your [Product] account open

Hi [First name],

This is our last reminder about [amount] for [Product]. We'd hate to pause your access over a card problem.

[What to do]

[Button: Keep my account]

The “what to do” line, by reason

Reason	Say	Button
Expired card	the card on file has expired · Adding your new card takes under a minute.	Add my new card
Insufficient funds	the charge was declined for insufficient funds · We'll try again in a few days, or you can pay now with any card.	Pay now
3-D Secure	your bank asked you to confirm the payment · One tap on the secure page below and it's done.	Confirm the payment
Other declines	your bank declined the charge · It's usually temporary. You can retry now with the same or another card.	Retry the payment
Lost / stolen / fraud	your bank declined the card on file · The quickest fix is to use another card. (never name the real reason)	Use another card

The link

Every Stripe invoice has a hosted invoice page (hosted_invoice_url): the customer can pay or change card there without logging in. Use it as the button target.

Want to see these rewritten for your product, reason and tone? The live demo on the home page uses exactly this engine.