How to Personalize Emails With Your Subscriber’s Name (or custom details) in Flodesk

Adding a subscriber’s name or custom details to your emails makes your message feel more human—and more effective. With Flodesk, personalizing your emails is fast, simple, and can help boost open and click rates.

Personal touches help build trust and connection. Imagine how these subject lines land:

• I'd love to get your thoughts on this, Kate

• Toya—I wish more people asked me this

• Your next steps, Mike

• Hit reply and let me know if you’re here for it, Tasha.

To personalize emails, you’ll:

1. Collect subscriber data (like name or custom info) using forms. You can also add these details when uploading a CSV file of subscribers.

2. Insert that data into your email content using personalization fields by typing the @-sign into a plain Text block

3. Add fallback values to ensure emails still read well if data is missing

You must collect subscriber data before you can use it in emails.

To add name fields and custom fields to your form:

1. Go to Forms > + New form

2. Choose your form type: Popup, Inline, Full page, or Link in Bio

3. In the form editor, click into any form field to open the Fields tab on the right

4. Click + Add field and choose:

   • First name and/or Last name

   • Or select Custom field to collect something unique (like Wedding Month, Pet's Name)

Personalization fields can only be added to plain Text blocks.

Important: Personalization does not work inside Layouts. Layouts are converted into images, and images can’t read personalization code.

To insert personalization into your email body:

1. Add a plain Text block to your email

2. Click where you want the personalization (for example: after “Hey”)

3. Type @ to open the personalization menu

4. Select the field (for example: First name)

5. Add a fallback value (highly recommended)

6. Click Insert field

Example:
Hey @FirstName →

• Displays as Hey Amy if a name exists

• Displays as Hey friend if no name exists

You can repeat this anywhere inside the same Text block.

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Custom fields work the same way as first names.

If you’ve collected data like:

• Wedding Month

• Business Name

• Pet’s Name

Simply type @ in a Text block and select the matching custom field.

You can also personalize before your email is opened.

To personalize subject lines or preview text:

1. Click into the Subject line or Preview text field

2. Type @ and choose a personalization field

3. Add a fallback value

This creates an instant personal connection in the inbox.

The same way, you can pull in data from custom fields that you collected from your subscribers.

Flodesk supports a code snippet within email links that allows you to insert your subscribers’ email addresses into your email URL parameters, enabling them to be captured by third-party sites.

This is important if you're a Raptive user, for example, and want to set up Newsletter Identity Capture via clickthrough URLs in your email newsletters to capture your subscribers’ email addresses.

To utilize this functionality, simply add this to the end of the clickthrough URL for all of your Flodesk email newsletters and sequences:

?adt_ei={{ subscriber.email }}

Example:

https://homedecorsite.com/article1/?adt_ei={{ subscriber.email }}

• Collect names or custom data using form fields

• Use personalization in plain Text blocks, subject lines, and preview text

• Type @ to insert personalization fields

• Always add fallback values

Used thoughtfully, personalization makes your emails feel more relevant, more human, and more likely to earn a reply—or a click.

Can I personalize emails in Flodesk?
Yes. You can personalize emails using subscriber names or custom fields in plain Text blocks, subject lines, and preview text.

Why isn’t personalization working in my email layout?
Personalization doesn’t work inside Layouts because Layouts are converted into images, which can’t read personalization data.

What happens if a subscriber doesn’t have a name?
If you add a fallback value (like “friend”), Flodesk will display that instead of leaving the space blank.

Can I use custom fields for personalization?
Yes. Any custom field you collect (such as Wedding Month or Business Name or Instagram handle) can be inserted using the @-symbol into a plain Text block.