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[Design] Emailability: Improve verification email
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Authored By
JTannerWMF
Feb 8 2019, 9:57 PM
Referenced Files
F61626208: image.png
Jun 5 2025, 9:27 AM
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F28388325: Screen Shot 2019-03-14 at 9.22.19 AM.png
Mar 14 2019, 4:38 PM
F28388312: Screen Shot 2019-03-14 at 9.21.52 AM.png
Mar 14 2019, 4:38 PM

Description

Problem

The current verification (confirmation) email can be perceived as alarming, especially with language about the user's IP address. We intend to update the verification email so that it is more welcoming to users, so that they feel encouraged to interact with the links and verify their email.

Proposed solution

Update the verification email to have more welcoming language, so that users feel encouraged to click the verification link.

Proposed design (without BIMI)

email listemail content
image.png (1×750 px, 131 KB)
image.png (1×750 px, 127 KB)
image.png (1×2 px, 204 KB)
image.png (1×2 px, 207 KB)

Note: We recommend using the landscape/horizontal version, instead of the portrait/vertical one (FYI horizontal SVG logos were created as part of Vector 2022 roll-out).

Proposed design (with BIMI)

email listemail content
image.png (1×750 px, 137 KB)
image.png (1×750 px, 106 KB)
Email contents in the mock as text

Subject:

Confirm your email

Email message:

Welcome {{USERNAME}},

Your {{SITENAME}} account is almost complete. Finish by confirming your email below.

[[Confirm your email]]

If this wasn't you, you can ignore this message or remove your email address from the account.

Email button link:

Special:ConfirmEmail

Email footer link:

Special:InvalidateEmail

Design specs

https://www.figma.com/design/6US3OlzBWHfz2TVEDSbHbU/T215665-improve-verification-email?node-id=75-2089&t=NpshtotizR5JurVa-1

Related Objects

Event Timeline

While researching related things, I found that some wikis customize this message. Examples: English Wikipedia, MediaWiki.org

The default message has basically not changed since the email confirmation feature was introduced in 2005. Below is the full history of every non-whitespace change that has ever been made to the text of the confirmation email:

There was only one substantive change to the main confirmation email (that you get when signing up for an account) since its introduction: the March 2008 change adding the cancellation link.

Thanks, @Catrope. It's been so long since I created my English Wikipedia and Mediawiki.org accounts that I forgot that those confirmation emails are different. Since the technology exists for customizing the content, and since those two wikis don't include any mention of IP addresses, I think that makes it seem like we wouldn't be missing anything major by doing the work in this task.

Change 493144 had a related patch set uploaded (by Catrope; owner: Catrope):
[mediawiki/extensions/GrowthExperiments@master] [WIP] Override confirmation email

https://gerrit.wikimedia.org/r/493144

Change 493143 had a related patch set uploaded (by Catrope; owner: Catrope):
[mediawiki/core@master] Add UserSendConfirmationMail hook

https://gerrit.wikimedia.org/r/493143

Change 493143 merged by jenkins-bot:
[mediawiki/core@master] Add UserSendConfirmationMail hook

https://gerrit.wikimedia.org/r/493143

Change 493144 merged by jenkins-bot:
[mediawiki/extensions/GrowthExperiments@master] Override confirmation email with redesigned version if so configured

https://gerrit.wikimedia.org/r/493144

@MMiller_WMF did we talk about redirecting the user to their homepage after they click the confirmation email? Special:ConfirmEmail is kind of a dead end.

All specs seem to be in place (and confirmation functionality works):

Screen Shot 2019-03-14 at 9.21.52 AM.png (580×947 px, 107 KB)

However, when the confirmation period expired (or a user deletes the email address in his preferences before confirming it), the page to which users would be re-directed does not have any suggestions what to do next:

Screen Shot 2019-03-14 at 9.22.19 AM.png (216×731 px, 22 KB)

MMiller_WMF moved this task from Inbox to FY 2019-20 on the Growth-Team board.

Our team has decided that we will not be working on this project during Q4. Moving it to the next fiscal year.

Catrope unsubscribed.
KStoller-WMF renamed this task from Emailability: Improve verification email to [Design] Emailability: Improve verification email.May 7 2025, 10:11 PM
KStoller-WMF added a subscriber: AAlhazwani-WMF.
AAlhazwani-WMF changed the task status from Open to In Progress.May 21 2025, 4:13 PM

some updates on this task. we conducted a comp analysis where we reviewed existing verification emails from other services.

after a few rounds of design we landed on a proposal. if we're able to solve T311685 T167337 then we can opt for a solution where we don't need to include the logo in the email body given that it's already displayed as a contact image.

email subject:

Confirm your email

email body:

Welcome {{USERNAME}},

Your {{SITENAME}} account is almost complete. Finish by confirming your email below.

[[Confirm your email]]

If this wasn't you, you can ignore this message or remove your email address from the account.

email button goes to: Special:ConfirmEmail

email footer link goes to: Special:InvalidateEmail

email listemail content
image.png (1×750 px, 137 KB)
image.png (1×750 px, 106 KB)

if we're not able to solve those BIMI-related tasks, we should include the logo in the email body. we recommend using the landscape/horizontal version, instead of the portrait/vertical one (JFYI horizontal SVG logos were created as part of Vector 2022 roll-out). all the rest is the same as above.

email listemail content
image.png (1×750 px, 131 KB)
image.png (1×750 px, 127 KB)
image.png (1×2 px, 204 KB)
image.png (1×2 px, 207 KB)

figma design specs: https://www.figma.com/design/6US3OlzBWHfz2TVEDSbHbU/T215665-improve-verification-email?node-id=75-2089&t=NpshtotizR5JurVa-1

KStoller-WMF subscribed.

Thank you! Let's resolved this design task, and I've created the follow-up engineering task:
T396155: Improve verification email

Could something like this short text be added to the confirmation mail? I think it would substantially increase newcomer engagement, help get more things done, and help users get started:

By the way, if you are looking for things to do, check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Task_Center

(Seems like a more useful link than https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Community_portal#Help_out as of right now)

This design task is resolved. Please file a separate ticket with steps to see/reproduce something somewhere. Thanks.