Support Macros and Templates: The Decisions That Matter
Prewritten replies support teams use for common customer questions.
Dana Whitfield
The key figures
- Consistency
- macros keep answers aligned with policy
- Personalization
- unedited macros read as dismissive
- Maintenance
- macros go stale as policies change
- Analytics
- macro usage shows common problems
Why this is worth getting right
Macros save time and keep answers consistent, but stale or robotic macros make support feel worse.
Do this, not that
Do
- Write macros as starting points, not final replies
- Review macros when policies change
- Track which macros are used most
- Feed common macros back into help content
- Keep tone consistent with the brand
Don’t
- Macros sent unedited
- Macros contradicting current policy
- Libraries nobody prunes
- Support language that differs from marketing
When to bring in help
Our advice Bring in help when support replies feel impersonal.
Where this comes from
- Microsoft Learn — Microsoft Writing Style Guide
- PlainLanguage.gov — Federal Plain Language Guidelines
The figures and practices above come from the sources listed.
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Where to go next
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