> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tixfix.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Recipients and variables

> Target the right people and personalize the message with merge variables

Two things decide whether an email works: reaching the right people, and reading as though it were written for them. The **Select Recipients** block handles the first; merge variables handle the second.

***

## Choose your recipients

Three options sit at the top of the compose screen:

| Option            | Sub-label           | Use it for                                                                     |
| ----------------- | ------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Current event** | *By ticket type*    | The people registered for the event you selected, filtered by ticket category. |
| **Past event**    | *Choose past event* | The audience from a previous event.                                            |
| **Upload CSV**    | *Custom email list* | Any list of your own.                                                          |

### Current event

The default, and the right choice for anything operational — reminders, schedule changes, door information.

Because you can target **by ticket type**, you can send to one tier only. VIP arrival instructions go to VIP holders without confusing general admission.

### Past event

The tool for filling your next show. Everyone who came to the last one is your warmest audience — announce the new date to them before you announce it publicly.

<Tip>
  Pair this with a [promo code](/events/promo-codes) to give returning attendees a reason to book early.
</Tip>

### Upload CSV

For a list that doesn't exist in TixFix — a mailing list, a partner's audience, a corporate roster.

<Warning>
  Only email people who agreed to hear from you. Uploading a purchased or scraped list damages your sending reputation and, depending on where your recipients are, may be illegal.
</Warning>

***

## Personalize with variables

Two merge variables are available in both the subject and the body, as clickable chips above each field:

| Variable        | Becomes                         |
| --------------- | ------------------------------- |
| `{{name}}`      | The recipient's name.           |
| `{{eventName}}` | The name of the selected event. |

Click the chip to insert the variable at your cursor rather than typing it, which avoids typos — a misspelled variable sends literally, and every recipient sees the raw text instead of their name.

**A subject line like this:**

> `{{name}}`, your tickets for `{{eventName}}` are ready

**arrives as:**

> Priya, your tickets for Summer Rooftop Social are ready

<Tip>
  Send yourself a test first where you can. Nothing undermines an announcement quite like `Hi {{name}},` at the top of it.
</Tip>

***

## Replies

Every email is sent on behalf of your organizer via TixFix, and replies go to the organizer email address from your profile — not to TixFix. Make sure it's an address someone actually reads. See [Set up your organizer profile](/get-started/organizer-profile).

***

## Sending

Once recipients and content are set, continue in [Email your attendees](/communication/email-attendees).