Today is Email Thursday and I’m your presenter Jin. Today I’ll be talking about what to do in the event that you make a mistake when sending a campaign.Let’s say you launched a campaign and despite all your QA efforts, you realize after it’s done launching that you’ve made an error. This error could be a minor one, a typo for example, to something a bit more substantial like you forgot to include the coupon code for your offer. So what do you do in this situation?

First, take a deep breath.

Even the most seasoned email marketers and big brands make errors. I won’t call anyone in particular out here in a visual, because again, mistakes can happen to anyone.

Second – ask yourself this important question: Is this mistake likely going to result in lost revenue or anger the recipient? If the answer is yes, then it’s time to follow-up with an apology email. If not, leave it alone.

So, things like a subject line mistake, a minor coding error, and spelling and/or grammar errors – there is no need to draw extra attention to them, especially at the risk of sending the subscriber another email the same day. However, things like misstating the offer, sending the email to the wrong segment or target, or if you have major rendering issues – these things all affect clicks and sales. So it’s time to own up to your mistake and send an apology email.

First and foremost only send the apology email to the people that are affected. If the mistake was misstating an offer or something along those lines, keep it simple. Use the subject line and/or the pre-header to correct your mistake. If however, the mistake was more major, like if the template was severely broken or the email was sent and then the website went down, create a dedicated email acknowledging and explaining the error. But what’s the best way to approach that message?

Here are some key things to remember when crafting a dedicated apology email.

1. Time is of the essence here. Send it as soon as you can to minimize the error. If you catch them soon enough, they may not even get to the wrong message.
2. Make it crystal clear in the subject line that you’re apologizing, and what you are apologizing for.
3. Acknowledge your mistake, apologize for it, and if applicable, let them know how you are fixing the error.
4. Don’t go overboard. The message should get straight to the point and not be lengthy.
5. And most of all, triple check your apology email. You don’t want to be in the position of needing to send a second apology email in response to a first apology email.

Again, remember that everyone makes mistakes. The important thing is how you deal with them. Learn more about other email best practices by requesting a free email opportunity audit. In the meantime, tune in next week to learn more about getting the most out of your email marketing program!