20 Jan How to Handle Mistakes in Your eBlast or Newsletter

Email marketing produces one of the top ROI percentages for marketers; however, the marketers that send them are only human. Even with extreme attention to detail, mistakes in your eBlast or newsletter do occasionally reach your subscribers’ inboxes. Since there is no ‘un-send’ button, what do you do?

Should you send a correction?

Only send a correction email if the mistake impacts your business. A broken image or small spelling error may not be worth it, as the number one reason people unsubscribe from lists is due to receiving too many emails. Sending a correction email for a small error may frustrate your readers. But for a wrong sales date or phone number, you must send a correction.

Not every typo or broken image deserves an immediate follow up or apology; you don’t want to bother your customers.

When should the correction be sent?

If your mistake is serious enough to warrant a follow-up, do it immediately.

Don’t forget to fix any poor customer experiences your email mistake has caused immediately as well. Consider how it would impact your business if you honored agreements made in error – such as one where a typo in an expiration date extends a sale.

What about broken links?

It depends. Does your link go to a 404 error page? If so, see if your IT department can redirect the broken link to the correct page. If it sends people to the wrong product page, however, then you should send a correction.

Even if you fix the link or send a correction email, many of your subscribers will still have read the email with the original error. As you fix the mistake, consider a plan of action for assisting any potentially frustrated customers who may contact you.

Hopefully these tips will bail you out if you send an eBlast or Newsletter with a mistake. Of course, the best way to fix an error is to never let it happen in the first place. Make sure you are proofreading every aspect of your email, including grammar, punctuation, links, subject lines, recipients and images.

Once it’s proofed, send yourself a test email to make sure everything displays properly.

How have you handled errors in your emails? Share by commenting below!