Shame. Embarrassment. TERROR! These are just three of the frightening emotions that email marketers have experienced after sending a mass email with a mistake.

Sometimes the mistake is harmless, like a small typo. Sometimes it’s a DOOZY, like misidentifying a donor, sending to the wrong list, or using inappropriate phrases as placeholder text (stupid headline here!).

One thing is certain — press send enough times and you will make a mistake. Learn from it! Sometimes the resent email performs better than the original in terms of opens and click-throughs.

When to Send an Oops Email

via GIPHY

  • As soon as possible!
  • When you have a
    • Bad link
    • Error in critical information (date, location, time, etc.)
    • Landing pages or website doesn’t work
    • Sending the wrong email to the wrong segment
    • Really bad formatting

Remember to apologize, keep it short, and make sure the corrected information is clear.

36 “Oops!” Email Subject Lines and Phrases

via GIPHY

I searched my inbox to find subject lines and phrases you can use when this happens to you. (HINT: Scan you own inbox to see who’s apologized to you!)

Subject Lines

  1. [Oops, we’re a bit late]
  2. [OOPS] I goofed! Corrected date.
  3. Corrected Date
  4. Corrected Link
  5. Corrected Tweets
  6. Corrected Version
  7. Correction
  8. Oops
  9. Oops – link fixed!
  10. Oops, a typo!
  11. Oops, a wee bug
  12. Oops: corrected link
  13. Oops! Our Mistake
  14. Oops! Site is live again and holiday card sale is extended!
  15. Oops! Sorry mobile users
  16. Oops! We Made a Mistake
  17. Oops! We meant to say
  18. Updates and Corrections
  19. Whoops
  20. Whoops! That was a mistake
  21. With Corrected Links
  22. Yikes! Corrected date

Phrases

  1. An error in our system may have caused you to receive a confusing email from us. We have corrected the problem. Here’s the email you should have received.
  2. Dreadfully sorry about that
  3. Due to a slight hiccup
  4. Due to technical difficulties…
  5. Here is the correct information
  6. I really do apologize
  7. Many of you wrote to let me know that X wasn’t working
  8. Sorry for the confusion
  9. Uh oh! It seems our email system hit a technical glitch. We’ve fixed the issue now.
  10. We may have sent out an email with the wrong subject line. The message is still the same.
  11. We now have the corrected version on X
  12. We’re really sorry.
  13. We apologize for the mistake
  14. You just received an email that I didn’t mean to send you

Oops Further Reading

6 Clever Examples of “Oops!” Emails

The Best 7 Apology / Oops Email Examples in 2023

Oops! Email Mistakes Happen

The Art of the “Oops” – Email Mistakes and What To Do About Them

Handle Your Oops: 5 Types of Email Mistakes and How to Fix Them


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This post was updated July 13, 2023

Published On: July 13, 2023|Categories: Email Marketing|