This is not a TEST

The Hunt
One of the most critical components for a successful email is getting it out the door and in to your customer’s inbox in a quick and timely fashion. Last-minute sales, special offers or time sensitive deals don’t have a long shelf life. That old adage, "Haste Makes Waste" is often overlooked and your rush to get your next campaign launched could possibly leave your customers guessing on what exactly just landed in their inbox.

The Skunk
Virgin America's fresh looking website and emails are smart and cleverly written - heck, they don't even service my departure point here in the Windy City and I still add to their open and click through rate. As a somewhat recent addition to the domestic low-cost airline industry (August 2007), it didn't take long before I had subscribed to their email program.

I've been holding on to this email "goody" for a few weeks. Let's just say that I've created and launched my fair share of email communications over the years so when this one hit my inbox with the subject line TEST preceding the planned subject line content (note fancy arrow and highlight below), I couldn't help but cringe when I thought about the flurry of internal emails that must have been waiting in the sender's email the next day. The little skunk below is most likely a result moving too quickly and not having a proper quality assurance testing process in place. Once the email is out the door, little can be done after it lands in the inbox. Ouch.

The Resolution Even with the best testing and QA procedures, mistakes do happen. What I've found is that these types of mistakes are often a consequence of circumventing the process when time is short. Make time in the production and launch process to systematically review all parts of the message. Take note of the following nuggets before you click send.

• Create, implement and adhere to a QA process/form. Reduce the risk of email errors by using a check list to proof your email messages. Whether you are an email team of one or of many, a QA form helps with tired eyes and can be your backup when there is a time crunch.
  
  
• Use a second set of eyes. Enlist the person in your office that is always correcting your internal correspondence. You know the one; they hit REPLY ALL and corrected your quick note letting everyone know that there was birthday cake in the break room. Seriously, a second set of fresh eyes can help catch a multitude of email errors. Find a backup stickler.
  
  
• Launch to an internal seed list first. Even after a thorough proofing round, there is bound to be someone who picks up on something that was overlooked. When possible, launch to your internal seed list and schedule your email to your recipient list only after some time for feedback and perhaps some good hearted ribbing.
  
  
• Don't push it – too much. We could all use another hour or two added to the day check off a few more of those to-do items. Set appropriate expectations for not only yourself but for others that have a say in your email program. Pushing back an email launch an hour or so to ensure that everything is correct can cause less grief than explaining why TEST was in your live subject line.
  

Oh, one last thing. Use caution when adding TEST to you subject line.