You’re not alone if the mushiness of Valentine’s Day gets you depressed or if you simply can’t connect this year. We decided to ask our staff about the emails that had upset them the most in the spirit of brokenheartedness. We chose to share these with you since we believe in learning from errors.

Without further ado, here are the email gaffes that made our crew cry. May we be better as a result of them! :

1. Confusion of messages

“I recently got an email offering an additional 20% off a brand’s sale, but when I followed the offered link, it sent me to a website that encouraged me to sign up to get information about their next sale.” So, before you send an email, consult with your operations staff.” -Rachael Goodrich, Partnerships Manager

Lesson: Make sure all of your colleagues are on the same page and aware of any outgoing emails, even if you believe they are unaffected.

2. Overly dependent

“I despise it when a company I like sends me too many emails, and I see this a lot with retail businesses.” As if I could have missed the three emails they sent me earlier advertising their ‘big discount,’ they keep sending more. This sometimes causes me to get so upset that I unsubscribe, just to find myself back in the cycle once I buy anything from them again.” -Corporate Marketing Manager, Maranda Doney

Lesson: Be aware of your send cadence and do A/B testing to discover the ideal timing and material to send to your subscribers. Choose quality over quantity when sending emails. (Tip: Use Emma Insights to determine the optimal timing and methods for sending emails to your unique audience.)

3. Excessive use of emojis

“Illegible subject line emojis have become a concern.” I enjoy it when a business utilizes two of the same emoji to bookend a subject line, but when they’re simply tossed in wherever, it seems spammy.” Chief Product Officer, Cody Bender

Remember to use emoji with purpose! Choose emojis that compliment and improve your email rather than detract from it.

4. Seeks attention

“A brand continues emailing me subject lines with an emoji at the beginning of them, which is the Mac version of “unread.” Their email certainly sticks out in my inbox, but not in a positive way.” -Matthias Mueller, Senior Marketing Analytics Manager

Lesson: Not all attention is beneficial. You don’t want to deceive your email recipients into opening it. Encourage them instead with useful material and stunning graphics!

5. Hasty transmission

“A certain huge store sends me emails on a regular basis urging me to stock up on non-consumable things.” Something like, ‘It may be time to recharge that laptop charger!’ Senior Quality Engineer James Fuston

Lesson: When designing automated processes, consider every conceivable circumstance and organize your content appropriately.

6. Ghosting

“It truly bothers me when I sign up for a company’s emails on their website and they do not send me a welcome email!” I’ve indicated an interest in knowing more about them, but the fact that I haven’t heard back makes me believe that the interest isn’t reciprocal. Demonstrate to prospective consumers that you care about them. Ghosting is not acceptable!” Content Specialist Kaitlin Wernet

Finish up

Isn’t it true that even the most damaged of hearts may teach us something? What email gaffes are you thinking about on Valentine’s Day? We’re all in it together!