Who can forget the waiting period between applying to college and finding out if you’re accepted or rejected? This tense period can be brutal on university hopefuls. One little envelope can cover you in the warm glow of acceptance or crush your spirits with a nicely worded rejection. Or, in some cases, an e-mail can do both.
Some 29,000 applicants to UCSD were mistakenly sent acceptance e-mails in April. They were soaked in the warm glow of acceptance and then delivered the cold hand of rejection as the school informed them of the mistake. Correction e-mails were sent nearly 2 hours later, ending what must have been one heck of an emotional rollercoaster ride for these kids.
I can’t help but feel for these college hopefuls. But, given that there were 46,377 e-mails sent to applicants, it’s not surprising that such a mistake occurred. One little wrong click can result in massive problems, as evidenced by the UCSD mailings. It just goes to show all you marketers out there; always triple check where you are sending your mailings because you don’t want to be accountable for big problems that can arise out of a simple mistake.
