# My messages sent with blank or broken variables

> Why a message went out as 'Hi ,': missing fallbacks, wrong variable names, and how the safety check catches it first.

Source: https://doreach.co/help/troubleshooting/messages-show-empty-variables/
Last updated: 2026-08-14

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"Hi ," is a variable that resolved to nothing. There are three reasons it happens.

## 1. No fallback

The prospect has no value for that field, so it renders empty.

Fix: give every variable a fallback.

`{{first_name|there}}` · `{{company|your team}}` · `{{role|your role}}`

The pre-launch safety check flags variables without fallbacks. It is worth not skipping.

## 2. The variable name does not match

Tags are lowercase with underscores and must match exactly. `{{firstName}}` and `{{firstname}}` are not `{{first_name}}`. Only seven tags exist, and there is no company or job title tag. Doreach flags anything else as an unsupported merge tag before launch.

Fix: use the variable picker in the editor rather than typing them, and check custom names against the import mapping.

## 3. Imported data is missing or shifted

A CSV where a column was mapped to the wrong field, or where many rows are simply blank.

Fix: open **Prospects**, filter for empty values in the field, and check the mapping. Reimport if columns were shifted. The preview on the mapping screen exists to catch this.

## Preview before launching

Every message step has a **Preview** that renders against real prospects from your audience. Step through 10–15 of them. Blank and odd values are obvious immediately, and this costs a minute against a mistake that goes to hundreds of people.

## If it already went out

Pause the campaign so more do not follow. The messages cannot be unsent.

In practice a plain "Hi," reads as slightly terse rather than obviously automated, so it is rarely worth apologising for and drawing attention to. Fix the fallback, preview, resume. If a message went out with something worse, such as a literal `{{headline}}` in the text, a short human correction to those specific people usually lands fine.

## Common questions

### Why did my outreach message send with a blank name?

The variable had no value for that prospect and no fallback was set, so it rendered as nothing. Setting a fallback like {{first_name|there}} prevents it, and Doreach's pre-launch safety check flags variables that have no fallback.