diff --git a/dist/cli/index.js b/dist/cli/index.js
index b19ef88..c9ab6b7 100755
--- a/dist/cli/index.js
+++ b/dist/cli/index.js
@@ -303,8 +303,9 @@ exports["default"] = ConfigsParser;
 "use strict";
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", ({ value: true }));
-exports.AuthTokenId = exports.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER = void 0;
+exports.AuthTokenId = exports.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER = exports.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER = void 0;
 exports.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER = "{{error}}";
+exports.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER = "{{target-branch}}";
 var AuthTokenId;
 (function (AuthTokenId) {
     // github specific token
@@ -391,7 +392,7 @@ class PullRequestConfigsParser extends configs_parser_1.default {
     }
     getDefaultErrorComment() {
         // TODO: fetch from arg or set default with placeholder {{error}}
-        return `Backporting failed: ${configs_types_1.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER}`;
+        return `The backport to \`${configs_types_1.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER}\` failed. Check the latest run for more details.`;
     }
     /**
      * Parse the provided labels and return a list of target branches
@@ -1461,11 +1462,11 @@ exports["default"] = Logger;
 "use strict";
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", ({ value: true }));
-exports.injectError = void 0;
+exports.injectTargetBranch = exports.injectError = void 0;
 const configs_types_1 = __nccwpck_require__(4753);
 /**
  * Inject the error message in the provided `message`.
- * This is inject in place of the MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
+ * This is injected in place of the MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
  * @param message string that needs to be updated
  * @param errMsg the error message that needs to be injected
  */
@@ -1473,6 +1474,17 @@ const injectError = (message, errMsg) => {
     return message.replace(configs_types_1.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER, errMsg);
 };
 exports.injectError = injectError;
+/**
+ * Inject the target branch into the provided `message`.
+ * This is injected in place of the MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
+ * @param message string that needs to be updated
+ * @param targetBranch the target branch to inject
+ * @returns
+ */
+const injectTargetBranch = (message, targetBranch) => {
+    return message.replace(configs_types_1.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER, targetBranch);
+};
+exports.injectTargetBranch = injectTargetBranch;
 
 
 /***/ }),
@@ -1559,8 +1571,9 @@ class Runner {
                 this.logger.error(`Something went wrong backporting to ${pr.base}: ${error}`);
                 if (!configs.dryRun && configs.errorNotification.enabled && configs.errorNotification.message.length > 0) {
                     // notify the failure as comment in the original pull request
-                    const comment = (0, runner_util_1.injectError)(configs.errorNotification.message, error);
-                    gitApi.createPullRequestComment(configs.originalPullRequest.url, comment);
+                    let comment = (0, runner_util_1.injectError)(configs.errorNotification.message, error);
+                    comment = (0, runner_util_1.injectTargetBranch)(comment, pr.base);
+                    await gitApi.createPullRequestComment(configs.originalPullRequest.url, comment);
                 }
                 failures.push(error);
             }
diff --git a/dist/gha/index.js b/dist/gha/index.js
index e0541dd..8c9f93d 100755
--- a/dist/gha/index.js
+++ b/dist/gha/index.js
@@ -268,8 +268,9 @@ exports["default"] = ConfigsParser;
 "use strict";
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", ({ value: true }));
-exports.AuthTokenId = exports.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER = void 0;
+exports.AuthTokenId = exports.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER = exports.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER = void 0;
 exports.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER = "{{error}}";
+exports.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER = "{{target-branch}}";
 var AuthTokenId;
 (function (AuthTokenId) {
     // github specific token
@@ -356,7 +357,7 @@ class PullRequestConfigsParser extends configs_parser_1.default {
     }
     getDefaultErrorComment() {
         // TODO: fetch from arg or set default with placeholder {{error}}
-        return `Backporting failed: ${configs_types_1.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER}`;
+        return `The backport to \`${configs_types_1.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER}\` failed. Check the latest run for more details.`;
     }
     /**
      * Parse the provided labels and return a list of target branches
@@ -1426,11 +1427,11 @@ exports["default"] = Logger;
 "use strict";
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", ({ value: true }));
-exports.injectError = void 0;
+exports.injectTargetBranch = exports.injectError = void 0;
 const configs_types_1 = __nccwpck_require__(4753);
 /**
  * Inject the error message in the provided `message`.
- * This is inject in place of the MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
+ * This is injected in place of the MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
  * @param message string that needs to be updated
  * @param errMsg the error message that needs to be injected
  */
@@ -1438,6 +1439,17 @@ const injectError = (message, errMsg) => {
     return message.replace(configs_types_1.MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER, errMsg);
 };
 exports.injectError = injectError;
+/**
+ * Inject the target branch into the provided `message`.
+ * This is injected in place of the MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
+ * @param message string that needs to be updated
+ * @param targetBranch the target branch to inject
+ * @returns
+ */
+const injectTargetBranch = (message, targetBranch) => {
+    return message.replace(configs_types_1.MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER, targetBranch);
+};
+exports.injectTargetBranch = injectTargetBranch;
 
 
 /***/ }),
@@ -1524,8 +1536,9 @@ class Runner {
                 this.logger.error(`Something went wrong backporting to ${pr.base}: ${error}`);
                 if (!configs.dryRun && configs.errorNotification.enabled && configs.errorNotification.message.length > 0) {
                     // notify the failure as comment in the original pull request
-                    const comment = (0, runner_util_1.injectError)(configs.errorNotification.message, error);
-                    gitApi.createPullRequestComment(configs.originalPullRequest.url, comment);
+                    let comment = (0, runner_util_1.injectError)(configs.errorNotification.message, error);
+                    comment = (0, runner_util_1.injectTargetBranch)(comment, pr.base);
+                    await gitApi.createPullRequestComment(configs.originalPullRequest.url, comment);
                 }
                 failures.push(error);
             }
diff --git a/src/service/configs/configs.types.ts b/src/service/configs/configs.types.ts
index 06646d6..85dd1f9 100644
--- a/src/service/configs/configs.types.ts
+++ b/src/service/configs/configs.types.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 import { BackportPullRequest, GitPullRequest } from "@bp/service/git/git.types";
 
 export const MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER = "{{error}}";
+export const MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER = "{{target-branch}}";
 
 export interface LocalGit {
   user: string, // local git user
diff --git a/src/service/configs/pullrequest/pr-configs-parser.ts b/src/service/configs/pullrequest/pr-configs-parser.ts
index 971e7ff..cb483bd 100644
--- a/src/service/configs/pullrequest/pr-configs-parser.ts
+++ b/src/service/configs/pullrequest/pr-configs-parser.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import { getAsCleanedCommaSeparatedList, getAsCommaSeparatedList } from "@bp/service/args/args-utils";
 import { Args } from "@bp/service/args/args.types";
 import ConfigsParser from "@bp/service/configs/configs-parser";
-import { Configs, MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER } from "@bp/service/configs/configs.types";
+import { Configs, MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER } from "@bp/service/configs/configs.types";
 import GitClient from "@bp/service/git/git-client";
 import GitClientFactory from "@bp/service/git/git-client-factory";
 import { BackportPullRequest, GitPullRequest } from "@bp/service/git/git.types";
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ export default class PullRequestConfigsParser extends ConfigsParser {
 
   private getDefaultErrorComment(): string {
     // TODO: fetch from arg or set default with placeholder {{error}}
-    return `Backporting failed: ${MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER}`;
+    return `The backport to \`${MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER}\` failed. Check the latest run for more details.`;
   }
 
   /**
diff --git a/src/service/runner/runner-util.ts b/src/service/runner/runner-util.ts
index 21d2959..2d5bd2a 100644
--- a/src/service/runner/runner-util.ts
+++ b/src/service/runner/runner-util.ts
@@ -1,11 +1,22 @@
-import { MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER } from "@bp/service/configs/configs.types";
+import { MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER, MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER } from "@bp/service/configs/configs.types";
 
 /**
  * Inject the error message in the provided `message`.
- * This is inject in place of the MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
+ * This is injected in place of the MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
  * @param message string that needs to be updated
  * @param errMsg the error message that needs to be injected
  */
 export const injectError = (message: string, errMsg: string): string => {
     return message.replace(MESSAGE_ERROR_PLACEHOLDER, errMsg);
+};
+
+/**
+ * Inject the target branch into the provided `message`.
+ * This is injected in place of the MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER placeholder
+ * @param message string that needs to be updated
+ * @param targetBranch the target branch to inject
+ * @returns 
+ */
+export const injectTargetBranch = (message: string, targetBranch: string): string => {
+    return message.replace(MESSAGE_TARGET_BRANCH_PLACEHOLDER, targetBranch);
 };
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/service/runner/runner.ts b/src/service/runner/runner.ts
index a93e810..c45f993 100644
--- a/src/service/runner/runner.ts
+++ b/src/service/runner/runner.ts
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ import { BackportPullRequest, GitClientType, GitPullRequest } from "@bp/service/
 import LoggerService from "@bp/service/logger/logger-service";
 import LoggerServiceFactory from "@bp/service/logger/logger-service-factory";
 import { inferGitClient, inferGitApiUrl, getGitTokenFromEnv } from "@bp/service/git/git-util";
-import { injectError } from "./runner-util";
+import { injectError, injectTargetBranch } from "./runner-util";
 
 interface Git {
   gitClientType: GitClientType;
@@ -95,8 +95,9 @@ export default class Runner {
         this.logger.error(`Something went wrong backporting to ${pr.base}: ${error}`);
         if (!configs.dryRun && configs.errorNotification.enabled && configs.errorNotification.message.length > 0) {
           // notify the failure as comment in the original pull request
-          const comment = injectError(configs.errorNotification.message, error as string);
-          gitApi.createPullRequestComment(configs.originalPullRequest.url, comment);
+          let comment = injectError(configs.errorNotification.message, error as string);
+          comment = injectTargetBranch(comment, pr.base);
+          await gitApi.createPullRequestComment(configs.originalPullRequest.url, comment);
         }
         failures.push(error as string);
       }
diff --git a/test/service/configs/pullrequest/github-pr-configs-parser.test.ts b/test/service/configs/pullrequest/github-pr-configs-parser.test.ts
index d07a5f5..369695e 100644
--- a/test/service/configs/pullrequest/github-pr-configs-parser.test.ts
+++ b/test/service/configs/pullrequest/github-pr-configs-parser.test.ts
@@ -141,7 +141,7 @@ describe("github pull request config parser", () => {
     });
     expect(configs.errorNotification).toEqual({
       enabled: false,
-      message: "Backporting failed: {{error}}"
+      message: "The backport to `{{target-branch}}` failed. Check the latest run for more details."
     });
   });
 
@@ -962,7 +962,7 @@ describe("github pull request config parser", () => {
 
     expect(configs.errorNotification).toEqual({
       "enabled": true,
-      "message": "Backporting failed: {{error}}"
+      "message": "The backport to `{{target-branch}}` failed. Check the latest run for more details."
     });
   });
 });
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/service/configs/pullrequest/gitlab-pr-configs-parser.test.ts b/test/service/configs/pullrequest/gitlab-pr-configs-parser.test.ts
index 709824e..bbaaf98 100644
--- a/test/service/configs/pullrequest/gitlab-pr-configs-parser.test.ts
+++ b/test/service/configs/pullrequest/gitlab-pr-configs-parser.test.ts
@@ -146,7 +146,7 @@ describe("gitlab merge request config parser", () => {
     });
     expect(configs.errorNotification).toEqual({
       "enabled": false,
-      "message": "Backporting failed: {{error}}"
+      "message": "The backport to `{{target-branch}}` failed. Check the latest run for more details."
     });
   });
 
@@ -905,7 +905,7 @@ describe("gitlab merge request config parser", () => {
 
     expect(configs.errorNotification).toEqual({
       "enabled": true,
-      "message": "Backporting failed: {{error}}",
+      "message": "The backport to `{{target-branch}}` failed. Check the latest run for more details.",
     });
   });
 });
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/service/runner/cli-github-runner.test.ts b/test/service/runner/cli-github-runner.test.ts
index 72bc133..8d5bd43 100644
--- a/test/service/runner/cli-github-runner.test.ts
+++ b/test/service/runner/cli-github-runner.test.ts
@@ -1238,7 +1238,6 @@ describe("cli runner", () => {
 
   test("with multiple target branches, one failure and error notification enabled", async () => {
     jest.spyOn(GitHubClient.prototype, "createPullRequest").mockImplementation((backport: BackportPullRequest) => {
-      
       throw new Error(`Mocked error: ${backport.base}`);
     });
 
@@ -1323,9 +1322,9 @@ describe("cli runner", () => {
     });
     expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequest).toThrowError();
     expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequestComment).toBeCalledTimes(3);
-    expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequestComment).toBeCalledWith("https://api.github.com/repos/owner/reponame/pulls/2368", "Backporting failed: Error: Mocked error: v1");
-    expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequestComment).toBeCalledWith("https://api.github.com/repos/owner/reponame/pulls/2368", "Backporting failed: Error: Mocked error: v2");
-    expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequestComment).toBeCalledWith("https://api.github.com/repos/owner/reponame/pulls/2368", "Backporting failed: Error: Mocked error: v3");
+    expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequestComment).toBeCalledWith("https://api.github.com/repos/owner/reponame/pulls/2368", "The backport to `v1` failed. Check the latest run for more details.");
+    expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequestComment).toBeCalledWith("https://api.github.com/repos/owner/reponame/pulls/2368", "The backport to `v2` failed. Check the latest run for more details.");
+    expect(GitHubClient.prototype.createPullRequestComment).toBeCalledWith("https://api.github.com/repos/owner/reponame/pulls/2368", "The backport to `v3` failed. Check the latest run for more details.");
   });
 
   test("with some failures and dry run enabled", async () => {
diff --git a/test/service/runner/runner-util.test.ts b/test/service/runner/runner-util.test.ts
index f26f2ce..7f7d982 100644
--- a/test/service/runner/runner-util.test.ts
+++ b/test/service/runner/runner-util.test.ts
@@ -1,11 +1,19 @@
-import { injectError } from "@bp/service/runner/runner-util";
+import { injectError, injectTargetBranch } from "@bp/service/runner/runner-util";
 
 describe("check runner utilities", () => {
     test("properly inject error message", () => {
         expect(injectError("Original message: {{error}}", "to inject")).toStrictEqual("Original message: to inject");
     });
 
-    test("missing placeholder in the original message", () => {
+    test("missing error placeholder in the original message", () => {
         expect(injectError("Original message: {{wrong}}", "to inject")).toStrictEqual("Original message: {{wrong}}");
     });
+
+    test("properly inject target branch into message", () => {
+        expect(injectTargetBranch("Original message: {{target-branch}}", "to inject")).toStrictEqual("Original message: to inject");
+    });
+
+    test("missing target branch placeholder in the original message", () => {
+        expect(injectTargetBranch("Original message: {{wrong}}", "to inject")).toStrictEqual("Original message: {{wrong}}");
+    });
 });
\ No newline at end of file