Break bad news to a client: an annotated email example
Announce the delay without losing her trust.
The situation
The new payment feature promised for the 14th will ship on the 28th. A security bug was found during testing and is being fixed.
She promised this feature to her own leadership. Worried, she needs facts, a date and reassurance.
The winning structure
A good email for this situation includes these elements, in this order:
- A greeting with the recipient's first name.
- An apology
- The new date (the 28th)
- The reason (security bug)
- A clear ask at the end: a question or an action with a deadline.
- A short sign-off, then your name.
Common mistakes
- Leaving out an apology : « Not even an apology? »
- Leaving out the new date (the 28th) : « So when will I actually get it? »
- Leaving out the reason (security bug) : « Why the delay? This worries me. »
- Getting defensive before acknowledging the problem.
- Sharing bad news with no solution and no next step.
Write your own version: the recipient reacts and you get a score out of 100.
The annotated example
Try it yourself first: you'll remember more. Click to show the example.
Hi Sophie,
- Greeting by first name: the reader knows it's for them.
During testing we found a security bug in the payment feature. We'd rather fix it before going live, so delivery moves from the 14th to the 28th.
- Includes: the new date (the 28th).
- Includes: the reason (security bug).
I'm sorry for the delay. Does the new date work for you? I'll send a progress update every Friday until launch.
- Includes: an apology.
- Clear ask: the reader knows what to do.
Best regards,
Alex
- Short sign-off, then the name.
Why it works : 53 words against a target of 100, 7 words per sentence on average, no filler phrases.