{"id":37449,"date":"2021-02-04T07:50:48","date_gmt":"2021-02-04T07:50:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.lvh.me\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/"},"modified":"2026-11-06T11:05:11","modified_gmt":"2026-11-06T11:05:11","slug":"saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and 10 email templates to copy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To apologize in writing, name the mistake in the first sentence and take responsibility without making excuses.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then explain what happened, offer a solution and say what you&#8217;ll do to make sure it doesn&#8217;t happen again.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Close with a thank-you and sign with your own name, not a department&#8217;s.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It sounds simple, but it&#8217;s easy to get wrong. A cold apology, or one full of &#8220;ifs&#8221;, can cause more anger than the mistake itself.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A well-written one, on the other hand, shows that you care about the relationship. Often the customer ends up trusting you more than before the mistake.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this article you&#8217;ll see how to apologize in writing step by step, with the phrases that work and the ones best avoided.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Plus 10 templates to copy, from an upset customer to your whole subscriber list.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Part of the apology<\/th><th>What to say<\/th><th>Example<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Acknowledgment<\/td><td>The mistake, without beating around the bush<\/td><td>&#8220;Yesterday we charged you twice for the same order&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Responsibility<\/td><td>That it&#8217;s your fault<\/td><td>&#8220;It was our mistake&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Explanation<\/td><td>What happened, in one or two sentences<\/td><td>&#8220;An error in the payment gateway duplicated some charges&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Solution<\/td><td>What you&#8217;ve already done<\/td><td>&#8220;We&#8217;ve refunded the amount to your card&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Prevention<\/td><td>What you&#8217;re changing so it doesn&#8217;t happen again<\/td><td>&#8220;We&#8217;ve added a check before every charge&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Closing<\/td><td>Thank-you and personal signature<\/td><td>&#8220;Thank you for your patience. Laura, customer service&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to apologize in writing effectively and sincerely<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before you write, think about the person who&#8217;s going to read the message. They&#8217;re upset.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They want to know three things: that you understand what happened, that you&#8217;re going to fix it and that it won&#8217;t happen again.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These nine steps sum up how to apologize sincerely in writing, whether in an email or a letter.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Start with an appropriate greeting<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Address the person by name. A &#8220;Dear customer&#8221; sounds like a template just when you most need to sound human.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Adapt your tone to the relationship. With a long-standing customer, you can be informal.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a formal apology to a company or a superior, &#8220;Dear Marta&#8221; is a better choice.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Get straight to the point<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Don&#8217;t beat around the bush. The first or second sentence has to say why you&#8217;re writing.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you start by talking about how much you value your customers, the reader will think you&#8217;re trying to soften something. And they&#8217;ll be right.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Take responsibility<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Say &#8220;we got it wrong&#8221; or &#8220;it was my mistake&#8221;. Avoid blaming the supplier, the system or a colleague.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even if others are partly to blame, as far as the customer is concerned, you&#8217;re the one responsible. They chose you.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Describe the incident<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Explain what happened in a few sentences and in plain words. Show that you understand the problem and aren&#8217;t downplaying it.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There&#8217;s no need to go into every technical detail. It&#8217;s enough for the person to understand what went wrong and who it affected.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Express sincere regret<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One sentence is enough: &#8220;I&#8217;m very sorry for the trouble this has caused you.&#8221; No drama, and no repeating it five times.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What makes an apology credible isn&#8217;t how many times you say &#8220;we&#8217;re sorry&#8221;, but what comes after.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Offer a solution or compensation<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Say what you&#8217;ve already done or what you&#8217;re going to do, with dates if you can. &#8220;We&#8217;re sending you the right product today and it will arrive on Thursday.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If the mistake caused real harm, add proportionate compensation: a refund, a discount or free shipping.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Make sure it won&#8217;t happen again<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Explain what you&#8217;re changing to prevent it. One specific sentence is worth more than a generic promise.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u00abHemos a\u00f1adido una revisi\u00f3n manual antes de cada env\u00edo\u00bb convence m\u00e1s que \u00abtrabajamos para mejorar\u00bb. Si no sabes por d\u00f3nde empezar esa revisi\u00f3n, tienes una lista de comprobaciones en nuestras <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/es\/blog\/2026\/11\/06\/ley-de-murphy\/\">leyes de Murphy del email marketing<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">End politely<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thank the person for their patience and give them a direct way to get in touch. A name and a phone number or an email address they can reply to.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Avoid closing with a sales offer that has nothing to do with the mistake. It looks like you&#8217;re using the occasion to sell.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Review and proofread<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Read the message aloud before you send it. Check the name, the order details and that the solution you&#8217;re promising is real.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A spelling mistake or the wrong name in an apology does a lot of damage. It gives the impression that the mistake is happening all over again.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1536\" height=\"864\" src=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-6-partes.jpg\" alt=\"Infographic showing the 6 parts of a written apology: acknowledge the mistake, take responsibility, explain what happened, offer a solution, prevent it from happening again, and close and sign\" class=\"wp-image-113122\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-6-partes.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-6-partes-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-6-partes-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-6-partes-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-6-partes-110x62.jpg 110w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-6-partes-60x34.jpg 60w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1536px) 100vw, 1536px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-very-light-gray-background-color has-background\" style=\"border-radius:8px;padding-top:24px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:24px;padding-left:28px\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Do you need to apologize to lots of customers at once?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With Mailrelay, you can send the same apology email to your whole list, personalized with each customer&#8217;s name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-mailrelay-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/signup\/?utm_medium=cta&amp;utm_campaign=pedir-disculpas-nuestras-mejores-plantillas-y-consejos-para-emails-de-disculpas\">Create a free account<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">8 tips for apologizing perfectly by email<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Templates help, but without a personal touch your apology will sound automated.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These eight tips make the difference between an email that repairs the relationship and one that makes it worse.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Personal touch<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It doesn&#8217;t matter whether the mistake affects one person or thousands. Every reader has to feel that the message is meant for them.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Use their name and mention their specific case if you can.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/custom-fields\/\">custom fields<\/a>, you can insert the order number or the date into each email, even when you send it to your whole list.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Admit your mistakes<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s human to look for explanations for a mistake. But if you give them before the apology, they sound like excuses.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First, acknowledge the mistake. Then, if necessary, explain the causes. In that order.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Be ready to explain<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A small mistake doesn&#8217;t need lengthy explanations. A one-day delay in a shipment can be fixed with a short apology and the new date.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A serious mistake does need them. After a service outage, the customer expects to know what happened and what you&#8217;ve changed.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Provide a solution<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Most people understand that mistakes happen. What they don&#8217;t forgive is mistakes that don&#8217;t get fixed.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Present the solution in the same email as the apology. If you don&#8217;t have it yet, say when you will and stick to that date.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Do everything you can to be forgiven<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trust is hard to earn and easy to lose. Don&#8217;t assume an apology is enough to win it back.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A small gesture helps: a discount code, a free month or a free gift. It shouldn&#8217;t require buying more to enjoy it.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Free shipping on the next purchase can look like a way to sell more. A partial refund or a straightforward gift comes across better.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Keep the conversation open<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For minor mistakes, an apology and a small gesture are enough. For major mistakes, the customer needs to be able to talk to someone.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Offer a reply address that a person actually monitors. Never send an apology from a <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2023\/06\/12\/noreply-emails\/\">noreply<\/a> address.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Also invite them to share their feedback. Knowing how the customer experienced the problem helps you avoid repeating it.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Don&#8217;t be pushy<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The language of an apology matters as much as its content. Avoid commands, even polite ones.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Accept our apologies&#8221; demands something from the customer. &#8220;We&#8217;d like to apologize&#8221; or &#8220;we apologize&#8221; say the same thing without imposing anything.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Be careful with conditionals, too. &#8220;We&#8217;re sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you&#8221; casts doubt on whether there was any inconvenience at all.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Choose the right person to sign<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Who signs the email says a lot about how seriously you take the mistake.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a minor problem, it can be signed by whoever is handling the case in customer service. Preferably with their own name rather than &#8220;The [brand] team&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a serious mistake that affects many customers, someone from management should sign it. It shows that the problem is being taken seriously at the top.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-background\" style=\"border-radius:8px;background-color:#fff8e1;padding-top:24px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:24px;padding-left:28px\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Apologize? Admit a mistake? It sounds like something from the last century, especially at a time when we all think we&#8217;re infallible and problems are always someone else&#8217;s. In marketing, though, it has its uses. Admitting a mistake builds trust, because our readers or users learn two things. First, that we keep an eye out for mistakes and fix them. And second, that we don&#8217;t hide them, which shows the brand can be trusted. If we send a campaign with a broken link or a wrong price, a short email that admits the mistake, explains what happened and how we fixed it usually works better than acting as if nothing happened. That extra trust can be very important.<\/p>\n<cite><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/author\/jose\/\">Jose Argudo<\/a><\/strong>, CMO at Mailrelay<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Phrases for apologizing in writing<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These phrases help you apologize in writing without sounding like a template. Choose the register based on the person you&#8217;re writing to.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Situation<\/th><th>Formal<\/th><th>Friendly<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Acknowledge the mistake<\/td><td>I am writing to apologize for the error on your invoice<\/td><td>I&#8217;m writing to say sorry for the mix-up with your invoice<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Take responsibility<\/td><td>The responsibility is entirely ours<\/td><td>It was our fault, no excuses<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Say you&#8217;re sorry<\/td><td>We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused<\/td><td>We&#8217;re really sorry for the trouble<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Offer the solution<\/td><td>We have now corrected the amount<\/td><td>We&#8217;ve already fixed it<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Prevent it<\/td><td>We have reviewed the process to ensure it does not happen again<\/td><td>We&#8217;ve changed how we do it so it won&#8217;t happen again<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Closing<\/td><td>Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions<\/td><td>If you need anything, just reply to this email<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Formal expressions: &#8220;our sincere apologies&#8221;, &#8220;our apologies for the matter&#8221; and &#8220;apologies for any inconvenience&#8221;<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In formal writing, you&#8217;ll come across set phrases. They work, but it&#8217;s worth knowing what they mean so you don&#8217;t use them blindly.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;We extend our sincere apologies&#8221; and &#8220;we offer our apologies for the matter&#8221; mean apologizing in the way the situation calls for. They&#8217;re correct, but cold.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Sorry for the inconvenience&#8221; or &#8220;we apologize for any inconvenience&#8221; work in short notices, such as scheduled downtime. For a serious mistake, they fall short.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you want to sound formal and warm at the same time, name the mistake: &#8220;I apologize for the delay in delivering your order.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Phrases to avoid<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some phrases look like apologies, but the customer reads them as the opposite.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Avoid<\/th><th>Better<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>We&#8217;re sorry you felt that way<\/td><td>We&#8217;re sorry we caused you this problem<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>We regret any inconvenience this may have caused<\/td><td>We&#8217;re sorry for the inconvenience this caused you<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Accept our apologies<\/td><td>We apologize<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Due to circumstances beyond our control\u2026<\/td><td>A failure by our shipping provider, which we take responsibility for\u2026<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>As we had already warned you\u2026<\/td><td>We should have told you more clearly<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>It will never happen again<\/td><td>We&#8217;ve changed [the process] to prevent it from happening again<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-very-light-gray-background-color has-background\" style=\"border-radius:8px;padding-top:24px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:24px;padding-left:28px\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Your apology email, ready in minutes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Design the message in Mailrelay&#8217;s visual editor and send it to your customers with no hassle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-mailrelay-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/signup\/?utm_medium=cta&amp;utm_campaign=pedir-disculpas-nuestras-mejores-plantillas-y-consejos-para-emails-de-disculpas\">Try Mailrelay for free<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Examples of how to apologize in writing: 10 templates to copy<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Almost every mistake depends on two variables: how serious it is and how many people it affects.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first four templates cover those combinations.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The next six deal with the most searched-for cases: delays, emails sent by mistake, apologies at work and formal letters.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1536\" height=\"864\" src=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-que-disculpa-necesitas.jpg\" alt=\"Matrix showing which apology you need depending on how serious the mistake is and how many people it affects: a short email and a small gesture, an email to those affected, a call and a signed email, or an email from management and changes\" class=\"wp-image-113126\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-que-disculpa-necesitas.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-que-disculpa-necesitas-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-que-disculpa-necesitas-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-que-disculpa-necesitas-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-que-disculpa-necesitas-110x62.jpg 110w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-que-disculpa-necesitas-60x34.jpg 60w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1536px) 100vw, 1536px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. A small mistake, for a single customer<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: Sorry, [name], it&#8217;s already fixed<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I&#8217;m writing because [describe the mistake, for example: we sent you the wrong size]. It was our mistake and we&#8217;re sorry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We&#8217;ve already sent you [the solution]. It will arrive on [date].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As an apology, here&#8217;s [a 10% discount code] for your next purchase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thank you for your patience,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Your name], from [brand]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. A major mistake, for a single customer<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: We apologize for [the problem]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dear [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I am writing on behalf of [company] to apologize for [describe the mistake]. We understand the harm it has caused you, and the responsibility is ours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The problem occurred because [brief, honest explanation]. We have already [what you&#8217;ve done to fix it].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To make up for it, [specific compensation]. We have also [change that prevents it from happening again].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you would like to discuss it, you can write to me directly at [email] or call me at [phone].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sincerely,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Name and job title, ideally someone from management]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. A small mistake, for several customers<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: Oops, we made a mistake<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you&#8217;ve noticed [describe the mistake], you&#8217;re not the only one. It was our mistake and we&#8217;ve already fixed it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sorry for the inconvenience. As an apology, [small gesture for everyone affected].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thanks for sticking with us,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Your name], from [brand]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">4. A serious mistake that affected many customers<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: What happened on [date] and what we&#8217;ve changed<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On [date], [describe the mistake and its scope]. I apologize on behalf of the whole team. It&#8217;s not what you expect from us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s what happened: [clear explanation, no jargon].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s what we&#8217;ve already done: [measures taken].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s what changes from today: [prevention].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you were affected in any way, reply to this email. Either I or someone on my team will read it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Name], [job title] at [company]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">5. Apology email for a delayed order<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: Your order will arrive later than expected<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Your order [number] won&#8217;t arrive on [expected date], as we told you it would. We&#8217;re truly sorry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Brief reason]. The new delivery date is [date].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To make up for the wait, we&#8217;re refunding the shipping costs. If you&#8217;d rather cancel the order, reply to this email and we&#8217;ll refund the full amount.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Your name], from [brand]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">6. Apology email for a send with mistakes<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is the situation in Jose&#8217;s quote: a broken link or a wrong price in a campaign.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A short <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/errata-notice\/\">errata notice<\/a> is usually enough.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: Correction: here&#8217;s the right link<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In our last email, the link to [offer or content] didn&#8217;t work. Our mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s the right one: [link].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thanks to those of you who let us know. And sorry for the second visit to your inbox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Your name], from [brand]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">7. How to apologize to your boss in writing<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: Apologies for [the mistake] and how I&#8217;ve resolved it<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [boss&#8217;s name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I want to apologize for [mistake, for example: not delivering the report on time]. The responsibility is mine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I&#8217;ve already [solution or new deadline]. To make sure it doesn&#8217;t happen again, [specific change in the way you work].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you&#8217;d like to talk about it, let me know when suits you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Best regards,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Your name]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">8. Apologizing to a coworker<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: I owe you an apology<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I wanted to say sorry for [what happened, for example: my tone in Tuesday&#8217;s meeting]. It wasn&#8217;t right and you didn&#8217;t deserve it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I really value working with you. If you&#8217;re up for it, let&#8217;s talk it over coffee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Your name]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">9. Formal apology letter to a customer<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Place and date]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dear Mr. [surname],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I am writing to offer you my most sincere apologies for [describe the mistake] that occurred on [date].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Having reviewed what happened, we have found that [brief explanation]. The responsibility is entirely ours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We have [solution] and, as compensation, [compensation].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We have reviewed our procedures to prevent a situation like this from happening again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Please do not hesitate to contact me at [phone or email] if you need any clarification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sincerely,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Name, job title and company]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you write letters to customers often, you&#8217;ll find more examples in our guides to <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2026\/08\/17\/client-letters\/\">client letters<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/business-letter\/\">business letters<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">10. Apologizing for not replying in time<\/h3>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subject: Re: [original subject]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hi [name],<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sorry for taking so long to get back to you. Your message slipped through the cracks, and that&#8217;s not fair to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">About what you asked me: [answer].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you need anything else, this time I&#8217;ll reply the same day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Your name]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to apologize by email to many customers at once<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When a mistake affects hundreds or thousands of people, the apology becomes a campaign.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The same rules apply as to any other send.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Send it only to those who were affected. With <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/segmentation-in-email-marketing\/\">segmentation<\/a>, you avoid worrying customers who hadn&#8217;t even noticed.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Send it soon. If the customer finds out about the mistake some other way, the apology arrives late and loses its impact.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Use a <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/sender\/\">sender<\/a> the customer recognizes, ideally with a person&#8217;s name. And let replies go to a mailbox that someone monitors.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Don&#8217;t include promotions in the same email. An apology with a sale banner underneath is no longer an apology.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Send a test first. Check the <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/custom-fields\/\">custom fields<\/a>, the links and that the text reads well on mobile.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Subject lines for an apology email<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/email-subject-line\/\">email subject line<\/a> has to make it clear that it&#8217;s an apology. If it looks like a promotion, many people won&#8217;t open it.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Type of mistake<\/th><th>Subject line<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Problem with an order<\/td><td>We&#8217;re sorry: your order is on its way<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Email with a mistake<\/td><td>Correction to our last email<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Duplicate charge<\/td><td>We&#8217;ve refunded the duplicate charge<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Service outage<\/td><td>What happened yesterday and what we&#8217;ve changed<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Delay<\/td><td>Your order is running late. Here&#8217;s why<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Complete the subject line with the <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/glossary\/email-preheader\/\">preheader<\/a>. It&#8217;s the perfect place to preview the solution: &#8220;It&#8217;s already fixed and there&#8217;s a gift for you&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Mistakes to avoid when apologizing in writing<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The most common mistake when apologizing in writing is taking too long. Every day that goes by without an apology, the customer assumes you don&#8217;t care.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The second is the token apology: three paragraphs of stock phrases that don&#8217;t say what happened or what you&#8217;re going to do.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Promising what you can&#8217;t deliver is also a mistake. If you say it won&#8217;t happen again and it does, your second apology is worth much less.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And finally, turning the apology into a sale. A discount as compensation is fine. A seasonal offer in the same email is not.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If the mistake has damaged your brand image, the apology is only the first step.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our article on <a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2026\/03\/25\/how-to-change-negative-perceptions-about-your-brand\/\">how to change negative perceptions about your brand<\/a> can help.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Mailrelay helps you<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With Mailrelay, you can send the same apology message to your whole list or just to a segment.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With custom fields, each email includes the customer&#8217;s name and the details of their case.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The visual editor lets you put the message together in minutes, with no design skills.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And the free account includes up to 80,000 emails per month and 20,000 contacts, with human support on all plans.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Frequently asked questions about how to apologize in writing<\/h2>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do you apologize formally?<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Use a formal tone and greeting. Acknowledge the mistake, take responsibility, explain the solution and sign off with &#8220;Sincerely&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The formal letter template in this article is a good starting point.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What does &#8220;our apologies for the matter&#8221; mean?<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s a formal phrase that means apologizing to the extent the situation calls for.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s correct, but impersonal. If you can, name the mistake instead of using it.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Is it better to apologize by email or by phone?<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a serious mistake with a single customer, call first and then confirm in writing.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If it affects many people, email is the fastest way to reach them all.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Should you always offer compensation?<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No. For a small mistake, a sincere apology and the solution are enough.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Compensation makes sense when the mistake caused real harm: money, time or a lot of hassle.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How long do I have to send an apology email?<\/h3>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The sooner, the better. Ideally, the same day you spot the mistake.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you don&#8217;t have the solution yet, apologize anyway and say when you&#8217;ll have it.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-very-light-gray-background-color has-background\" style=\"border-radius:8px;padding-top:24px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:24px;padding-left:28px\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Send your campaigns for free with Mailrelay<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Up to 80,000 emails per month and 20,000 contacts, with human support on all plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-mailrelay-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/signup\/?utm_medium=cta&amp;utm_campaign=pedir-disculpas-nuestras-mejores-plantillas-y-consejos-para-emails-de-disculpas\">Create my free account<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-white-color has-text-color has-background has-link-color wp-elements-1\" style=\"border-radius:8px;background-color:#0072c6;margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:32px;padding-top:24px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:24px;padding-left:28px\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-white-color has-text-color\">Recommended reading<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2026\/08\/17\/client-letters\/\">Client letters: how to write them, types and examples<\/a><\/strong><br \/>When it&#8217;s worth writing a letter to a client and how to do it well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2023\/01\/31\/how-to-write-a-formal-email\/\">Formal email: how to write one and 7 examples<\/a><\/strong><br \/>The structure and tone of a formal email, with examples you can adapt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2026\/09\/15\/overcome-sales-objections\/\">How to overcome 15 sales objections by email<\/a><\/strong><br \/>Email replies to the most common sales objections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/01\/26\/11-tips-for-writing-the-text-for-your-email-marketing-campaigns\/\">How to write better email copy<\/a><\/strong><br \/>11 quick tips to make sure your emails get read and understood.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div style=\"height:32px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-very-light-gray-background-color has-background\" style=\"border-radius:8px;padding-top:24px;padding-right:28px;padding-bottom:24px;padding-left:28px\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center is-not-stacked-on-mobile is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-5dc627e1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:112px\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized is-style-rounded\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/author\/jose\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"176\" height=\"176\" src=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/jose-argudo-cmo-mailrelay.jpg\" alt=\"Jose Argudo, CMO at Mailrelay\" class=\"wp-image-97284\" style=\"width:96px;height:96px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/jose-argudo-cmo-mailrelay.jpg 176w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/jose-argudo-cmo-mailrelay-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/jose-argudo-cmo-mailrelay-110x110.jpg 110w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/jose-argudo-cmo-mailrelay-60x60.jpg 60w, https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/jose-argudo-cmo-mailrelay-120x120.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 176px) 100vw, 176px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:4px\"><strong>Jose Argudo<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:4px\">CMO at Mailrelay. Writes about email marketing, copywriting and conversion for SMEs and entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/author\/jose\/\">More articles by Jose<\/a> \u00b7 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/joseargudo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LinkedIn<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What to say, what to avoid and how to repair the relationship when you make a mistake, with templates ready to adapt to each case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":124,"featured_media":113132,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[562,851],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-email-marketing-2","category-newsletter-templates-and-design"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and templates<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How to apologize in writing to a customer, your boss or your whole list: the steps, the phrases that work and 10 email templates to copy.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and templates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"How to apologize in writing to a customer, your boss or your whole list: the steps, the phrases that work and 10 email templates to copy.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mailrelay\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Mailrelay\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-02-04T07:50:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-11-06T11:05:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1536\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"864\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jose Argudo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@mailrelay\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@mailrelay\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jose Argudo\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jose Argudo\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d8e868b5b67c658bb687818bc5ee08ae\"},\"headline\":\"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and 10 email templates to copy\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-04T07:50:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-11-06T11:05:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":3480,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/11\\\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"email marketing\",\"Newsletter templates and design\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/\",\"name\":\"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and templates\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/11\\\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-04T07:50:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-11-06T11:05:11+00:00\",\"description\":\"How to apologize in writing to a customer, your boss or your whole list: the steps, the phrases that work and 10 email templates to copy.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/11\\\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/11\\\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg\",\"width\":1536,\"height\":864},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/04\\\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and 10 email templates to copy\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"Mailrelay\",\"description\":\"Mailrelay.com - Email Marketing Software\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Mailrelay\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/mailrelay-logo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/mailrelay-logo.jpg\",\"width\":613,\"height\":291,\"caption\":\"Mailrelay\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/Mailrelay\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/mailrelay\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/mailrelay-email-marketing\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d8e868b5b67c658bb687818bc5ee08ae\",\"name\":\"Jose Argudo\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/03981e1d30ef3dc40ec23fd44794672480e5df7094be90a418ff4785b7058b7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/03981e1d30ef3dc40ec23fd44794672480e5df7094be90a418ff4785b7058b7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/03981e1d30ef3dc40ec23fd44794672480e5df7094be90a418ff4785b7058b7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Jose Argudo\"},\"description\":\"Jose Argudo es CMO de Mailrelay, la herramienta de email marketing en la que trabaja desde 2011, donde dirige la estrategia de marketing, SEO, contenidos y visibilidad en IA (GEO). Antes trabaj\u00f3 durante a\u00f1os como desarrollador web y especialista en marketing digital para peque\u00f1as empresas, y fund\u00f3 JoseArgudoLabs, una empresa de marketing online para pymes. Es autor del libro \u00abTextos de venta m\u00e1s efectivos\u00bb y ha hablado de email marketing en El Confidencial y en el podcast de Marketing4eCommerce. Se form\u00f3 en EAE Business School, la Universidad de Alicante y la UOC, y tiene las certificaciones de IA de la Universidad de Helsinki.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/joseargudo\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mailrelay.com\\\/en\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/jose\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and templates","description":"How to apologize in writing to a customer, your boss or your whole list: the steps, the phrases that work and 10 email templates to copy.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and templates","og_description":"How to apologize in writing to a customer, your boss or your whole list: the steps, the phrases that work and 10 email templates to copy.","og_url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/","og_site_name":"Mailrelay","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Mailrelay\/","article_published_time":"2021-02-04T07:50:48+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-11-06T11:05:11+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1536,"height":864,"url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Jose Argudo","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@mailrelay","twitter_site":"@mailrelay","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jose Argudo","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/"},"author":{"name":"Jose Argudo","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/d8e868b5b67c658bb687818bc5ee08ae"},"headline":"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and 10 email templates to copy","datePublished":"2021-02-04T07:50:48+00:00","dateModified":"2026-11-06T11:05:11+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/"},"wordCount":3480,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg","articleSection":["email marketing","Newsletter templates and design"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/","url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/","name":"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and templates","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg","datePublished":"2021-02-04T07:50:48+00:00","dateModified":"2026-11-06T11:05:11+00:00","description":"How to apologize in writing to a customer, your boss or your whole list: the steps, the phrases that work and 10 email templates to copy.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg","width":1536,"height":864},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2021\/02\/04\/saying-sorry-our-best-apology-email-templates-and-tips\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to apologize in writing: steps, phrases and 10 email templates to copy"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/","name":"Mailrelay","description":"Mailrelay.com - Email Marketing Software","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#organization","name":"Mailrelay","url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/mailrelay-logo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/mailrelay-logo.jpg","width":613,"height":291,"caption":"Mailrelay"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Mailrelay\/","https:\/\/x.com\/mailrelay","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/mailrelay-email-marketing"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/d8e868b5b67c658bb687818bc5ee08ae","name":"Jose Argudo","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/03981e1d30ef3dc40ec23fd44794672480e5df7094be90a418ff4785b7058b7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/03981e1d30ef3dc40ec23fd44794672480e5df7094be90a418ff4785b7058b7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/03981e1d30ef3dc40ec23fd44794672480e5df7094be90a418ff4785b7058b7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Jose Argudo"},"description":"Jose Argudo es CMO de Mailrelay, la herramienta de email marketing en la que trabaja desde 2011, donde dirige la estrategia de marketing, SEO, contenidos y visibilidad en IA (GEO). Antes trabaj\u00f3 durante a\u00f1os como desarrollador web y especialista en marketing digital para peque\u00f1as empresas, y fund\u00f3 JoseArgudoLabs, una empresa de marketing online para pymes. Es autor del libro \u00abTextos de venta m\u00e1s efectivos\u00bb y ha hablado de email marketing en El Confidencial y en el podcast de Marketing4eCommerce. Se form\u00f3 en EAE Business School, la Universidad de Alicante y la UOC, y tiene las certificaciones de IA de la Universidad de Helsinki.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/joseargudo"],"url":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/author\/jose\/"}]}},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg",1536,864,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada-300x169.jpg",300,169,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada-768x432.jpg",640,360,true],"large":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada-1024x576.jpg",640,360,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg",1536,864,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada.jpg",1536,864,false],"testimonials":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada-110x62.jpg",110,62,true],"author-image":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada-60x34.jpg",60,34,true],"mailrelay-email-template":["https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/como-pedir-disculpas-por-escrito-destacada-600x800.jpg",600,800,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Jose Argudo","author_link":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/author\/jose\/"},"uagb_comment_info":62,"uagb_excerpt":"What to say, what to avoid and how to repair the relationship when you make a mistake, with templates ready to adapt to each case","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37449","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/124"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37449"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37449\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":113954,"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37449\/revisions\/113954"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/113132"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}