Some mistakes and errors are unavoidable, even in the world of business. Every one of us is only human, but it’s important that we own our mistakes. Knowing how best to handle a situation like this, as well as how to fix it and reduce the negative impact is key to being a good business partner, employer, and leader. If you find yourself in a situation where you must own up to a mistake and apologize for it, here are some things you should be considering.
Why Apologize?
Before we discuss how best to go about apologising, we should talk about why you should do so in the first place. It all depends on what the mistake was of course but owning up to an error in judgement or administration errors especially when they negatively effect an individual’s life, such as an employee not being paid on time, shows a level of empathy that will serve to earn you some respect. While it shouldn’t be used as a tool and can easily be recognised when forced, empathy is a wonderful trait to have, especially as a business owner. It can help to boost morale, productivity and loyalty—it’s much easier to make employees and clients feel valued when you can empathize with their wants and needs. You’ll find that if you fail to apologize for minor mistakes and end up disrespecting those affected, you may see larger issues arising in the future such as losing loyalty and a decrease in your brand’s reputation, leading to fewer clients and customers.
How To Apologize
Apologizing is more than merely saying you’re sorry. While that is arguably an important step in the process and refusing to say those words can be extremely detrimental, it’s more about your actions following the mistake: what are you going to do to fix it? Before getting into this situation in the first place, it’s important to have some way to handle these matters officially and swiftly to avoid small problems developing into larger ones. Having errors & omissions insurance coverage is a great way to deal with any mistakes you and your team make, keeping everybody happy. This sort of cover will help you to handle business mistakes, missed deadlines, and any negligence accusations, giving you financial protection in case you need to pay out to rectify a mistake.
Sometimes, especially when the mistake is one that impacts the wider community, it can be important to issue a public apology as quickly as possible. This will help to show that you didn’t account for the mistake, and you genuinely care about fixing it. If you wait around for too long in the face of public scrutiny, you may be accused of being caught out and being forced into making the apology. In this scenario, your customers and clients will see this as you being dismissive and uncaring about them which is only going to harm your reputation and diminish the trust that they’ve put in you.
What Warrants An Apology?
If you know that a complaint has come in due to you or your team’s negligence or mistake, then it’s likely you will need to apologize. If your product has broken or wasn’t working when purchased, it’s probably because of a manufacturing error. It could also be a design mistake which could be a much more damaging problem and may even mean you have to recall a number of products if that design error poses a safety risk. If it’s more of an aesthetic error just be prepared to handle future complaints on an individual basis. Other problems such as delivery errors are arguably not always your fault, but you do have a certain responsibility to ensure a customer receives a product in the timeframe you provide. An apology may include a benefit or even a refund in more extreme scenarios. Complaints aren’t always about the services or products you offer. Your business practices and ethics can come under scrutiny, and if you’ve not been careful with the way in which you conduct business, it could come back and bite you. The public are great at finding out about misdemeanours and unethical businesses, so if your business is involved with anything that could be deemed shady, be prepared to eventually get caught out.
