Diplomatic English: How to respond to emails

When writing an email in English, it’s important to use the correct tone and terminology. In this article, we will share with you common responses and commands when sending emails, as well as showing you how to respond to a job offer email, a rejection email, and a complaint email. 

Common Commands

On the right, we have more polite and professional versions of the commands on the left.  It’s important to use polite versions to avoid sounding rude or unprofessional. 

• Using “would” or “could” increases formality and politeness when making a request, as does using a degree adverb like “quite”. 
• Saying “Let me know”, rather than “Tell me” is a more polite and friendly way to ask for something, like availability, a meeting, a report, etc. 
• Lastly,  English speakers also use “please” more so than speakers of other languages, and it’s important that you do so, too. 

Instead of…                                                                         Say: 

Send me the report.                                                             Could you send me the report? 

Give me your business card.                                              Would you mind if I had your business card?

Your work isn’t good.                                                          I’m not quite satisfied with this work. 

Tell me when you’re available.                                          Let me know when you’re available. 

I want the Smith report by the end of the day.                  I would like the Smith report, please, by the end of the day. 

Common Responses 

Again, on the right, we have more polite and professional versions of the responses on the left. 

• Using “Thank you” rather than apologizing is a great way to respond professionally.
• Try not to doubt yourself by “hoping” your email makes sense, and instead offer the recipient a chance to ask questions.
• Using “No worries!” Or “No problem!” is fine in an informal context, but for a formal email, stick to the option on the right.
• Using “mistaken” instead of “wrong” is a more polite way to say this.
• Lastly,  English speakers also use “please” more so than speakers of other languages, and it’s important that you do so, too. 
• Sometimes, vague/doubtful language can be useful when trying to say something in a polite way, such as “I’m not sure if…” 

Instead of…                                                           Say: 

What works best for you?                                                   Could you do [this date]? 

I’m sorry I missed that.                                                       Nice catch! Thank you for letting me know.

Sorry for the delay.                                                           Thank you for your patience.

Hopefully, that makes sense.                                             Let me know if you have any questions.

No problem! No worries!                                                   Always happy to help.

You are wrong.                                                                I think you are mistaken.

That’s a bad idea.                                                           I’m not sure if that’s a good idea. 

How to respond to a job offer email:

When accepting a job offer, it’s important to be appreciative and polite, while remaining professional and to the point here are two possible options when responding to a job offer (when accepting and declining the offer). 

Acceptance

1. Dear _____,

Thank you so much for this opportunity,  I would be delighted to accept the position and I look forward to my new role with your company. Please let me know if I can help in any way with the onboarding process. You can reach me at this email or by phone number: __________. 

Thank you once again!

Best wishes,

Megan

Rejection

1. Dear _______,

Thank you so much for the opportunity. Unfortunately, at this time I’m quite happy in my current position/ I’m not sure this role is the right fit for me, so I’d like to politely decline your kind offer.

Thank you again and best of luck in your search for the right candidate,

Regards,

Megan.

Alternatively, if you need some time to think about the offer, you can say:

1. Dear _______,

Thank you so much for the opportunity. Is there a deadline by which I must accept the offer? I would appreciate a little time to consider the position and get back to you. 

Thank you again and I look forward to hearing from you,

Regards,

Megan.

How to respond to a rejection email:

Nobody likes to receive a rejection email, but we all know it’s part of being a job seeker. By having the correct response to such an email, you can help turn a negative into a positive for yourself. When responding to a rejection email,  it’s important to be gracious, polite, and professional.  Here is what you can say if you find yourself in this position:

Dear ______,

Thank you so much for getting back to me RE my job application with your company. I appreciate your email and I want to thank you for the pleasant interview process. Please let me know if you have any feedback to pass on from my interview/application. 

Also, please feel free to keep my resume on hold should you consider me for a future role.

Thank you again for the opportunity and best of luck in the search for the right candidate.

Regards,

Megan.

How to respond to a complaint email:

Whether you’re receiving a complaint regarding a service, a product, or a negative interaction with a staff member, it’s crucial that you know how to diplomatically handle the situation. When responding to a complaint email,  it’s important to do “damage control”, and attempt to salvage your relationship with the disappointed client. Here is what you can say to minimize the situation: 

Dear Mr/Mrs _______,

Thank you so much for reaching out. We are deeply sorry to hear about your negative experience with our (product/service). We always aim to provide the highest possible customer satisfaction, so this is a source of disappointment for our company that your experience was not so positive. 

As compensation, we would like to offer you _________. Again, I would like to extend my personal apology and assure you that this will not re-occurreoccur

Thank you once again for drawing our attention to this matter. We appreciate your concern over the matter, and we hope that this incident does not prevent you from doing business with us in the future.

Best wishes,

Megan.

So there you have it! A couple of ways to rephrase common commands, and some alternatives to common responses. We’ve also shown you how to respond in 3 common correspondence situations: a job offer, a rejection email, and a complaint email. Of course, this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to email etiquette, and we have a lot more content to share with you all in order to help you to boost your emailing skills. Happy emailing!