As much as we want to be perfect, mistakes are going to happen.

We’re going to misspell a word. Miss entering a subject line. Forget to update the default messaging. Or go through a growing pain that causes customers to get frustrated and have a less-than-ideal experience.

And while we tend to obsess over the mistake, it’s not that important. What’s important is how we respond to the mistakes. Today, I’m going to share three ways you can transform mistakes into opportunities.

#1: Correct the mistake

When we make a small mistake, such as forgetting to update the default success message or email subject line (both of which I did when creating the sign-up for my email sharing marketing tips), it’s easy to beat ourselves up.

And question whether we have what it takes (after all what kind of marketer misses the subject line on a welcome email?).

But that doesn’t help. Instead, use it as an opportunity to give yourself grace. If someone pointed out the error (as two people did in my case), thank them. Then, if possible, fix the error. And move on.

#2: Learn from the mistake

Take a moment to identify what may have caused the error. Were you rushing? Learning a new system? Distracted with other priorities?

Years back I had posters created that promoted an event as the most “climatic event in your college career.” The problem? The word should have been climactic, meaning high point. I wasn’t referring to a weather-related event.

Once you know the cause, decide what you can do in the future (as you move forward) to improve. I learned not to rely on spell checkers to catch every error.

One easy way to minimize the chance of errors is to create a checklist. You may also find it saves you time as you’re not having to “remember” all the steps.

There’s a reason airline pilots have a pre-flight checklist. We can too.

#3: Be transparent. And apologize.

When a mistake significantly impacts your customers’ experience, take it one step further. Admit the mistake. Apologize. And do what’s needed to make amends.

While leading a company, we launched a new fulfillment system. It did not go well. Orders were delayed. Stuck in the system. And sometimes lost. Customers were rightfully upset.

As we got things fixed (so the problems wouldn’t happen again), we wrote an apology letter. Explained what happened in a way customer could relate.

And we offered an incentive to give us another try. A significant number of people did. And others sent us notes saying “Apology accepted. All is forgiven.”

So, give yourself grace when making mistakes. Fix them. Learn from them. Make amends when needed. It’s part of the process. Happens to all of us (even the experts). And helps us discover opportunities to improve our business every day.

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