We’ve all done it—let an email blast get away before proofing it; misread a stat included in a newsletter article, or out and out just got something wrong in website content.

Running away won’t help—your clients know where to find you. Instead, embrace your error and transform it into an opportunity to make a deeper connection with your clients.

Here are steps to turn a mistake into a benefit for your clients and yourself:

1. Admit it… to your clients and yourself. It doesn’t have to be a dramatic mea culpa – just say that you got it wrong. Most of your customers will appreciate it.

2. Respond to the person who outed your error. This person reads your stuff, and is probably a customer who’s interested in your company.

3. Correct it. Send an email and clearly state the error, where it occurred and correct it.

4. Tell clients something relevant. Send new information, like an update to a previous story, or new information about a topic that your clients would care about. This reminds clients that despite the occasional error, you’re still a valuable information resource.

5. Learn from it. Figure out how it happened. Did you rush the research and fact-checking? Was your editor out that day or did you skip a final reread? When you identify how you made an error, you can prevent another.

6. Put steps in place to ensure it doesn’t happen again. If you run a one-person shop and are the content manager, writer and editor, create a process you follow each time or hire an editor to read behind you.

Most small business owners are busy—which makes it easy to overlook details. If you find that your daily duties take up too much of your time, hire a writer, editor and content manager to help strengthen your marketing, content creation and customer communication. If you need a professional writer or editor, contact me at .