Draft a response to a customer complaint with Copilot

Step 1: Read the complaint fully before drafting anythingOutlook

Read the whole email, not just the subject line or first sentence — complaints often bury the actual core issue halfway through after some context-setting.

Note both the specific problem and the customer's tone (frustrated but patient vs. ready to escalate), since a billing-error complaint and a service-delay complaint need genuinely different responses, not a swapped-out product name in the same template.

Step 2: Ask Copilot to draft a grounded responseCopilot

Give it the complaint and the customer's account history, and ask for a response that addresses the specific issue rather than a generic apology.

Prompt idea:

This customer is complaining about [specific issue]. Using their account history, draft a response that acknowledges the specific problem, explains what we're doing about it, and avoids generic apology language.

Step 3: Verify every factual claim about the accountOutlook

Confirm any reference to the customer's history, billing, or prior interactions is actually accurate before it goes out — a wrong detail in a complaint response makes things worse.

Step 4: Have a second person review for tone on escalated complaintsOutlook

For anything already escalated or high-risk, get a second read before sending — tone matters more than usual when a customer is already upset.

Check the work

• Every factual claim about the customer's account has been verified.
• The response addresses the specific complaint, not a generic version of it.
• Escalated or high-risk complaints got a second-person review before sending.

Source: Microsoft Copilot Scenario Library — Respond to a customer complaint (2026)