How to Ask for Feedback Over Email: Guide, Expert Tips, & More

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Learn how to ask for feedback from your boss, teacher, customers, and more

Co-authored by Alyson Garrido, PCC and Hannah Dillon

Last Updated: November 29, 2024 Fact Checked

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Feedback at Work

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Feedback at School

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Feedback from Customers

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Feedback on a Manuscript

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Email-Writing Samples & Templates

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Video

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Tips

Whether you're looking for feedback at work or school, from customers, or for a manuscript, knowing how to phrase, time, and structure your message can help you get the most timely and helpful response. This wikiHow article will show you how to write polite and effective requests for feedback and review via email. We'll also give you some sample feedback request emails to get you started!

Formatting a Feedback Email: Quick Tips

Always be specific in your request. Specific feedback will almost always help more than general feedback. Also, remember to be polite and thankful, and give the person you're asking enough time to give you a response.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Feedback at Work

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Often, this will be the manager immediately above you. In any case, you should start with them or a more senior colleague or co-worker. They will have the experience to help you and give you the feedback you need.^{[1]
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Be polite in the email, but follow your office norms too. If you have a more casual relationship with your boss, suddenly being so polite you sound stuffy or afraid might come off wrong. Humility goes a long way in asking for feedback, but don’t be so humble that your boss or manager thinks you know nothing about your job. Rather, frame the questions in ways that show your progress on a project or task.^{[2]
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- You can say, “I was working on the presentation for tomorrow when I ran into a snag with the format—I’m not sure if I’m following the company’s standard. I’ve attached the presentation. Do you have any suggestions for the format? Thank you for your help with this.”
- Harish Chandran, PhD, Executive Coach, says that there's no one way to ask for (and get) feedback. "It's personal and depends on the [relationship]," he says. "There are some very candid ways of delivering feedback or getting feedback."
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Be specific in your feedback request. This can help you avoid overly broad feedback that is unlikely to help you at your job. Avoid yes or no questions unless necessary. Instead, focus on specific parts of a project that need work. Try not to bombard your boss or co-worker with all the possible questions you could have about your job all at once.^{[4]
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- Career coach and psychotherapist Katherine Kirkinis, Ed.M., MA, says that giving feedback is a skill that not all managers have. "I definitely wouldn't assume that [getting less feedback is necessarily a good thing], and I think it's okay to help people give you feedback. If you haven’t gotten any [feedback], ask," she says. Because of this, being specific when asking for feedback is key to getting great feedback.
- You can say, for example, “I wasn’t sure how to proceed with the Eastman file. The client hasn’t responded to my emails, and since it is a high-priority assignment, I thought it best to email you to see what I should do.”
- If you are looking for more general feedback in the form of a review or report, request that specifically. Being polite and concise will help. For instance, you could ask for a report on your efficiency or creativity. If you are asking for feedback from those who report to you, you may need to conduct an anonymous survey.
EXPERT TIP

Alyson Garrido, PCC
Workplace Coach
Alyson Garrido is an International Coach Federation accredited Professional Certified Coach (PCC), Facilitator, and Speaker. Using a strengths-based approach, she supports her clients with job search and career advancement. Alyson provides coaching for career direction, interview preparation, salary negotiation, and performance reviews as well as customized communication and leadership strategies. She is a Founding Partner of the Systemic Coach Academy of New Zealand.

Alyson Garrido, PCC
Workplace Coach

Try the KISS method when you're requesting general feedback. The KISS model is a great way to help people give you appropriate, actionable feedback. Ask the person, "What should I keep? What should I improve? What should I start? And what should I stop?"
Make sure you send the thank-you email within 1-2 days. If the feedback you got suggests you need a lot of improvement or that your work is not up to par, make sure to include a brief statement of how you’ll fix it. Give yourself time to process the emotions before immediately responding.^{[5]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Feedback at School

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Your teacher may have hundreds of students, especially if they’re a college professor. You’ll need to include your name (first and last), your class, and section. If you are still in high school, this might mean your period or time slot. This way, you won’t waste the teacher’s time making them figure out who you are, and they’ll spend more time on the feedback you need.^{[6]
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Keep it formal. Sometimes students struggle with formality when first emailing teachers. You can say “Hi Dr. Smith” or “Dear Ms. Turner.” If your teacher has emailed you, do not be less formal than they have been. Keep the tone professional.^{[7]
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- Instead of saying, “Hey, what do ya think of my paper? It isn’t the greatest,” say, “I’m not sure I understand the assignment. I had some specific questions regarding the paper.”
Don’t worry about explaining all the context of your questions unless the context is necessary for those questions. For instance, if you’re requesting feedback on a possible extension, your teacher may need context, but if you are trying to ask a question about an assignment, don’t tell them the story about how your dog made you run late and why you’re emailing now (unless it’s very close to the assignment time), or anything else that might be irrelevant to the assignment at hand.^{[8]
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Not only is your teacher not likely to give you feedback that close to a due date, they are likely to be irritated that you waited until the last minute to ask them for feedback. If you must send last-minute questions, be brief, specific, and apologetic. It will make the teacher more likely to respond, assuming they see the email in time.
Often, the teacher will tell you on the syllabus what file formats they will accept for assignments or in emails. For instance, if your teacher specifies a .doc file, don’t send a .pdf or a .pages file. If you are unsure, you can send an .rtf or .pdf file or simply ask.
You simply need to email the professor and be polite. If the professor has office hours, you can visit those or make an appointment. You can say, "Dear Professor Smith, I didn't do as well on my exam as I expected. Could you help me work through some of the mistakes I made so I can do better on the next exam?" Your professor should typically respond favorably to such a request.

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Feedback from Customers

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Customers are overwhelmed with surveys from pretty much every business out there. If you want to keep the customer interested, ask one or two specific questions. If the email is stuffed full of questions, the customer has a higher likelihood of not replying^{[9]
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Rather than using yes/no questions, ask questions that elicit fuller answers. Instead of asking, "Would you recommend us to a friend?" ask, "How would you describe us to a friend?" These kinds of open-ended questions give you more information in the answers than a simple yes/no question.^{[10]
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Let the customer know you'll get back to them quickly. This makes the customer feel their opinion isn't just going to some giant inbox, where it may or may not be read or considered. You'll also likely get more candid feedback if they know you'll respond.^{[11]
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- When you do respond, be candid and professional. In today's viral internet culture, you can ruin a company's reputation in a second if you respond with anything other than professionalism and sincerity.
If a customer has a slow connection, they will likely delete the email immediately when they see it's failing to load. Remember that feedback is often more important to you than them.
You want your email to look clean and professional. An email with pixelated graphics or Comic Sans font is unlikely to impress your customers. Instead, use standard fonts like Times New Roman or Arial, and keep excess graphics to a minimum.^{[12]
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A single-column format is more flexible than multi-column designs. Make sure your font size isn't too small, either. Your email should look great on laptops, phones, and tablets. With so many people checking their email on their phones, it's imperative that you format your emails accordingly.^{[13]
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Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Feedback on a Manuscript

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Email someone you know first. If you want attentive feedback, the best person to give it is someone you know, preferably a friend or a colleague. Don't send the manuscript in the first email unless you know they are likely to say yes (i.e., someone for whom you've read a manuscript or someone who's already offered to read yours).^{[14]
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- You can include a brief description or an abstract, depending on whether the person you're emailing is a friend or a colleague.
If you really do need expert advice, send an email to an expert you know of and explain your project and why you need feedback. Don't be pushy; instead, kindly thank them for their consideration and say, "I understand if you don't have time to give me feedback." You may even want to ask if they know anyone with the time and expertise who can help you if they can't.^{[15]
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This will likely go unanswered unless you tell them you will pay for their help. If they are a famous author, they are unlikely to respond as they likely get a lot of emails just like the one you sent. Instead, ask your friends, colleagues, professors, etc., first. They are more likely to be able to help you and more likely to want to help you.^{[16]
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Be specific about what you want from their feedback. If you only want positive feedback, tell them so. Tell them whether you want detailed, local, or global feedback and aesthetic, grammatical, or structural feedback. This can go a long way in helping your reader know what you want from them.^{[17]
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- Positive feedback need not be unconstructive. If they explain why they like what they like, you can learn a lot about your manuscript.^{[18]
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- If you get negative feedback, give yourself time to respond. If they are your friend, they likely only want to help. No matter how angry or upset you feel, if they are a professor, you should not respond that way. Instead, thank them for their help and move on. After some time, you may find that the feedback was helpful, even if the manner in which it was delivered was not.
If you have asked for detailed feedback on a novel manuscript, don’t expect feedback within a day or even a week. It takes time to edit a manuscript of that length. If you have a deadline you’re working toward, let your reader know this. You can also simply ask them if they can have the edits done by a certain date. Remember, they have their own life and obligations.
If the reader is a friend, you might want to buy them a small gift as a thanks or return the favor in time. If the reader is a professor, you may want to write a thank you email to let them know you appreciate their work and time. Forgetting to thank your reader can leave them feeling used and/or unappreciated and may make them less likely to help you in the future.^{[19]
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Email-Writing Samples & Templates

Things to Include in an Email Asking for Feedback

Things to Avoid in an Email Asking for Feedback

Annotated Email Asking for Feedback

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Tips

Don't badger people for feedback.

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Maintain proper email etiquette for the situation.

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A little humility goes a long way.

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