Draft a Customer Escalation Response

I need to write a professional response to an escalated or difficult customer situation.

Before writing anything, ask me:

1. What happened? Describe the situation from the customer's perspective — what did they experience, and why are they upset?
2. What is the customer's name and what is their relationship with us? (new client, long-term client, enterprise account, etc.)
3. What channel is this response for? (email, phone script, live chat, or in-person)
4. What is the actual resolution I can offer? Be honest — even if the answer is limited.
5. Is there anything I should NOT say or commit to in this response?
6. What outcome do I want from this interaction? (retain the client, close the complaint, arrange a call, etc.)

After I answer all questions, write a response that does the following in order:

1. **Acknowledge** — Validate the customer's frustration without being defensive. Do not make excuses.
2. **Own it** — Take clear responsibility for what went wrong, even if it was a process failure rather than negligence.
3. **Explain** — One sentence on what happened, only if it adds context. Do not over-explain.
4. **Resolve** — State clearly and specifically what you are going to do about it.
5. **Prevent** — Tell them what you are doing to make sure it does not happen again.
6. **Invite** — Give them a clear next step or open door.

Also give me:
- A subject line if this is an email
- A note on tone adjustments if the situation is particularly severe
- One thing NOT to say that businesses commonly get wrong in this situation

Keep the language warm, direct, and human. No corporate speak.