Project status update email to a client
Sarah, the client on Northstar Offices, reads Maria's Friday update on her phone between two meetings. If the stone decision sits in the fourth paragraph, it waits until Monday, and the order waits with it.
Gathering the facts and writing the team version is covered in how to write a weekly project status update. This page is about the email the client reads, with a short note at the end on where Arkscape, a project tracking tool for architects, designers, and engineers, keeps those facts.
What every client update gets right
The subject line carries the project and the news: "Northstar Offices: stone decision needed by Thu Oct 29" gets opened and found again, and "Weekly update" doesn't. The ask comes first whenever there is one, so a client who reads two lines still knows what you need. Ask for one decision per email, because two decisions in one email usually come back with one answer. Write dates as dates, "Thursday, October 29", never "next week". And send it on the same day every week, so the client stops chasing you for it.
The client needs your studio's dates, not its staffing, so internal workload and who was slow stay out. Small internal slips that don't move a client date belong in the team update. Don't list every drawing: say what changed and link the rest.
A traffic-light status on its own tells the client little. If you use red, amber, or green, follow it with what's wrong and what would fix it.
Four emails to copy
Most weeks the email is routine. Three other moments need a different one.
The routine weekly update
Use it every week when nothing needs a decision and no date has moved.
Subject: Northstar Offices: update for Fri Oct 23
Hi Sarah,
This week we finished the lobby finishes package and coordinated
the level 2 ceiling heights with the mechanical engineer.
Next week we'll issue the revised door schedule to the contractor
on Tuesday and start the stair detail revisions.
Nothing is needed from you this week, and the program is unchanged.
Maria
"Nothing is needed from you" is said out loud, so the client doesn't read the email looking for a hidden ask, and "the program is unchanged" answers the question they'd otherwise reply with. Finished outcomes tell the client more than activity. Write it in your own words and sign it yourself; an update that reads like a system report gets skimmed.
A decision is needed by a date
Use it when the client's answer holds up something with a date of its own, such as an order, an issue, or a consultant's work.
Subject: Northstar Offices: lobby floor stone decision needed by Thu Oct 29
Hi Sarah,
We need your choice of stone for the lobby floor by Thursday,
October 29, so the order goes in on time for the lobby works.
The two samples we presented on Tuesday:
- A: honed limestone, the warmer of the two
- B: grey granite, harder wearing at the entrance
We recommend B, because the entrance takes the most foot traffic.
If we don't have a decision by the 29th, the order moves by a week
and the lobby finishes follow it.
Maria
The decision and its date are in the subject line and the first sentence. It gives a recommendation, because a client asked to choose between two options with no view from you will often ask for a meeting instead. The last line states what happens without an answer, plainly: it's information the client needs to weigh the decision, not a threat.
A date is slipping
Use it as soon as you know a date the client cares about will move, not on the day it was due.
Subject: Northstar Offices: design development issue moves to Wed Nov 18
Hi Sarah,
The design development issue will move from Wednesday, November 11
to Wednesday, November 18.
The structural information for the level 2 opening arrived later
than we planned for, and we need a week to coordinate it into the
drawings.
Nothing else in the program moves, and nothing is needed from you.
We'll confirm the new date again on November 13.
Maria
It names the cause, not a culprit: the client hired your studio, and an email blaming the structural engineer by name only makes them wonder who's in charge. Saying what doesn't move stops the client assuming everything has, and the check-in date turns an open worry into a date they can hold you to. If the slip moves a date the client has promised to someone else, such as a board or a tenant, call them first and send this the same day so it's on record.
A milestone is reached or an issue is sent
Use it when you've sent an issue, completed a phase, or reached a milestone the client has been waiting for.
Subject: Northstar Offices: design development issue sent
Hi Sarah,
We've sent the design development issue today. It includes the
general arrangement plans, the lobby finishes, and the revised
door schedule. The link is below.
We'd like your comments by Friday, November 27, so we can start
the documents phase on December 1.
Two things to look at first:
- The lobby layout, which changed after the stone decision
- The level 2 ceiling heights, now coordinated with mechanical
Maria
Issue emails often go out as a link and nothing else, and then the comments arrive late or not at all. This one says what's in the issue, when you need comments back, and why that date matters. Pointing to the two things that changed focuses the review on what needs the client's eye.
Where the facts come from in Arkscape
In Arkscape, each project is a group with its own Arkboard, so most of what goes into these emails is already written down. For this week's work, open the group's Reports tab, choose 7 days, and press Copy as text on the Completed panel. You get the week's finished cards grouped by day, with who finished each one; keep the two or three the client cares about. For what's next, the Deadlines panel lists late cards first, then everything due in the next 14 days.
When someone pushes back a card's due date, the board's Activity shows it the same day. That's the cue for the slipping-date email.
For the decision itself, put it on a card on Your Ark, open the card's ... menu, choose Add people, and type the client's email address. If they're not on Arkscape yet, they get an email with an Open the card button, join with a free account, and accept the card. From then on they see that one card and its discussion, and you both see when it's done. The invitation email names only the card, never its notes or dates, so send your own email with the options and the date as well.
Reports come with the Business plans (Growth at $25 and Scale at $40 per user a month, with a 14-day trial) and the Connect ($10) and Pro ($20) Personal plans. Shared cards work on every plan, including Free.
Common questions
How long should a client update email be? Short enough to read on a phone without scrolling much: three or four short paragraphs. If it's longer, the ask is probably buried.
Should I send an update when nothing happened? Yes. One line saying what you're waiting for and when you expect it is still useful, and it keeps the day fixed.
Should consultants be copied on client updates? Only when the email asks them for something. Otherwise send the client their update and the consultants their own.
Should I call or email when a date slips? Email is fine for most slips. Call first when the date is one the client has promised to someone else, then email the same day so the change is on record.
Read next: how reports work, how to write a weekly project status update, and how to share one task with a client or consultant.