Replying to reviews without sounding like a robot

Reviews matter more for a small business than almost anything else online. People read them, and they read your replies. But writing a thoughtful answer to every review is exactly the kind of job that slides to the bottom of the list. Here's how to keep up without your replies sounding canned.

What a good reply does

• It's quick. Within a few days, ideally sooner. A reply three months later looks like nobody's minding the store.
• It uses their name and one detail from their review. That's the difference between a person and a template.
• It's short. Three or four sentences. Nobody reads a paragraph.
• For a bad review, it owns the problem. No excuses, no arguing in public. Say sorry, say what you're doing about it, and offer to talk directly.
• It sounds like you. If you're casual in person, be casual here.

Remember who you're really writing for. It's partly the reviewer, but mostly the next hundred people deciding whether to come in.

Where A.I. helps

A.I. is very good at the first draft, which is the part that takes the most energy. You paste in the review, it drafts a reply in your voice, and you spend thirty seconds fixing it instead of ten minutes writing it.

The key is to tell it how you talk, once. Use this prompt the first time:

Copy

I own [your business] in [your town]. I'm going to paste in customer reviews, and I'd like you to draft my replies. How I write: [e.g. warm, a little funny, no corporate language, sign off with my first name]. Rules: under 70 words. Use the reviewer's first name and one specific thing they mentioned. For complaints, apologize once, don't make excuses, and invite them to call me at [phone] or email [email]. Never offer refunds or discounts in a public reply.

Then, for each review:

Copy

Here's the next review, [number] stars: [paste the review].

Two examples

A five-star review:

"Best clam chowder on the coast, and Jenny remembered our order from last summer!"

A reply that sounds like a person:

Thanks, Dana! Jenny will be thrilled you noticed. She remembers everyone's order, and it's a little spooky. See you next summer, and the chowder will be waiting. — Sam

A two-star review:

"Waited 40 minutes for a table even though we had a reservation. Food was good but the wait ruined it."

A reply that owns it:

Mark, I'm sorry. A reservation should mean a table, and we let you down on that. We've changed how we handle Saturday bookings so it doesn't happen again. If you'll give us another try, call me at the restaurant and I'll take care of you personally. — Sam

Notice what the second reply doesn't do: it doesn't blame a busy night, and it doesn't offer anything in public. The offer happens on the phone.

A few cautions

• Read every draft before you post it. A.I. sometimes invents details, like a menu item you don't have or a promise you didn't make.
• Never paste in private customer information. The review text is public, so it's fine. Their phone number and order history aren't.
• Don't answer obvious fake reviews. Report them through the review site instead.

Make it automatic

Once you're comfortable, this can run on its own: new reviews come in, drafts appear in your inbox each morning, and you approve them with a tap. There's a small version of this on the home page you can try.

If you'd like me to set it up for your business, book a time or ask me a question first.