Answering a public review
The first hour, the four facts to write down, the shape of a reply that does not make it worse, and the reviews that go to the owner. For: Whoever watches the reviews, front of house, the owner.
Before you type
Do not reply while annoyed. Read it twice, then write down four things:
- What the customer says happened.
- What you can confirm actually happened.
- What was done about it at the time.
- What, if anything, you are allowed to offer.
If you cannot fill in the second line, you are not ready to reply. Ask the person who was there.
The shape of the reply
- Thank them for the feedback, once, without gushing.
- Name the specific thing they raised, in their words, so it is clear you read it.
- Say what you have done or checked, in plain language.
- Say what happens next, if anything does.
- Give one route to continue privately: a phone number or an email address.
- Sign with a name and the business.
Four to six sentences. No paragraph about how much you care, and no account of your side of events in public.
What not to write
- No staff member's name, ever, in a public reply.
- No admission of liability: “our fault”, “we damaged”, “we are liable”. Apologize for the experience without accepting a legal conclusion.
- No money in public: no refund, discount, free meal or credit offered in the reply. Offer the private conversation instead.
- No arguing with facts you cannot verify, and no correcting a customer in public unless something they said is dangerous.
- No promises about the future: “this will never happen again” is a promise you cannot keep.
Hand it to the owner before replying
- Safety, hygiene, injury, illness, pests, or anything that could involve the law.
- A review that names a staff member, or accuses one of something.
- A review from someone who was not a customer, or who has the wrong business.
- A review that is part of a dispute already running.
- Any review where you feel you have to defend yourself.
After you reply
Keep a copy with the job, note the date, and tell whoever was involved. If the review changes, do not rewrite the old reply to win the argument; reply once more, briefly, only if there is something new.
What this page is not
Not legal advice. A threat of legal action goes to the owner and the insurer.
Second Draft · free staff handout · seconddraft.dev/handouts · the free reply builder is at seconddraft.dev/tools/review-reply.