# Review responses

Every response is drafted for approval and posted only after the owner reads
it. A public response cannot be taken back.

Read `../../../shared/voice-profile.md` before drafting. These go out under the
owner's name, in public, permanently. A guessed voice is worse here than
anywhere else in the plugin.

**Under 60 words.** A long reply reads as arguing, whatever it says.

---

## Negative review

Four parts, in order:

1. **Name the specific thing.** Not "we're sorry for your experience."
   "You waited nine days for a part" — the reviewer needs to see they were
   read.
2. **Say what changed,** if anything genuinely did. If nothing has, skip this
   rather than inventing a policy.
3. **Move it offline with a real route.** A name and a number, not "please
   contact us."
4. **Stop.** No policy explanation, no context about how busy the season was.

### ✗ Bad

> We're sorry you feel this way. Our records show the technician arrived
> within the scheduled window and our policy clearly states that parts
> orders can take 5-7 business days. We pride ourselves on customer service
> and hope you'll give us another chance.

Defensive, cites policy at someone who is upset, and reads as a rebuttal to
every future customer who finds it.

### ✓ Good

> Nine days for a blower motor is too long, and you shouldn't have had to
> chase us for updates. We've changed how we order parts so this doesn't
> repeat. Call me directly at 555-0142 and I'll make the wait right.
> — Ray

---

## Positive review

Short, specific, and clearly written by a person. Thank them for the thing
they actually mentioned. A copy-pasted "Thanks for the 5 stars!" under
fourteen reviews in a row tells every reader the responses are automated.

### ✓ Good

> Thanks Dana. Marcus said the crawlspace was a tight one — glad it's running
> right. Give us a shout when it's time for the fall check.
> — Ray

---

## Mixed review

Answer both halves honestly. Owners tend to reply only to the compliment,
which reads as ducking the complaint.

### ✓ Good

> Thanks for the kind words about the install. You're right about the
> scheduling — we double-booked that Thursday and you paid for it. We've
> moved to same-day confirmation calls since. — Ray

---

## Unfair or false review

Stay calm, correct the one factual point, and stop. The audience is not the
reviewer; it is the next customer reading the exchange, and they are watching
how the business behaves under provocation.

### ✓ Good

> We don't have a record of a service call at this address, so this may be a
> mix-up with another company. If we did work for you, call me at 555-0142
> and I'll sort it out. — Ray

**Escalation.** Removal is worth requesting only when a review clearly breaks
the platform's rules — wrong business, no actual transaction, personal
attacks, or an obvious conflict of interest. Explain to the owner what the
platform's bar actually is, that most requests are declined, and that a calm
public reply usually does more good than a removal fight. Never tell the owner
a review will be removed; the platform decides.

---

## Approval flow

Present each draft with the review it answers, so the owner judges them
together:

```
★☆☆☆☆  Google · Jul 12 · Dana R.
"Waited nine days for a part and had to call three times to get an update."

Draft reply:
  Nine days for a blower motor is too long, and you shouldn't have had to
  chase us for updates. We've changed how we order parts so this doesn't
  repeat. Call me directly at 555-0142 and I'll make the wait right. — Ray

Post this, edit it, or skip it?
```

Approve one at a time. A batch approval on eight public responses is how a
wrong one goes live.

---

## Timing

Respond to negative reviews within a couple of days. A complaint answered
promptly reads as a business paying attention; the same words a month later
read as damage control.

Do not respond to a review the owner has already answered. Check for an
existing owner response before drafting anything.