How to Respond to Positive & Negative Reviews in Google My Business

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Tips to Professionally Respond to Google My Business Reviews

Today, 79% of consumers trust user reviews when learning about products or businesses. 

Moreover, Google reviews are capable of making and breaking your business.

Google reviews become all the more crucial for local businesses, and they have a say in your rankings for local searches. 

So, it is important to keep welcoming Google reviews. 

However, you must also draw the right value from your Google reviews. And you can do this by: 

• Responding strategically to the negative reviews,
• Appreciating positive reviews to build customer relationships

Moreover, 89% of consumers are delighted to read a business’s response to a user review. 

So, here we bring you tips on: 

How to Respond to Negative Reviews in Google My Business

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1. Evaluate the Negative Review for a Strategic Response

Negative reviews in GMB can have a critical influence online. And if you write a defensive response, it would add fuel to the fire. 

This could agitate the customer to respond with more negative comments. And other customers might follow his lead. 

So, you must assess the customer’s sentiment behind the review. Moreover, it is crucial to create a strategic response. 

This response can be around several considerations like: 

• If the negative review is mild and isn’t defaming your brand, you can continue the conversation on GMB publically. Here, you can find a way to reconcile. 

• If the negative review is a little defaming and may tarnish your reputation, plan for a 1:1 conversation.

• If it is a genuine mistake, show concern and assure the customer a good experience.

So, let’s understand each of these cases in the points below. 

Here’s an example of a business requesting a 1:1 conversation to resolve a bad review:

2. Strategize and Publically Respond to a Google Review

Users love to read empathizing and witty responses from brands, and they appreciate your transparency.

So, in many cases, you can plan a strategic public response that works in your favor. 

As per a Cornell University study, 

Direct responses to negative hotel reviews “appears positively related to the consumer’s view of the hotel, as measured by increases in the TripAdvisor score.”

So, if you see a manageable negative review, you must plan to respond publically. 

Follow these steps to respond to Google reviews through your desktop directly:

• Open your Google My Business account
• Click on “Reviews” from the left navigation bar
• You can now see all the reviews.
• Choose the review you wish to respond to, and click on “Reply.”
• Use the message box that appears at your click.
• Finally, submit your response by clicking on “Post Reply.” 

Here’s a screenshot of posting a reply to a review in the GMB console:

3. Take the Conversation on a 1:1 Conversation Channel

You wouldn’t want to draw the public’s attention to a negative review in some cases. 

If you start a conversation on Google, more users can chime in the conversation. And the conversation can become unmanageable. 

And so, you need to reconcile by taking the conversation to a 1:1 channel. 

However, your first response must be on Google.

 For example,

You own a plumbing business and receive a review like, 

“They fixed the pipeline for us the last week, and it leaked again within 3 days.”

Here you can craft a positive reply like –

“Dear (customer name),

I am sorry to hear about your bad experience with our services. We appreciate your feedback, and I have shared your review with my service staff. 

I would be happy to send my staff to your place and fix the leak without additional charges. Let me know the exact issue by contacting me at [your email id] to arrange the right service personnel for you.

Sincerely, 

[Your name], Business Owner.”

You can use the phone, Chat, or email channels for 1:1 conversations. 

Here’s an example of taking the conversation on a 1:1 channel:

4. Get More Clearance with Empathizing Questions

There are chances when a customer posts a vague negative review for your business. And you first need to understand the actual reason behind this negative review. 

For example, 

A review like “So overrated” or “Not Recommended” doesn’t tell you much. There can be an issue with the service, the staff’s behavior, quality, venue, etc. 

Here, you need to ask an emphatic question to learn why the customer gave this review. 

You can then help him resolve the problem, change his mindset, and even request him to update the review. 

A good response to such a review might look like this:

“Dear [customer name]

I appreciate your feedback, and I am sorry to learn about your negative experience at our restaurant. But, I would like to know why you felt our restaurant is overrated. 

Please drop me your response at [your email ID], and I will personally look into it. 

Sincerely, 

[Your name], Restaurant Owner.”

Here’s an example of a business seeking more clarity on a review:

Read: Reviews & Its Role in Local SEO

5. Display Transparency and Offer a Solution

In some cases, you receive genuine negative reviews from your previous customers. Here, it is better to accept your mistake with transparency. 

Both the customer and other users will most likely appreciate your transparency here. 

90% of US consumers say brand transparency is crucial when buying from a brand. 

Another crucial consideration is to offer a solution and reconcile. 

So, you have written a fluffy response about understanding the issue and empathizing with the customer. But, if you haven’t offered a solution, it is an incomplete response. 

A well-drafted and wholesome response from a brand conveys that the business cares about its customers.

This boosts your brand loyalty and social proof.

Here’s an example of a business being transparent about its mistake:

6. Bring Incentives into the Picture and Request a Review Update

In some cases, you might want to win back a customer’s loyalty by offering an incentive. 

However, you cannot offer an incentive to each customer who posts a negative review. And so, you must analyze the customer lifetime value for your business. 

If you feel that the customer spends enough money with your business, a small incentive can work great. 

You must respond to the conversation on a 1:1 channel and then offer an incentive. 

Here, you must make sure that your customer feels delighted. And when he no longer holds a negative impression of your business, you can request him to update his review. 

Here is an example of responding with an incentive: 

If the customer posts a review like, 

“I visited [your restaurant] last night, and the food quality has degraded and tastes undercooked.”

A possibly good response is: 

“Dear [customer name]

I appreciate your feedback, and I am sorry to learn about your negative experience at our restaurant. I have checked it with the chef and shown him your review.

We are always committed to delivering the best quality services to our guests. And we take your feedback with serious concern. 

I wish to make up for the bad experience and invite you for dinner (at the house). And I will personally assure the quality of our food and services. 

If you are interested, please drop me your response at [your email ID], and I will make the reservations. 

Sincerely, 

[Your name], Restaurant Owner.”

Here’s an example of responding with an incentive:

How to Respond to Positive Reviews in Google My Business

1. Be Quick to Appreciate a Positive Feedback

Most businesses are concerned about responding solely to negative reviews. And their focus remains on controlling the potential damage caused by these reviews. 

Meanwhile, they miss out on leveraging the value of positive reviews. But, quick and good response to your positive reviews can earn you raving fans and new customers. 

So, you must be quick to respond to positive reviews. This allows you to reinforce the delightful experience in the customer’s memory. 

Moreover, your response must highlight your sense of gratitude for the review. This encourages more customers to write about your business. 

Another reason for responding quickly to user reviews is starting a live conversation. If you react fast to a positive review, the customer may join the conversation. And you can now get detailed positive feedback from him. 

A positive chain of comments would be a much stronger social proof for other users. 

Here’s an example of a business appreciating positive feedback:

2. Ensure to Make the Response Personalized 

You must make sure that your response is personalized for positive and negative reviews. 

Instead of using “Hey there” or “Dear Customer,” you must use the reviewer’s name in your response. You might use these terms only when the customer’s username doesn’t make sense (E.g., abc48).

A brain activation study by Dennis P.Carmody and Michael Lewis reveals that, 

“Hearing one’s name has unique brain functioning activation specific to one’s name.”

Moreover, try to create relevant replies for positive reviews instead of an overly-used template. 

A redundant response on your Google reviews can be a little off-putting for the reviewers. 

Also, sign your name and designation at the end of the review response. 

Notice how the business responds to a customer’s review by addressing the customer’s name first:

3. Express Your Gratitude in Your Response

Good positive reviews make your brand look good, and you must cherish them more often. 

Moreover, you should not stop yourself from highlighting your gratitude in your response. 

For example, 

If a user posts in detail about his positive experience at your restaurant and your food, you can write a response like:

“Dear [customer name], 

I am delighted to hear that you loved the ambiance and the Chef’s Special Italian Recipe you ordered at our restaurant. 

I shared the review with the Chef, and he loved it too. We feel appreciated and will continue to offer delightful dining experiences to our guests. 

Next time you visit our place for dinner, ask for me, and I’ll love to meet you. 

Happy to see you again soon! 

[Owner’s name], Restaurant Owner.”

Such a pleasant response can go a long way to boost customer loyalty. And it is likely to encourage other customers to write about their positive experiences. 

Here’s an example of a business expressing gratitude to a customer:

4. Draw Value from Good Positive Reviews

When you see some exceptionally positive reviews, you can draw additional value from them. And a simple “thank you” message would mean under-utilizing a good review. 

So, you can draft a response that grows the customer’s loyalty to your brand. 

For example, 

A customer praises your restaurant and food through a Google review. You can respond to him with an offer to visit and try your chef’s special with a complimentary dish. 

This grows your customer loyalty. And he can later add the review of his visit to your other listings. 

Here’s a screenshot of a business thanking a customer for a positive review:

5. Request Your Customer to Advocate Your Business

Positive Google reviews are inevitably good social proof. Moreover, you can accentuate the potential of these reviews by getting them across to a larger audience. 

A smart way to do this is by turning a delighted customer into an advocate for your brand. 

So, as you respond to a review, you can request a customer to share the positive experience with his friends. 

You can also ask him to share his experience on his social media Story and tag your brand. You can then share this Story on your brand’s social profile. 

This approach helps you attract more inquiries and customers from positive reviews.

You can even add an incentive (like a discount on the next purchase) to your request. This works as some extra motivation for your loyal customer. 

Here’s an example of a poster announcing discounts in exchange for reviews:

6. Draw Detailed Insights from a Genuine Reviewer 

You might be amazed to see the reviewer’s knowledge about your business in some cases. 

For example, 

• One of your restaurant visitors can be an avid food blogger, and he might post a detailed positive review. 

• Or, if you build an app and a tech expert writes in detail about the features he loved. 

Such reviews throw light on the detailed insights about your products or services. 

And these insights help you understand what you are doing right and where you can improve. 

Moreover, you must draft a curious and appreciative response to such reviews. You can take the conversation on a 1:1 channel and request more detailed feedback. 

Here is an example:

“Dear [customer’s name]

I am so glad to hear that our app brings you a thrilling experience and you find it intuitive. Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to write a detailed review of our application.

Thanks for highlighting the app modules that you found amazing for your business. I would love to connect with you on [your email id] and learn if there is anything that you would recommend us to improve. 

Thanks for the great feedback. 

[Your Name] Customer Support Manager” 

Here’s an example of a customer review containing detailed insights:

Importance of Reviews for on GMB Profile

1. Google Reviews Factor in Your Brand’s Local Rankings

Google places significant value on consumer sentiment when crafting local SEO results. 

And so, it considers the reviews on your GMB page, site, and other listings. 

Moreover, your GMB reviews are a crucial constituent of your location authority. And Google places considerable faith in these reviews while compiling local 3-pack results. 

So, if you wish to lead with dominating local SEO results, you must earn abounding positive Google reviews. 

Deploy these tips today to grow the reviews on your GMB profile: 

• Gain Google reviews while your customers are in the store. You can simply create a barcode that, when scanned, show your GMB profile. You can add this barcode on feedback forms or the feedback counter. Customers can scan it and post feedback.

• You must include your GMB profile link in your feedback request emails. 

• SurveyMonkey and GetFeedback are popularly used tools to make feedback generation seamless. 

• Incentivizing your review generation process can help you gain positive reviews in the initial phase. Here is an example: 

“Hope you enjoyed your stay at our resort. Post a review about your experience on our GMB profile and get a 10% discount on your next visit.”

• Draft smart responses for negative and positive reviews to represent your concern for the customer’s feedback. This will encourage more users to post their feedback. Request local influencers to review your services and recommend your business.

Here’s a screenshot of SurveyMonkey:

2. The Reviews on Your GMB Profile Form Influential Social Proof

Today, consumers have become more tech familiar. And they use online research to learn about the reviews of a product, business, or service. 

 82% of consumers switch to online reviews during their business research. 

These reviews help them validate their choices, and they trust them as much as personal recommendations. 

So, if you have abundant positive reviews on your GMB profile, you are likely to receive more site visits and inquiries. 

Moreover, with abundant GMB reviews, you enjoy good location authority. 

Other web admins also consider these reviews. And it becomes easier to generate backlinks through guest posting and PR collaborations. 

You must also share your positive Google reviews on your site. This enhances the conversion potential of your site. 

Here’s an example of a website displaying positive Google reviews:

3. Reviews Help You Enhance Your Business

Both positive and negative reviews bring some learning to your business. 

A negative review can be constructive feedback for your business. And you can draw some insights to make some productive changes for your business. 

Moreover, detailed positive reviews allow you to learn the customer’s sentiment. This gives you insights into what works the best for your business. 

You can further gain value from positive reviews in several ways: 

• You can connect with the reviewer to further enhance your business. 

• You can request the customer to share his review with his followers through social Stories. He can also recommend your business to his friends and family. 

• Awarding small incentives can also help you boost repeat purchases/visits. This works into growing the lifetime value of a customer for your business.

Here’s an example of a detailed review that reveals the customer’s sentiment:

4. GMB Reviews Grow the Relevancy of Your Profile

User reviews don’t just add to your social proof, but they also grow your profile relevancy. 

As more user post their feedback on your GMB profile, the engagement on your profile grows. 

Moreover, these user-generated reviews are most likely to include long-tail keywords. These can be your business-specific or service/product-specific keywords.

These long-tail keywords make your profile more relevant for long-tail search queries. 

Moreover, you can take the reviewer’s consent and share the reviews on your site. 

You must further study these reviews to check common queries and misconceptions. Next, you can create FAQs to resolve some common queries. 

These FAQs can further grow your profile’s relevancy for crucial long-tail search queries. 

Here’s a screenshot of the FAQ section in a GMB account:

5. Positive Reviews Grow the CTR for Your Business Listing Online

Most users are likely to trust your GMB reviews more than the reviews on your site or other listings. 

So, positive GMB reviews will win you a high click-through rate and inquiries.

You must also use Rich Snippets to showcase positive ratings on your site in your search listing. 

Further, your GMB reviews help you grow your chances of winning a spot in the local 3-pack. 

These local 3-pack results put up an appearance for 93% of local search queries. Moreover, these rankings earn 100% higher clicks than the other results on the SERPs. 

Here is how the local 3-pack looks for “HVAC companies in Dallas” -

The local 3-pack results highlight your ratings & reviews and other crucial business info. These include the website link, location, business hours, contact info, etc. 

Key Takeaways

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Google reviews mark crucial gains for your business. Similarly, negative reviews can be destructive. 

So Here Are Tips To Respond To Negative Reviews: 

• Craft a strategic response to respond publicly on Google
• Take the conversation on a 1:1 conversation channel. And offer a solution to reconcile with a customer.
• Ask questions to comprehend the actual reason behind the negative review.
• If the customer’s lifetime value is high, offer an incentive to reconcile. And request him to update the review. 

Use These Tips To Respond To Positive Reviews: 

• Offer a quick response and see if you start a live conversation in the review box.
• Make your response personalized by adding the customer’s name at the beginning and your name while signing off.
• If the customer has given an exclusive review, offer him an incentive on a repeat visit/purchase. 
• Request a reviewer to share his review with his friends and on social media.