/ CHAPTER 06 — 6 min read

Respond to every review

The response formula, templates for every star count, what never to say, and same-day escalation rules.

Respond to 100% of negative and neutral reviews within 24–48 hours, and to positive reviews within a week. Your replies are read by every future prospect — write for them, not for the reviewer alone.

The formula for negatives

Thank → acknowledge the specific issue → state the fix → take it offline → sign a real name.

Never argue. Never reveal customer details — critical in healthcare and legal, where you shouldn't even confirm someone is a client. Never copy-paste identical responses.

Templates

Positive (5 stars)

Thank you, {{name}} — glad the {{specific_thing_they_praised}} worked well for you. We'll pass this to {{staff_member}}. See you next time! — {{owner_name}}

Neutral (3 stars)

Thanks for the honest feedback, {{name}}. Glad {{positive_part}} went well, and you're right that {{issue}} should have been better. We've {{concrete_change}}. If you give us another chance, I'd like to make sure it shows. — {{owner_name}}

Negative (1–2 stars)

{{name}}, I'm sorry — {{issue}} is not the experience we aim for. I'd like to understand what happened and put it right: please call me directly at {{phone}} or email {{email}}. We've already {{immediate_step}}. — {{owner_name}}, Owner

Suspected fake / not a customer

{{name}}, we take every review seriously, but we can't find any record of serving you. If you believe this is in error, please contact us at {{email}} so we can investigate.

Then report the review through the platform's flagging process.

Escalation and closing the loop

• Escalate same-day: legal threats, safety allegations, discrimination claims, billing-fraud accusations, anything involving a minor or a health outcome. The owner handles it personally; consider professional advice before replying publicly.
• Catch near-misses before they post. When an unhappy customer replies privately to a request, treat it as a service-recovery case with a named owner and a deadline — in Echorank that's a Recovery ticket, and the dashboard's open-ticket counter is your daily to-do.
• Log the root cause of every 1–3 star review. Monthly, pick the #1 recurring complaint, ship one operational fix, and watch whether the theme fades from new reviews.