How Do I Respond to a Negative Review? - Incl. Text Examples

What Are Negative Reviews?

A negative review is what the name already reveals a customer telling their experience with a business/product with a negative sentiment. Normally, negative reviews have only one or two stars but even higher ratings can have a very negative sentiment to their review content. Even though negative reviews are harmful to your (online) reputation and can result in the loss of potential customers, they should rather be seen as an opportunity for improvement and a chance for sustainable growth of great service, products, or offers.

Why Is Responding to Negative Reviews Important?

If you don’t respond to a negative review, future customers will only know one side - the disgruntled customer's side and the business's side that doesn’t seem to care. In today’s competitive market, you can lose potential new customers in no time.

If you reply to (negative) reviews, you show your past and potential customers that you truly care about their feedback and are actually taking their suggestions to heart. Furthermore, you are showing Google that you are active online and want to engage with your customers; hence, you take customer service seriously. This can not only change how your business is perceived online but directly influence your overall ranking!

Long story short, replying to negative reviews can minimize their negative impact on your online reputation and you get the chance to make things right. In some cases, it is also a chance to tell your side of the story.

How Do I Respond to a Negative Review?

If you respond properly to negative feedback you can influence your online reputation enormously! Thus, to create an accurate response follow our tips below:

• Make sure the review is aligned with Google’s policy: Negative reviews can be against Google’s guidelines if they include among other things harassment, hate speech, or off-topic content. If they do not comply with the guidelines, make sure you submit a request for their removal. Learn more about which reviews can be requested to be removed by Google and how to submit a review removal request.
• Understand the review: Understand what the reviewer is telling you. You don’t want to give a generic reply that doesn’t address their concerns and complaints.
• Identify the key problem: Make the customer feel heard by repeating their concerns or complaints. Thus, identify the key points that they try to bring to your attention in their review. Respond in a friendly manner: Remember to always stay friendly even if you do not necessarily agree with the negative review.
• Ask for more information: Provide your business e-mail address and politely ask the customer to reach out and provide more information and offer them to solve the solution. This way you can take the dispute out of the public and try to resolve their issues. You can offer the customer a refund but make sure that you don’t make it mandatory to alter the negative review. Offering incentives for reviews is strictly forbidden by Google.
• Offer a solution: Always try to offer a solution or to investigate the complaints further. It is important that the customer feels heard and has the feeling that they are in control of the situation. This will immediately take off their anger a notch as people just want to be heard (and more importantly want to be right). This increases your chance that they alter their review afterwards but even that they will become a return customer. It is all about changing their mind that you can indeed provide the experience they expected.

Remember that you don’t have to do it alone! With the Obenan Review Management Tool, you can automate your review responses. Our trained AI will assess each review individually and respond on your behalf and in your business’s tone of voice. And no worries, the insights of the reviews are not lost! With our Emotion AI you can get detailed insights into the customer sentiment. Based on the review analysis we provide you among other things with an AI-driven action plan for your business to improve your services and prevent negative reviews in the future. This approach saves you valuable time by eliminating the need to personally respond to reviews or analyze each one in detail to enhance your services. Achieve optimal results with minimal effort!

Example Responses for Negative Reviews

We help clients daily with their GBP and how to handle negative reviews is a big part! Thus, here are some examples of responses you can give to negative reviews:

Negative Restaurant Reviews

"We waited over an hour for our food, and when it finally arrived, it was cold and tasteless. The staff seemed overwhelmed and didn’t bother to apologize or check on us. Very disappointing experience!"

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], We sincerely apologize for your disappointing experience at [Restaurant Name]. Waiting so long for your meal and receiving it cold is unacceptable, and we understand how frustrating that must have been. We’re also sorry that our team didn’t provide the attentive service you deserved. Your feedback is very important to us, and we’d like to make things right. Could you please email us at [email address] with the date and time of your visit? We’d appreciate the opportunity to investigate further and offer a solution. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Best regards, [Your (Business) Name]

"I ordered the vegan burger, but it was super dry and lacked flavor. This place is supposed to cater to vegetarians and vegans, but clearly, they don’t know how to cook for us!"

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re so sorry to hear that our vegan burger didn’t meet your expectations. Our goal is to create flavorful and satisfying dishes for all our guests, and it’s clear we missed the mark here. We’d love the chance to learn more about your experience and get your input on how we can improve. Please reach out to us at [email address] so we can make things right. Your feedback helps us grow, and we truly value your opinion. Warm regards, [Your (Business) Name]

Negative Hotel Reviews

"The room smelled musty, and the sheets didn’t feel clean. The front desk staff didn’t seem concerned when I brought it up. Not worth the price we paid."

Response: Dear [Reviewer’s Name], We’re deeply sorry to hear about your unpleasant stay at [Hotel Name]. A clean and comfortable room is the minimum you should expect, and we regret that we fell short. It’s also concerning that our front desk team didn’t address your concerns with urgency. We’d appreciate the chance to discuss this further and improve our service. Could you email us at [email address] with the details of your stay? Your feedback is invaluable as we work to improve our guest experience. We would like to offer a solution to make things right. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. All the best, [Your (Business) Name]

"We booked a room with a view, but instead, we got a room overlooking the parking lot. When we asked to switch, they said nothing was available and offered no apology."

Response: Dear [Reviewer’s Name], We’re so sorry that your stay did not meet your expectations. Booking a room with a view and not receiving it is disappointing, and we apologize for the lack of communication and empathy from our team. We’d like to investigate this further and ensure we make things right. Please contact us at [email address] with your booking details. We hope to regain your trust and welcome you back for the experience you deserve. Kind regards, [Your (Business) Name]

Negative Hair Salon Reviews

"I asked for a trim, but the stylist chopped off way more than I wanted. My hair looks awful, and I’m devastated!"

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], We’re so sorry to hear that your haircut didn’t turn out as expected. We understand how important it is to feel confident with your hair, and we deeply regret leaving you disappointed. Please email us at [email address] so we can learn more about your visit and work with you to make this right. We’d love the opportunity to restore your confidence and ensure you leave completely satisfied next time. Warm regards, [Your (Business) Name]

"The salon was running 30 minutes behind, and no one even apologized. I had to rush through my appointment, and the results were just okay."

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], We’re truly sorry for the delay during your visit and for not acknowledging the inconvenience it caused. Your time is valuable, and you deserve both a timely appointment and exceptional results. We’d love to make it up to you. Please contact us at [email address] so we can discuss your experience further and offer a solution. Thank you for bringing this to our attention—we’re committed to improving. Kind regards, [Your (Business) Name] Negative Plumber Reviews

"The plumber arrived two hours late and then charged me more than the quoted price. Not reliable at all."

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], We’re very sorry for the delays and unexpected charges you experienced. This isn’t the standard of service we aim to provide, and we completely understand your frustration. Please reach out to us at [email address] so we can look into this matter and address your concerns. We’d like to ensure transparency and prevent this from happening again. Thank you for your feedback - it helps us improve. Greetings, [Your (Business) Name]

"The plumber fixed the leak, but now the water pressure is terrible. When I called to report it, they said it wasn’t their problem!"

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], We’re sorry to hear about the issues with your water pressure after our visit. We strive for complete customer satisfaction, and it’s clear we didn’t meet that goal this time. Could you please contact us at [email address] with more details? We’d like to investigate and make sure everything is resolved to your satisfaction. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Kind regards, [Your (Business) Name]

Negative Reviews for a Local Boutique

"The staff was rude when I asked for help finding my size. I left feeling unwelcome and won’t be coming back."

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], We’re so sorry to hear about your experience at [Boutique Name]. Every guest should feel welcome and valued, and we regret that this wasn’t the case during your visit. Please email us at [email address] so we can better understand what happened and take steps to address it. We truly appreciate your feedback and hope to provide a more positive experience in the future. With love, [Your (Business) Name]

"I bought a dress here, and after one wash (following the care instructions), it fell apart. Poor quality for the price!"

Response: Hi [Reviewer’s Name], We’re very sorry to hear about your experience with the dress you purchased from us. Quality is extremely important to us, and it’s disappointing to learn that the item didn’t meet expectations. Please reach out to us at [email address] so we can learn more and work to make this right. Your satisfaction is our priority, and we appreciate your feedback. Lovely regards, [Your (Business) Name]

How Can I Prevent Negative Reviews?

The best way to deal with negative reviews is of course still to not have them at all! Especially because it takes approximately at least 10 positive reviews, to cancel out the effect of one negative review (on Google). Thus, let’s look at some smart ways to prevent negative reviews in the first place!

1. Re-direct negative feedback to a private survey: Yes, this is possible! With the Obenan Review Management Tool, you can create review request campaigns that not only help you to gather more reviews in the first place but are also re-directing negative feedback to a private survey so it won’t get published online. You can still use the feedback for internal evaluation but without having to deal with it publicly!
2. Provide prompts in your review request: If you already nudge your customers in the right direction, they are more inclined to leave a more positive feedback even if they actually wanted to give a star less (of course this will not get you a 5-star rating from someone that wanted to give a 1-star rating but it can make a difference!). Use prompts such as:

• We’re so grateful to have amazing customers like you, and we’d love to hear about your experience!
• We hope we made your day as wonderful as you’ve made ours. Would you mind sharing your thoughts?

3. Try to resolve disputes offline: If you notice customers are already disgruntled or irritated, make sure that you try to solve any problems before they go home and write a bad review. Try to offer them a discount or refund if necessary. Think smart, is the risk of a bad review bigger than paying them back a meal? If you are struggling to collect reviews in the first place, it will be difficult to clean up the mess of a bad review. Assess the situation and decide while still having control over the situation (if possible).
4. Provide excellent customer service and learn from your mistakes: It sounds obvious but make sure that you prioritize good customer service and pay attention that your services are of high standard. If you have employees, offer them incentives for positive reviews. While everyone can have a bad day sometimes, a reward for good service praised by a review will motivate them to provide the best service possible. Learn from your past customer's feedback and ensure that the mistake will not happen again!
5. Build positive experiences: Use positive feedback to strengthen and repeat these “good things”. Sometimes customers point out things that you might not even be aware of or that one staff member is doing. Use these inputs to shape new business policies and/or train your staff/yourself accordingly!
6. Don’t ask angry customers for reviews: If you notice that customers are unhappy and the situation cannot be resolved, it's best to skip them in your review collection process. While angry customers are more likely to leave unsolicited feedback, better not to remind them of it.
7. Manage expectations: Be transparent and honest beforehand. If you promise too much or services you cannot deliver anyway, you will most certainly get negative reviews. Thus, make sure that you are confident about what you can deliver to the customer and don’t draw them in with the wrong expectations.

Use our Review Calculator and see how many reviews you need to improve your score

How Should I Deal with Negative Feedback?

Negative feedback and/or criticism is of course not very nice and many businesses (and also people) struggle with it. Yet, don’t take it too personal. Customers can get angry super quick and sometimes for ridiculous reasons (let’s be honest). However, you should take all feedback seriously and assess internally if and what you can improve to keep future customers from having the same experience. Negative feedback should never be seen as an insult but rather as a chance to grow as a business and to keep improving your services for your customers. Make sure that no negative feedback gets unnoticed and transform what seems like a set back into a solid strategy to grow!

It can be difficult to not take negative reviews to heart but it’s important to understand that you cannot meet every customer's expectations already from the beginning. Thus, use every feedback you can get to uncover parts of your service that you didn’t realize were not up to your customer’s expectations yet!

However, there will always be that one customer that cannot be happy regardless of how excellent your service is. Thus, it's good to keep in mind that not all negative reviews are actually justified. While you can happily ignore the feedback of customers that just want to rant, make sure you still reply to their reviews as well (regardless of taking them seriously or not).

Should I Delete My Business Directory Listing After a Negative Review?

Absolutely not! While we understand that a negative review on a business directory is unpleasant, it is definitely not a good idea to just delete your account. From experience, we understand many business owners, especially small business owners, panic over a negative review and try to get it deleted as soon as possible. While this is totally understandable, your business directory listing is helping you to boost your online visibility. If you just delete your listing, furthermore, some business directories only allow the deletion of your personal data, but reviews and your general business information will not be deleted. Deleting your personal information then means that you cannot update your business information anymore, which consequently leads to inaccurate information online. Ergo, your online visibility will suffer again! It is way better to just deal with a negative review in the way that we have explained in this article!

Don’t let one negative review define your online reputation. Focus on collecting more positive reviews to outweigh the impact! Discover simple strategies to gather more customer reviews effortlessly.

Wrapping Up - Negative Reviews Are Not Nice, Yet Are an Opportunity

While negative reviews are not nice and can certainly be prevented to a certain extent, they can be a true opportunity for your business to learn and grow. Make sure that you always respond to negative reviews and ask for additional information via e-mail. This way, you can calm angry customers down by showing them that you are genuinely caring and taking their feedback to heart. Show them that you are willing to take responsibility for your mistakes and that you hear their concerns or complaints. While not all customers can have a change of heart, some will even alter their formerly negative review to a more positive one once you have resolved their dispute.

To avoid negative reviews being published online while still being able to assess the suggestions internally, remember you can easily do so with our Obenan Review Management Tool! Get more control over your online reputation and learn from your customer's experiences! We don’t say “You have to fall before you can rise” for nothing!