Responding to positive reviews is a great way to improve your brand reputation and make your best customers feel appreciated. When you show interest in their positive reviews, you generate familiarity with them and encourage brand loyalty, which is key to increase customer retention. As a result, customers share about your business with their family and friends and return to your company repeatedly.

In this article, we discuss why it is a good idea to respond to positive reviews and we explain how to craft personalized responses for each one. We walk you through responding to negative comments productively and graciously.

Lastly, we provide several positive review response templates you can use as a starting point when crafting your responses. 

Simple Steps to Crafting the Perfect Positive Review Responses 

Before jumping into specific examples, let’s discuss the elements of a great positive review response. A perfect response template to a good review should: 

• make your customer feel appreciated by expressing gratitude for their nice review comments
• show that you value your clients’ commitment to your business
• encourage happy customers to leave online reviews in the future

Try to respond to positive reviews quickly and keep your responses organic and personalized by incorporating the following tips: 

1. Address Them by Name 

The easiest way to make a response feel personal is to address the reviewer by name. This creates a feeling of familiarity and shows that your response comes from a real person - not an automated AI. Add a personal touch by mentioning something specific.

Examples to Try:

"[Customer Name], I'm glad to hear you had an amazing time with us." 

"It is a pleasure to hear such kind words from you, [Customer Name]. Thank you for sharing your experience with us."

"Thank you for your amazing review, [Customer Name]! It was great to meet you and your family last night."

2. Thank Them for Their Review

Often, leaving a positive review doesn’t come with any benefits for the reviewer beyond feeling good for sharing their experience. Taking the time to thank them sincerely is a great way to make them feel that you value their opinion about your business. 

It makes such a difference to thank your customer for taking time out of their day to write a positive review and provide feedback. Not only does this show the reviewer that you care about their experience, but it also encourages new customers to leave their reviews. 

Examples to Try:

"Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review. It’s so encouraging to hear back from happy clients!" 

"Wow, thank you so much for sharing your amazing experience here at "company name"."

"Thank you so much for giving us a 5-star review. We hope to see you again at "business name" soon."

"It’s wonderful to hear we’re on the right track! Thank you for supporting our business and leaving a detailed review." 

3. Reinforce the Good Feedback

If a customer has gone out of their way to comment on an aspect of your service, thank them for that specifically. If it’s something your team has worked on, mention your efforts and express happiness that your customer benefitted from your hard work. If it’s an aspect of your service you hadn’t thought about before, explain how their great review encouraged your team to take note of that aspect and make it a priority to maintain. 

Examples to Try: 

"We’re so happy to hear you loved the couch covers you received. Thank you for your kind words." 

"It’s wonderful to hear that you found our front desk staff to be approachable and friendly–we like them too!" 

"We’ve worked hard to improve the UX of our app and it warms our hearts to hear that we’re moving closer to our goal." 

4. Pass On Amazing Feedback 

If your reviewer takes the time to mention someone on your team by name, it’s good to let them know that you’ll pass on their positive feedback to those specific employees. This makes your customer feel like their review means something and isn’t a shout into the void–but an actual piece of feedback and encouragement that will brighten someone’s day. 

Examples to Try:

"We’ll be sure to pass on your compliments about Chef Baker’s famous ravioli. He’s worked on his recipe for years and will be thrilled to hear that you enjoyed it!"

"It’s so wonderful to hear that you felt valued and cared for by our employees, I’ll pass along the kind words and let them know that they’re doing a great job." 

"Your review made Jenny’s day! Thank you for going out of your way to ensure we knew you loved her advice, she’s so happy to have helped you!"  

5. Address Constructive Customer Feedback 

Sometimes, an overall positive review will contain some constructive feedback. It’s important to address these points and mention how you plan to do better in the future. Sympathize with their frustration or disappointment, apologize for the negative parts of their experience, and invite them to contact your business directly if they would like to talk about their experience. 

Examples to Try: 

"I’m sorry to hear you dealt with a grumpy server! I’ll be sure to pass on this feedback and work together with the serving team to improve and strengthen the customer service experience going forward." 

"We're glad to hear you enjoyed the pasta, and we will be working to improve the standard of our sandwich options to match. Thank you for sharing your experience and encouraging us to continue to put our customers' needs at the center of our attention." 

6. Invite Them to Return 

When you respond to positive reviews, you’re generating brand loyalty and increasing customer retention. You create a sense of familiarity when you invite your customer to return to your company. This turns first-time customers into loyal repeat customers who know they can expect top-notch service on their next visit.  

Examples to Try:

"We’re so glad you had a good experience with us! We hope to see you again at "company name" soon." 

"It’s wonderful to hear that you loved our sweet potato fries. We think you’ll enjoy our Tuesday vegan specials just as much." 

"We loved being a part of your special day! Be sure to reach out if you have any more occasions you’d like us to photograph."  

Responding to a Positive Review Improves Your Ranking

In addition to improving customer journey, responding to positive reviews is also beneficial to your local SEO. Regularly responding to reviews shows the search engines that you are active and your website is ranked higher as a local business. 

Positive Review Response Examples

Now that we’ve broken down the specific points that go into a positive review response template, let’s work through some response examples and explain why each one works. Here are 5 positive reviews and their responses. 

“10 out of 10” Mold Removal

In this positive review response example, Paul expresses gratitude towards the project manager handling his home’s mold issues. The business owner responds simply and starts by thanking Paul for taking the time to leave a positive review. The owner then relates to him by saying they understand how stressful his previous situation was, and explaining that the team was pleased to help him out.

This response shows Paul that the company values and appreciates what his customer wrote and that the team was happy to provide the service he needs. 

Constructive Steak Criticism 

In this 4-star excellent review example, we see an overall positive experience that carries positive feedback. The business manager thanked Herb P. for visiting the restaurant and leaving a great review. He then reinforces the good parts of the customer’s experience before addressing the negative feedback. He mentions he’s passed on the feedback and invites the customer to give the business another go. 

Happy Thursday Real Estate

In this positive customer feedback sample, Armando expresses sheer joy over his experience with the company. He names several employees directly, further highlighting his good customer experience. Brad is one of these employees and responds to the review with gratitude. He thanks him for the review and makes sure he feels welcome asking for further assistance.

This response shows potential customers that the company values and prioritizes its customers even after the sale has gone through. It's extremely important to demonstrate to new customers that they can expect great customer service throughout the whole process.

Pain-free Injury Compensation

This example shows how Antoinette was met with compassion and understanding during a job injury case. The owner responds with sincere thanks, congratulates the customer on the settlement, and invites them to return to the company for any future needs. 

The Joy of a Job Well-Done

In this example, we have another sample of excellent review in which Michael Gregory explains how his most recent appointment was the one that inspired him to leave a review. He mentions quick appointment scheduling that made him feel valued, and he explains how the treatment provided instant pain relief. The owner responds with much enthusiasm and heart, using exclamation points and capital letters to convey emotion and eagerness. This natural response is incredibly personalized and removes the barrier of professionalism that can make exchanges feel fake or forced.   

Final Thoughts on Positive Reviews Examples

As you can see from the examples above, when business owners respond to positive reviews, it sets them apart from other businesses. Good reviews alone are not enough for potential customers to decide where they want to spend their hard-earned money.

Another benefit of being communicative with your customers; besides building your brand reputation, it increases your SEO ranking across social media and other review sites.

By now you should know how to respond to positive reviews and you should be able to craft your own review template that will come in handy.

Negative Review Response Examples

Even when you do your best to provide quality service and avoid negative reviews, sometimes they’re unavoidable. If a customer leaves a negative review, it’s good practice to respond and attempt to make things right. Besides, not having any bad reviews at all may make it seem like all your positive reviews are fake.

In general, you should respond to negative reviews using the following formula:

1. Respond quickly. Don't just immediately respond to positive reviews only, negative reviews also need your immediate attention.
2. Sympathize. Let them know that their frustration or disappointment makes sense given the circumstances. 
3. Apologize. Apologize sincerely for the negative aspects of their experience.
4. Explain. Sometimes, the customer had the wrong end of the stick. If you have a clear reason why their expectations weren’t met, it’s good to explain your side.  
5. Accept direct feedback. Invite them to reach out and contact your company directly with feedback and constructive criticism. 
6. Make it right. If you have a solution to their issue, let them know how you plan to improve in the future. 

With these elements in mind, let’s work through specific negative review response examples to illustrate each point. 

Residential Roofing Issue 

In this example, we see Tara upset with a roofing company for “wasting her time”. She is upset because they inspected her roof to make sure they weren’t the right company for the job before they referred her elsewhere. 

The owner’s response is clear and apologetic, and it explains clearly why the situation was handled the way it was. Hopefully, Tara saw this response and felt clarity regarding the situation. 

Bad Noodles and Attitude 

In this example, Chris complains about the quality of the food and service he received at a specific restaurant. The owner apologizes and then offers to make it up to him by remaking his order or giving him something else off the menu. They then invite him to give the company another chance in the future while explaining how this feedback will be put to good use. 

Too Quick to Handle 

In this example, we see Lisa explain how miscommunication and bad planning negatively affected her experience with the retail company. The employer responds by thanking her for valuable feedback, validating her frustrations, and inviting her to provide further feedback. When reading this review response, future customers gain insight into the house selling process. They’ll be prepared for potential frustration and know that the company will do its utmost to ensure a smooth sale. 

Unsettling Settlement 

In this example, Todd Davis expresses disappointment that some of his concerns were pushed aside and that he was rushed to sign an agreement he didn’t fully understand. The owner responds by thanking him for his review, apologizing for not meeting his expectations, and inviting him to contact the business directly with any additional comments or feedback. 

Sometimes, you won’t be able to fix the situation. But, as we see in this Google review response examples, you can always sympathize and allow your customer to share their experience. 

Unknown Customer 

Sometimes, people leave negative reviews on the wrong company website. In this example, we see Jeff Anderson has left a 1-star rating without any comment. The owner starts the response process by confirming if the review was left intentionally by a customer or by accident. They then explain that any negative review is something the business takes seriously, and they invite Jeff to contact the manager directly with feedback, concerns, or a reason for the unfounded and untrustworthy negative review. 

Reap the Benefits of Positive Reviews Today 

By now, you should know how to craft a response to any review your business receives. By adopting a few review responses to fit your needs, you can thank customers for their great reviews and build a collection of positive reviews that future customers can look through when choosing whether they want to work with you or not. 

Your next step is to get more reviews in the first place. And that’s where TrueReview comes in! If you want more positive customer reviews for your business, TrueReview has the tools to segment bad customer reviews from good customer reviews to help maintain a great online reputation.

TrueReview Makes It Easy to Get More Online Reviews

TrueReview delivers SMS and Email review requests to your customers, encouraging them to leave a review after making use of your services. These gentle prompts remind your customers that leaving a review is a great way to support your business further and encourage future clients to trust that you can get the job done. 

Build brand trust and increase your number of 5-star reviews using personalized text messages and emails with your branding. TrueReview helps your customers find your review website, whether you’re based on Google Reviews, Facebook, Yelp, your business website, or any other website. You can also encourage disappointed clients to contact you directly, instead of leaving a bad review and tarnishing your online reputation. 

If you have any questions or would like to learn more about our services, contact one of our experts today at 888.984.4969. 

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