A Review That Is Really a Customer Service Request

A one-star review with a question in it

A new review arrives on your Google My Business listing over the weekend. One star. The repair from last week has not worked, the customer has called twice, and nobody has called back.

It ends with a line that is not a verdict at all: can someone please just come and look at it.

That is a complaint. It is also a customer service request, made in the one place the customer felt sure somebody would read it.

Answered as a complaint, it becomes a defence. Answered as a request, it becomes a fixed problem, and sometimes a different review.

How to recognise one

• It asks a question, or ends with a request.
• The problem is still happening as they write.
• It mentions failed attempts to reach you.
• It includes details such as a date, a job or an order.
• It was written in a hurry, often the same day.

The third is the one to take personally. It says the phone, the email or the form did not work for this customer, and the review is where they went next.

Why customers ask for help in a review

Usually because the normal routes failed. The voicemail was full, the email address on the website went to someone who has left, or the form gave no sign that anything was sent.

Sometimes because the listing was simply the first thing they found. Searching for your phone number brings up your listing, and the button to write a review sits right there.

And because it works. Owners are notified of new reviews, and a review is often answered sooner than a voicemail.

Reply with the fix

The public reply has one job: to say what will happen next, and when.

Something like: sorry this has not been put right; we will call you this morning to arrange a return visit, and if you would rather call us, here is the direct number.

Sign it with a name and a role, so the customer knows who is now responsible.

Leave out any argument about the first visit, even if the customer has it wrong. Leave out their address, the invoice and anything else from your records, because the reply is public and it stays up.

Offer the fix, not compensation. Refunds and amounts belong in the private conversation.

Then fix it privately

Match the review to the job. Reviewers often use a first name or a nickname, so the date and the description of the problem usually find it faster.

Call when the reply said you would. A promise made in public and then missed is worse than the original review.

Fix the problem properly, then call again a few days later to check it stayed fixed. That second call is what turns a repaired job back into a customer.

A worked example

An appliance repair company with three technicians received a one-star review on a Saturday. The dryer was still squealing after a repair, the customer had called the office twice, and nobody had called back.

The owner saw it on Monday morning and replied within the hour, apologising and saying the office would call that morning to book a return visit at no charge.

The office found the job from the date and the model. A replacement part had been on order, and the call to arrange fitting it had never been logged.

The customer's two calls had gone to a voicemail box that filled up over the weekend, and nobody had checked it since Friday.

A technician fitted the part the next day, and the office called on Friday to check.

A week later the customer edited the review to describe the second visit, and the owner added a line to the reply thanking them.

When the review changes, and when it does not

Reviewers can edit their reviews, and some do once the problem is fixed. Many do not, and that is their right.

Never make the fix depend on a changed review, and never offer anything in exchange for one. Google's policies forbid incentives for reviews, and a customer who senses a trade will say so publicly.

What you can always do is update your own reply. A short line saying the problem was resolved shows every later reader how the business behaves when something goes wrong.

Fix the route that failed

The review is a symptom. The cause is usually a contact route that does not work, and it will produce the next review unless it is fixed.

Call your own number after hours and listen to what happens. Send a message through your own form and see who receives it, and how quickly.

Then make the route for existing customers obvious: a line on the contact page about problems with a recent job, with a number and a promised response time.

That gives the next unhappy customer somewhere to go before the review button.

Replies that make it worse

A template reply that apologises for the experience and asks the customer to contact the office, when the office is exactly what failed, reads as not having read the review.

So does a reply that explains company policy, or one that arrives a week later. The customer asked for help, and every reader can see whether they got it.

The counter-case

Not every negative review is a request. Some are final verdicts from customers who want nothing further, and contacting them again is unwelcome.

Some are not from customers at all, and need a different response. Serious allegations about conduct need your own process before anything is said in public.

And a business whose owner answers every call personally may rarely see this kind of review.

But where a review asks for help, answer it as a request: say what will happen, do it privately, and fix the route that sent them to the review.

This week

1. Read your recent reviews for unanswered requests.
2. Reply with what happens next, and when.
3. Match each one to a job or order.
4. Fix the problem, then call again afterwards.
5. Update your reply once it is resolved.
6. Test your phone and form as a customer would.
7. Add a route for problems with recent jobs.

Step six is the one that prevents the next review. The reply and the fix deal with one customer, but the full voicemail box or the form that goes nowhere is still waiting for the next.

What to keep out of a public reply follows the same logic as a review that names an employee.

Frequently asked questions

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