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Consistent Marketing

Review-response guide

Google review reply examples for local businesses

Strong replies show that somebody read the customer’s words. These examples are starting structures—not copy-and-paste scripts—and should be adapted only with facts supported by the real review or the business.

Reviewed 29 August 2026 · Australian English

What Google recommends

Google’s current guidance says review replies should be professional, polite, clear, short, relevant and conversational rather than promotional. For difficult reviews, protect privacy, avoid personal attacks, acknowledge legitimate concerns and move complex resolution into a private channel.

A safe operating rule: reflect one genuine detail, acknowledge the customer, and never add a fact that is not supported by the review or confirmed business information.

A simple four-part reply method

  1. Acknowledge: thank the customer or recognise the concern.
  2. Reflect: mention one specific service detail they actually provided.
  3. Respond: reinforce the relevant service standard or explain the next step.
  4. Close: finish naturally without turning the reply into an advertisement.

Five adaptable reply examples

A detailed positive review

Thank you for highlighting the prompt arrival and the care taken around the high-traffic areas. We are pleased the process was clearly explained and that the finished result met your expectations. We appreciate you choosing our team.

A short five-star review

Thank you for your five-star feedback. We appreciate the opportunity to help and are glad the service went smoothly.

A returning customer

Thank you for choosing us again. We are pleased your second booking was just as straightforward, and we genuinely appreciate your continued trust.

A review mentioning an employee

Thank you for recognising Sam’s clear communication and attention to detail. We will make sure your feedback is shared with the team, and we appreciate your recommendation.

A negative or mixed review

Thank you for raising this. We are sorry the timing and communication did not meet your expectations. We would like to review what happened without discussing private booking details here. Please contact us through the support details on our website so we can investigate properly.

What to remove before publishing

  • Private customer, booking, address, health or payment details.
  • Arguments, accusations or statements that the reviewer is lying.
  • Unsupported promises about outcomes, rankings or future compensation.
  • The same generic paragraph repeated under every review.
  • Sales offers or keyword-stuffed service lists unrelated to the feedback.

Review every reply in context before it goes live. A serious allegation involving safety, discrimination, illegality or threatened legal action should be escalated rather than answered from a template.