A local shop review reply checklist you can reuse
Use this when a new review lands between jobs and you have five quiet minutes.
Read the whole thread once
Note what is factual, what is feeling and whether the writer names a person, date or invoice. Do not reply angry from the notification banner.
Decide: reply, report or both
Report only when a published policy looks broken. Most unhappy-but-honest reviews need a calm reply, not a flag.
Draft in three short beats
Thank them for the feedback, own what you can fix without arguing private details in public, and invite them to continue offline with a phone number or desk name.
Log date and outcome
Keep a one-page note of what appeared and what you did. Patterns matter more than any single star rating.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Platform and search engine policies change; links go to each one’s own page.