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One-star reviews are the bane of every business owner’s existence. You could have the best service in town, the happiest customers, and the cleanest track record—and boom. Some angry person, real or fake, slaps a one-star review on your business.
Adrenaline kicks in. Blood pressure spikes. You want to grab your keyboard and start typing.
Don’t.
Before you react, let’s break this down step by step so you can handle negative reviews like a pro, get some removed, flip bad reviews into five-star ones, and—most importantly—make sure these don’t hurt your business long-term.
Step 1: Do Not Respond (Yet)
Yes, you read that right. Before you fire off a response, take a beat. Actually, take a walk. Call a friend. Rant in private. But don’t dump that frustration in a public response. That’s like throwing gasoline on a fire.
Once you’ve cooled down, it’s time to assess the situation.
Step 2: Can This Review Be Removed?
Here’s a little-known fact: not all bad reviews stick.
Some violate the platform’s terms of service and can be reported for removal. Here’s what to look for:
Promoting another business: If the review says something like, “This place is trash, go to Pete’s Pizza instead,” that’s a violation.
Hate speech, threats, or curse words: Any review with offensive language can be flagged and removed.
Fake reviews: If the reviewer was never a customer, report it. These are harder to get removed, but it’s worth a shot.
Important Note: Don’t respond before reporting. Once you reply, platforms are less likely to remove the review.
If the review gets taken down—problem solved. If not, let’s move on.
Step 3: Can We Flip the Review?
If the review is from a real customer, there’s a chance to turn this around.
Reach out directly.
If you’re not collecting customer contact info, start now. It’s a lifesaver for situations like this.
Use a method inspired by Disney’s customer service playbook, the H.E.A.R.D. Method:
Hear: Let the customer talk. Repeat back what they’re saying to show you understand. Example: “I hear that we showed up late and didn’t communicate well.”
Empathize: “I’d be upset too if that happened to me.”
Apologize: Even if it’s not your fault. Take responsibility.
Resolve: Ask them what would make it right. Offer a refund, redo, or another fair solution.
Diagnose: Ask how you can prevent this in the future. For me and my team, this is usually an internal ask during our weekly meetings. This can SOMETIMES be an ask directly to the customer, but a lot of angry customers don’t want to help you as much as they just want it resolved so they can move on.
Once you fix the issue, ask politely if they’d consider updating their review. No bribes, no pressure—just a genuine request. Something like:
"We live and die based on our reviews, so if you’d be willing to update the review to reflect how we made this right, it would mean the world."
Follow up with an email recapping the resolution and a gentle reminder about the review update.
If they update it—amazing! If not, we move to the next step.
Step 4: Crafting the Perfect Response
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, the review stays. That’s fine. Your response matters more than the review itself.
Golden rule: You’re not replying for the reviewer—you’re replying for future customers.
A great response should:
Stay calm and professional. No defensiveness.
Follow the H.E.A.R.D. method. Address their concerns, take ownership, and show you care.
Show that you made an effort. Future customers will see you tried to make things right, even if the reviewer is being unreasonable.
Example:
"Hey [Reviewer], I’d be disappointed too given the situation. We’re sorry about this last experience. We always aim for top-notch service, and we missed the mark this time. We’d love the chance to make this right—please reach out to [contact info] so we can get this fixed, and thanks in advance for the chance to make things right. Looking forward to connecting. All the best, [Owner’s Name] - Owner"
Future customers reading this will see you took responsibility and tried to fix the problem. Even if the customer never responds, reaching out in this way builds trust. It teaches future customers that if there is an issue, this company will fix it, and it was this customer who chose to leave a bad review and not take advantage of a guarantee or the business making it right.
The Ultimate Cheat Code to Burying Bad Reviews
Here’s the truth: Your goal should NOT be to have all five-star reviews.
A perfect 5.0 rating can actually make you look fake. A 4.5-4.9 score? That looks real. Customers know no business is perfect.
My business sat at a perfect 5.0 for years. Then we dropped to 4.5. And guess what? It didn’t hurt us at all. In fact, it made life easier because expectations were more realistic.
So what’s the real strategy? Flood the garden with flowers so no one notices the weeds.
Bury bad reviews with an avalanche of good ones.
Make it a habit to ask happy customers for reviews before unhappy ones beat them to it. I have a full guide on getting 10X more positive reviews for your business—check it out here.
Bad reviews will happen. But now, you know exactly how to handle them. Keep your cool, follow the steps, and let your stellar service do the talking.