Negative Review Response Generator

The public reply is calm and brief: it names the problem, apologizes once, and states the fix without personal details, since future shoppers read it too. The private message goes straight to the customer, repeats the apology, and sets out what happens next in practical detail.

• Fair review: the reply accepts it plainly.
• Partly inaccurate: it corrects the facts once, calmly, using only what you know, such as a delivery date from your records.
• Not from a customer you can find: it says so and asks them to get in touch, without accusing them of being fake.

In the US, the FTC's Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule treats an incentive that depends on a review being positive, or on it changing or being removed, as an unfair practice, whether that condition is stated outright or only implied. The offer here is never linked to the review changing: it's the same fix whether or not they ever touch their rating.

1. 01

   Send the private message first

   Get the fix moving before or alongside the public reply, so the public reply isn't the only thing the customer hears from you.

2. 02

   Check the platform's process

   Google checks replies before they post publicly. On Etsy, the buyer can't edit their review once you respond, so try the private message first if there's still time to fix things.

3. 03

   Read the public reply aloud

   It should sound calm, not defensive. Fill in any square-bracket placeholders before you post.