Negative review response prompt: free ChatGPT template
Updated · By Robert Breen
Use this when a one- or two-star review lands on Google or another review site and you want a reply up the same day. Remember who the reply is really for: the next customer scrolling your reviews. The prompt keeps you calm and brief, uses only what the reviewer already said in public, and moves the details offline, where a fix or a refund belongs.
The prompt
Copy it into ChatGPT (or Claude, Gemini or Copilot) and replace every [BLANK] with your own details. It uses the four parts from Prompt Writing 101: Role, Context, Task and Format.
Role: You are the owner of [BUSINESS], replying publicly to a review. Future customers will read this more closely than the reviewer will. Context: What happened, from our records: [WHAT HAPPENED]. Offline contact: [OFFLINE CONTACT]. Never mention anything the reviewer didn't say first: no addresses, prices, invoice details or private information. Task: Write a public reply. Thank them, acknowledge the specific frustration, add at most one sentence of context if it helps a reader, and invite them to continue offline. Don't argue, don't correct them point by point, and don't offer refunds or discounts in public. Format: Under 80 words, plain text, no emoji. Sign it [SIGN OFF]. Here is the review: [REVIEW]
Fill in the blanks
[BUSINESS]- Your business name and what you do.
[WHAT HAPPENED]- Your side from your records, in plain facts. It is mostly for you; the reply will use one sentence of it at most.
[OFFLINE CONTACT]- A real phone number or email and the person who will answer.
[SIGN OFF]- A name and role, like "Nate, owner." Signed replies read as human.
[REVIEW]- The review text and star rating, copied as posted.
Example, filled in
A made-up example from the free lesson Build an AI Job Follow-Up Agent for Electricians. Oak & Wire Electric is the made-up electrical contractor in the AI Job Follow-Up Agent lesson, where Marcus gets a Level 2 EV charger. In this made-up example he leaves two stars.
Role: You are the owner of Oak & Wire Electric, replying publicly to a review. Future customers will read this more closely than the reviewer will. Context: What happened, from our records: on the first visit, Sep 14, the panel needed a breaker we didn't have on the truck. We offered Sep 16 for the return; Marcus picked Sep 21, and the charger was installed that day. Offline contact: call the office at (555) 014-3380 and ask for Nate. Never mention anything the reviewer didn't say first: no addresses, prices, invoice details or private information. Task: Write a public reply. Thank them, acknowledge the specific frustration, add at most one sentence of context if it helps a reader, and invite them to continue offline. Don't argue, don't correct them point by point, and don't offer refunds or discounts in public. Format: Under 80 words, plain text, no emoji. Sign it Nate, owner. Here is the review: 2 stars. Charger works now, but it took two visits and a week. First guy showed up, said my panel needed a different breaker, and left. Nice people, just slow. Marcus
What a good answer looks like
- Thanks and a real acknowledgment: two visits and a week is frustrating.
- One neutral sentence a reader can use, such as the panel needing a part the truck didn't carry.
- Nate's number and an invitation to talk, not a promise of anything.
- Under 80 words, signed by a person.
How to check it before you use it
An AI draft can sound right and still say something you never told it. Use the habit from the Reply Faster lesson: check every promise, name, date and number against what you gave it before anything goes out.
- Delete any correction from your records, like "you chose the later date." It may be true, but in public it reads as blame, and it's a detail Marcus didn't share.
- Check for private details: his street, the panel, the price. If the review didn't say it, the reply doesn't either. That is PII protection, not just politeness.
- Strike any public offer ("we'll refund your service call"). Make offers on the phone, where you can check facts first.
- Read it as a stranger deciding whether to hire you. Calm and specific beats clever.
Why this prompt works
The Role names the real audience, which changes everything about the tone. The Context gives the AI your records so it understands the situation, then forbids it from publishing them, the same split between facts and promises that Reply Faster teaches.
Practice it in the free lesson
Reply Faster: Turn a Messy Customer Email Thread into a Clear, Friendly Reply: Turn a messy customer email thread into a clear, friendly reply: give ChatGPT the thread and your facts, check every promise, fix the tone, and send it from Gmail. You do every step yourself in a practice copy of ChatGPT, and nothing touches your real accounts.
Also useful: Build an AI Job Follow-Up Agent for Electricians
Terms used here
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Visual guide
This prompt as a quick visual guide you can save or share, with the same text written out.
