Why it matters
When you reply, Google notifies the person who wrote the review, and future customers read your replies too. Most owners mean to answer reviews and then fall weeks behind. With a saved prompt, each reply comes down to copying the review, checking the draft and pasting it back.
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Steps
- Make sure you can reply. Google only lets verified businesses reply to reviews. Go to your Business Profile and select Read reviews. If you see a Reply button next to each review, you're set.
- Open ChatGPT and create a project called "Review replies" by selecting New project in the sidebar. In Claude, go to claude.ai/projects and click New Project. Both tools allow projects on their free plans (Claude's free plan allows up to five).
- Add project instructions. In ChatGPT, open the project's ••• menu, choose Project settings and paste the instructions block below. In Claude, click Set project instructions, paste, and save.
- Fill in the brackets in the instructions: your business name, how you sign off, the first name you want to reply as (or "the team"), and one or two phrases you actually say to customers.
- Copy one review from Google (the reviewer's first name, the star rating and the text) and paste it into a new chat in the project.
- Read the draft. Fix anything that isn't true, and add one specific detail only you would know, like the job you did for them.
- Back in Google, select Reply next to that review, paste your reply and select Reply. Google checks every reply against its policies before it shows publicly. That usually takes up to 10 minutes, but it can take up to 30 days.
- Repeat for the rest. If you batch them once a week, it turns into a 15-minute habit.
Copy-paste prompt
Paste this into the project instructions, then edit the brackets.
Prompt
You write replies to Google reviews for [BUSINESS NAME], a [TYPE OF BUSINESS] in [CITY]. Voice: warm, plain, short. Sound like the owner talking, not a brand. Use the reviewer's first name once. Length: 2 to 4 sentences. Never longer than 60 words. Sign off as: [NAME or "the [BUSINESS] team"]. Rules: - Mention one specific thing from their review so it's clear we read it. - Never offer discounts, promos or ask for anything in the reply. - Never mention services, keywords or our phone number unless they asked a question that needs it. - Never confirm or add details about the customer's visit, health, treatment, purchase or account beyond what they wrote themselves. - For 1 to 3 star reviews: thank them, own anything that was our fault without making excuses, and invite them to contact us directly at [EMAIL or "the front desk"] to sort it out. Do not argue or correct them in public. - If the review is only a star rating with no text, write one short thank-you sentence. When I paste a review, reply with only the draft reply. If something in the review is unclear, ask me one question before drafting.
Common mistakes
- Asking only your happy customers for reviews. Google's review policy bans selectively asking for positive reviews, and it also bans offering anything in return for a review. Ask every customer the same way.
- Posting the same thank-you on every review. Google's own tips say to focus replies on reviews where you can share an update or answer a question, and to keep replies short.
- Turning replies into ads. Google's tips say to avoid using replies to offer deals or promotions.
- Confirming someone was a patient. If your business is covered by HIPAA (some med spas and clinics are), even acknowledging a person's treatment in a public reply can be a violation. In 2023, HHS settled with a New Jersey practice that disclosed patient details while answering negative reviews. The prompt above tells the AI not to do this, but read every reply before you post it.
- Letting AI invent facts ("We're so glad your kitchen remodel came in under budget!") when the review never said that.
- Arguing with a bad review. Take it offline.
Google has also been testing a built-in "Reply to reviews with AI" option. Search Engine Land reported in March 2026 that it had shown up on some Business Profiles in the U.S., Brazil and India. If you see it on yours, the same rules apply: read and edit every draft before you post it.
Sources
- Manage customer reviews - Google Business Profile Help
- Tips to get more reviews - Google Business Profile Help
- Prohibited & restricted content - Maps User Contributed Content Policy Help
- Search Engine Land: Google Business Profile tests AI-generated replies to reviews (March 2026)
- HHS: agreement with a provider that disclosed patient information in review replies (2023)
- OpenAI Help: Projects in ChatGPT
- Claude Help: How can I create and manage projects?
