Automated review responses, sorted into three lanes

Every review gets read and matched to a real job before any reply exists. The lane decides who writes it.

1 · New review arrives

Google Business Profile

Pulled in as soon as it posts. Platforms that don't allow outside replies still land in the same queue.

Priya S.  ★★★★★
"Carlos did a great job on the drain... Only complaint is I took the morning off and he didn't show until 1:30. Nobody called."
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2 · AI reads it before writing anything

Five checks, in this order

Job match: finds Tuesday's 10-12 drain call in the schedule. No match = human lane.
Star rating: 1-2 stars go straight to a human.
Complaint signals: "but," late, rude, price, second visit.
Risk words: damage, refund, injury, safety, lawyer.
People: a named employee in a negative sentence always goes to a human. Positive mentions get passed along to that tech.
↓SORTED INTO A LANE
Lane 1 · Auto-reply

Clean 4-5 star reviews

No complaint or risk signals. The majority of reviews for a healthy business. AI writes a fresh two-sentence reply each time, never a template.
Review
★★★★★ Janet: "Mike was on time, explained everything, fixed the AC in an hour."
Posted reply
"Thanks, Janet. Glad Mike got the AC running before the weekend. We'll pass this along to him." — Dana, owner
Posts automatically, same day
Lane 2 · Draft & approve

Mixed reviews

3 stars, or a "but" in a good review. AI drafts from the job record; the owner approves, edits, or kills it with one tap.
AI draft
"Thanks, Priya. We're glad the drain is running right, and we'll pass your note along to Carlos. We're sorry about Tuesday's timing. Our previous job ran long and we should have called."
Owner's edit (20 seconds)
"You took the morning off for us and we didn't call when the earlier job ran long. That's on us, and we've changed how we handle late windows."
Posts after human approval
Lane 3 · Human only

1-2 stars and anything risky

Damage, money, safety, a named employee, or no matching job. The AI writes nothing here. It does the homework.
Review
★★★★★ "Tech never even looked at the furnace and charged me anyway."
Homework attached for the owner
Job #4471 matched: 40-min diagnostic, 6 photos
Tech notes + the customer's texts
Don't post the photos or the invoice amount. Offer a call.
Owner writes it, within 24 hours
How it turns on
Weeks 1-2: draft-onlyEvery reply, even five-star ones, goes through approval.
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After a clean weekLane 1 switches to auto-posting once nothing needs editing.
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PermanentlyLanes 2 and 3 never go fully automatic.

Tone rules for every reply, in every lane

Two to four sentences

Long replies to bad reviews read as defensive.

Name the job

A specific detail is the only proof someone read it.

Never argue facts in public

One offline path, with a real name and number.

No private details

No addresses, invoice amounts, or job specifics they didn't post.

Nothing tied to the review changing

No refund or credit for an edit. Fix the problem because it's a problem.

Sign with a name

"Dana, owner" beats "The Management." No keyword stuffing.

Crave AI · crave-media.ai · How automated review responses work for a local business