How to Generate Review Responses with Claude

A dental practice has 43 unanswered Google reviews. Writing individual responses would take hours. Generic templates would feel impersonal. LocalSEOSkills handles this in minutes.

What You’ll Need

  • Claude Code with LocalSEOSkills installed
  • LocalSEOData connected (google_reviews endpoint)
  • Your business context (type, location, brand voice)

The Prompt

"Pull all unanswered Google reviews for [Business Name] using LocalSEOData.
Write a personalized response for each review. Match the tone to the
star rating — warm and enthusiastic for 5-star, empathetic and
solution-focused for anything under 4. Flag any reviews that might
violate Google's policies. Business context: family dental practice
in Austin TX, friendly and professional tone."

What Claude Returns

LocalSEOSkills fires the review-management skill combined with localseodata-tool, pulling reviews via the google_reviews endpoint.

5-Star Response Style

For enthusiastic reviews, responses match the energy:

Review: "Dr. Johnson and the team were amazing! Made me feel comfortable
the whole time and my cleaning was painless."

Response: "Thank you so much for this kind review! We're thrilled
Dr. Johnson and the team made your visit comfortable. We work hard
to make dental care stress-free for every patient in our Austin
practice — see you at your next appointment!"

The response:

  • Thanks the reviewer authentically
  • Mentions the specific staff/experience referenced
  • Includes natural location mention (Austin)
  • Ends with a forward-looking close

3-4 Star Response Style

Mixed reviews need empathy without defensiveness:

Review: "Good dentist but wait times were long"

Response: "Thank you for taking the time to share this feedback.
We hear you on the wait time — this is something we're actively
working to improve and we appreciate you letting us know. Your time
matters to us, and we hope your next visit runs more smoothly."

The response:

  • Acknowledges the concern directly
  • Shows action being taken
  • Doesn’t get defensive or make excuses
  • Invites them back

1-2 Star Response Approach

Negative reviews require care:

Review: "Terrible experience. Staff was rude and I waited 45 minutes
past my appointment time."

Response: "We're sorry to hear about this experience. This isn't
the level of service we strive to provide. We'd like to understand
what happened and make it right. Please reach out to us directly
at [phone/email] so we can address this personally."

The response:

  • Apologizes without admitting liability
  • Doesn’t argue facts
  • Moves the conversation offline
  • Shows willingness to resolve

Policy Violation Flags

Some reviews shouldn’t be answered — they should be removed.

⚑ POLICY FLAG — Review #41
Content: "[Business Name] is terrible, [Competitor Name] is much better"
Flag type: Competitor mention + apparent non-customer
Recommended action: Flag for removal via Google Business Profile dashboard
Reason: Review appears to be from a competitor or competitor affiliate

Claude identifies:

  • Reviews mentioning competitors
  • Reviews from apparent non-customers
  • Reviews with personally identifiable information
  • Reviews that appear bulk-submitted (same language, same time)
  • Reviews with threats or harassment

What Makes a Good Review Response

Beyond tone matching, good responses include elements that help local SEO:

Natural keyword inclusion: Mention the service referenced in the review. “Glad your cleaning went well” is better than “Thank you for your review.”

Location references: Include city/neighborhood naturally. “Our Austin practice” or “here in the Westlake area” signals geographic relevance.

Specific acknowledgment: Reference what the reviewer actually said, not generic platitudes.

Call to action: For positive reviews, invite them back. “See you at your next checkup” or “We hope to serve you again.”

Editing and Approving the Responses

Claude generates drafts. You review before posting.

What to check:

  • Tone matches your brand voice
  • No factual errors about services or staff
  • Any sensitive issues handled appropriately
  • Responses feel authentic, not robotic

What to edit:

  • Add personal touches you know about the reviewer
  • Adjust language that doesn’t match your voice
  • Remove anything that feels too formal or too casual

Most responses need minimal editing. Review the flagged items carefully.

Posting to Google Business Profile

Manual posting:

  1. Go to your GBP profile
  2. Navigate to Reviews
  3. Find each review, paste the response
  4. Repeat

Bulk posting: Some tools allow bulk response posting. Check your GBP management tool.

Setting Up a Recurring Response Workflow

Reviews accumulate continuously. Build a weekly rhythm.

Weekly prompt:

"Pull all unanswered reviews for [Business Name] since [last check date].
Generate responses for each, flag any policy issues."

Run this every Monday or Friday. Stay current on review responses.

Response rate target: 90%+ response rate is the goal. LocalSEOSkills makes this achievable without dedicating hours to it.

The Complete Workflow

  1. Pull unanswered reviews via LocalSEOData
  2. Claude generates personalized responses for each
  3. Policy violations flagged for removal action
  4. You review and edit as needed
  5. Post responses to GBP
  6. Flag policy violators through GBP dashboard
  7. Repeat weekly

43 reviews that would have taken 3+ hours get handled in under 20 minutes, including editing time.

Why This Matters

Review response rate is a GBP signal. Businesses that respond to reviews rank better. But more than that — responses build customer relationships and demonstrate care to future customers reading reviews.

Generic template responses are obvious and feel impersonal. AI-generated responses that reference the actual review content feel genuine because they are — Claude read the review and responded to it specifically.

The goal isn’t replacing human connection. It’s making consistent, quality responses achievable when you have 43 reviews waiting.