How to respond to a 1-star review without comments

Getting a 1-star review is bad enough, but what do you do if you have no detail in the review? From a positive viewpoint, people reading your company reviews won’t attach much value to an empty 1-star review.

Knowing this does not help your response approach – you’ve got very little to work with.

In the past we have dealt with this by getting our detective hats on.

Let’s start with the information we have: The reviewer’s name and the review date.

Look up the reviewer in your database.

In our case, we have a log of all customer support enquiries and users within our database. Our first point of call is to check the customer support enquiries for the reviewer. If we can find more information about what their issue is, we may be able to start building our response.

I’ve had occasions where we not only found the reviewer in our database but also found their phone number. We take negative feedback very seriously, so our senior customer support, even our director, on some occasions, has called the reviewer. We found this an incredibly effective way to understand the reviewer’s frustration. This approach is so effective that everyone we have phoned has deleted their negative review.

No customer database? Some options how on how to respond to the 1st reviewer with no information

Ask your staff

There may have been a situation at your business.

Every day may be a typical business day, but very recently, the customer from hell arrived and complained about everything. Although you can not confirm that this was the reviewer, it may steer the way you formulate the response.

General points on how to respond to the 1st reviewer with no comment


Thank the reviewer: Start by thanking the reviewer for taking the time to leave a review. This shows you appreciate all feedback, even if in this case they didn’t provide specific comments.

Apologize for their negative experience: Even though the reviewer didn’t provide any specific feedback, it’s safe to assume they had a negative experience with your product or service. Apologize for this experience and acknowledge that you understand they were not satisfied.

Offer assistance: Since you don’t have any specific feedback to address, offer the reviewer your assistance in resolving any issues they may have had. Let them know you’re available to help in any way possible and provide them with a contact email or phone number.

Highlight your commitment to customer satisfaction: Assure the reviewer that their negative experience doesn’t reflect your overall commitment. Emphasize that you strive to provide the best possible customer experience and constantly work to improve.

Please encourage them to provide more feedback: Encourage the reviewer to provide more feedback. Tell them you value their opinion and that their feedback can help you improve your products and services.

Are they reviewing the right company?

I’ve seen some occasions where a company has been closed for some time – e.g. for refurbishment or as a season-specific business. If a review is left when the company is closed, then it’s fair to respond with this fact. This makes it evident that the review is either for the wrong company / untrue.

Example responses for negative reviews with no comments

Dear [Reviewer Name],

Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. We’re sorry that you have had a negative experience with our product/service. We take all feedback seriously and would like to assist you in resolving any issues you may have had. Please get in touch with us at [contact email/phone number] if you require further assistance.

At [company name], we’re committed to providing the best possible experience for all our customers. We’re constantly working to improve our products and services, and we appreciate your feedback.

We encourage you to let us know if you have any specific feedback or suggestions. Your opinion is valuable to us and can help us improve our offerings.

Thank you again for your time, and we hope to hear from you soon.

Best regards, [Your Name]


Dear [Reviewer Name],

Thank you for taking the time to review our product/service. We appreciate your feedback and are committed to providing our customers the best possible experience.

However, your review did not contain any comments or feedback. We would greatly appreciate it if you could provide us with more information about your experience, so we can address any issues and continue to improve our products/services.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you again for your review.

Best regards, [Your Name]