Reviews
Answering reviews in 20 minutes a day.
A daily routine that keeps your Google rating climbing without eating your morning. Templates included.
When someone searches "dispensary near me," your Google rating is the first filter. A 4.8 gets the click. A 3.9 gets skipped. Everything else on your listing matters less than that number and the words under it.
Most stores ignore reviews until something bad happens. Then they scramble. The stores with great ratings do something boring instead: they answer every review, every day, in about 20 minutes.
The routine
First 10 minutes, morning. Open your Google Business Profile. Read every new review from the last 24 hours. Respond to each one. Positives get thanks. Negatives get an acknowledgment and a name. That is it.
Second 10 minutes, afternoon. Check for new reviews again. For any negative review, ask the floor staff what happened. Names, times, and details go in a note. Then write the response with that context. Never respond to a complaint without knowing the story first.
That is the whole system. Twenty minutes. The compound effect over six months is a rating that keeps climbing while your competitors sit still.
How to answer a positive review
Do not write "Thanks for the great review!" That tells the next reader nothing. Name something specific: the product they mentioned, the budtender who helped them, the reason they came in. Specificity proves a human read it.
Template: positive review
"Thanks, [name]. Glad [budtender/product] took care of you. See you next time you need [category they bought]."
How to answer a negative review
Never argue. Never explain your policy in the response. Acknowledge, take responsibility, and move the conversation offline with a name and a direct contact.
Template: negative review
"[Name], I am sorry this was your experience. I am [your name], the [manager/owner] here. I would like to make this right. Please call or text me at [number] so I can hear the details."
One signed response from the owner does more for your reputation than ten defensive replies from a social media manager. People reading negative reviews are really reading your responses.
What not to do
- Do not copy-paste the same reply. Google and readers both notice. Vary at least one sentence every time.
- Do not offer free product for reviews. Google removes incentivized reviews, and cannabis regulators in several states treat it as an inducement violation. Ask for honest reviews. Never pay for them.
- Do not ignore the three-star reviews. They are the most useful. The customer liked something and had one real problem. Fix the problem and say so publicly.
- Do not let reviews sit for a week. A response within 24 hours signals an owner who pays attention. A response after two weeks signals damage control.
Get more reviews without begging
The best time to ask is right after a good interaction, at the register. One sentence from the budtender: "If we earned it, a Google review helps us a lot." That is it. No QR code speech. No printed cards shoved at people.
Follow up with a text the next day for loyalty members: a link and one line asking for honest feedback. Keep it short. The easier you make it, the more reviews you get.
Do this week
Start the 20-minute habit
- Claim your listing if you have not. Verify ownership of your Google Business Profile today.
- Answer everything from the last 7 days. Clear the backlog in one sitting using the templates above.
- Put two 10-minute blocks on your calendar. Morning and afternoon, every day. Treat them like opening and closing duties.
- Brief your budtenders. One sentence at the register: "If we earned it, a Google review helps us a lot."