Your hotel's reputation begins to form long before check-in.

Most guests decide where to stay based on what others have to say online; guest reviews ultimately shape your hotel’s reputation and directly affect how many bookings and revenue you get. 

According to TripAdvisor, 81% of travelers read reviews before booking a hotel, effectively turning your review section into a decision-making tool for thousands of potential guests. One glowing review followed by a genuine reply can be the tipping point for someone to click "Book Now" — on the other hand, silence in the face of a negative review can turn people away, even if your hotel is otherwise a perfect fit.

Let’s take a common example:

A guest complains on Google about a noisy room. The hotel that responds within a day, apologizes, explains the steps taken to prevent the issue in the future, and offers a direct line for follow-up is far more likely to earn back trust and maybe even a return visit.

Compare that to a hotel that doesn’t respond at all. Which one would you book?

Here’s how to reply to Google hotel reviews.

Reputation management extends beyond mere damage control and lets you have the upper hand on your hotel’s online presence and reputation, and hotel guest reviews serve as a reliable guide on how to act.

Whether you run one property or many, replying to reviews isn’t extra credit — it’s part of the job. In this article, we’ll show how thoughtful review replies can strengthen your hotel’s reputation.

Guest reviews are the backbone of a hotel's reputation!

When it comes to your hotel’s reputation, guests hold the mic and the internet is their stage.

Review platforms like Google, TripAdvisor, Booking.com, and Expedia have become more powerful than any glossy ad campaign or traditional PR push. In fact, even the best crisis communication plan can’t undo the impression left by hundreds of unaddressed guest complaints (or even just one TikTok video that spiralled out of control).

Here’s the reality: travelers trust other travelers more than hotels. 

According to a BrightLocal study, 98% of consumers read online reviews for local businesses, and nearly half of them trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. For the hospitality industry, that trust translates directly into bookings, or a lack thereof.

Whether guests had a fantastic stay or faced an issue during check-in, they’re likely to leave customer feedback, and other guests will read it. 

Verified reviews on major platforms are now influencing booking decisions more than your website’s homepage: here’s how to improve them.

Responding to all reviews signals to both past guests and potential guests that your hotel is listening and cares about guests’ feedback. Managing reviews builds real connections with the people who stay with you. ResponseScribe can help you greatly; combining AI with human-written responses ensures fast and personalized replies, so your hotel’s reputation is in your hands.

The direct correlation between reviews and revenue

Hotel reviews shape profits as much as they shape public opinion.

There’s a clear and measurable link between a hotel’s online reviews and its revenue. Multiple studies proved that even a small improvement in review scores can have a meaningful financial impact:

1. A Harvard Business School study found that a one-star increase in a hotel’s Yelp rating can lead to a 5–9% increase in revenue.
2. Another study by Cornell University discovered that hotels with higher review scores on OTA platforms like Booking.com and Expedia can charge higher room rates without seeing a drop in occupancy.

In short, better reviews mean better margins.

Here’s how improved guest reviews directly affect your hotel’s financial performance:

• Higher search visibility: Review scores influence hotel SEO ranking on both Google and major OTAs. Properties with strong review performance appear higher in search results, making them more visible to potential guests. Increased traffic and visibility improves your chances of receiving more direct bookings.
• Premium pricing potential: Guests are willing to pay more for properties with better reputations. According to a study by TrustYou and Donna Quadri-Felitti, travelers are willing to pay up to 35% more for a hotel with higher review scores compared to a similar property with lower ratings.
• Improved conversion rates: Positive reviews provide the social proof needed to convince undecided travelers. A hotel with hundreds of glowing reviews and thoughtful responses can dramatically improve the chances that a guest will move from consideration to booking. Acquiring more reviews, especially recent ones, can further enhance your hotel's online reputation and competitive standing.
• More bookings with fewer discounts: Hotels with better online reputations don’t need to rely as heavily on price cuts or last-minute deals to fill rooms, leading to healthier profit margins and more predictable revenue streams.
• Higher OTA rankings: Review scores and response rates are factors in OTA algorithms. Responding to guest feedback, especially on platforms like Booking.com, can improve your visibility within their listings, showing your property to more guests.
• Stronger brand trust: When guests see consistent, thoughtful review replies, they’re more likely to trust your establishment and be confident about booking. The trust translates into more direct bookings, less reliance on intermediaries, and higher guest lifetime value.

Responding to reviews: the most overlooked reputation strategy

Responding to guest reviews might seem like a small gesture, but it’s one of the most powerful tools hotels have. A thoughtful, timely reply signals that you’re listening, that positive feedback matters, and that every guest experience counts. Despite this, many hotels still miss the opportunity to respond, or respond poorly, leaving a lingering negative impression. Effective online reputation management is crucial in these situations to enhance a hotel's image and drive future bookings.

• It shows accountability. When you acknowledge feedback, even when it’s negative, it tells guests that you take responsibility and are open to improvement. This builds trust.
• It reinforces professionalism. Polished, calm, and polite replies convey a professional image that guests appreciate. It also reassures them that any issues during their stay won’t be ignored.
• It reflects attentiveness. Guests want to feel heard. A well-crafted reply demonstrates that your staff is attentive to what guests are saying and is committed to making each stay better than the last.
• It impacts future bookings. Public responses aren’t just for the reviewer—they’re for everyone reading. Potential guests get a sense of your customer service and decide if your hotel meets their expectations.
• It can turn a bad stay into a second chance. A sincere apology, explanation, or offer to make things right can help rebuild trust with unhappy guests—and sometimes turn them into repeat visitors.

Managing responses across hotel review platforms can be time-consuming, especially if you’re handling multiple properties or a high volume of reviews.

This is where a tool like ResponseScribe comes in handy. With its mix of AI-assisted suggestions and human-edited replies, it makes sure every review gets the attention it deserves without overwhelming your team.

What makes a good review response?

Here’s an example of a strong review response:

“Thank you, Emma, for your kind words about your recent stay with us! We’re thrilled to hear you enjoyed the city views from your room and that our front desk team made a great impression — I’ll be sure to pass your compliments along to them.

We also appreciate your note about the limited breakfast options and are actively working with our kitchen staff to expand the menu.

If you have time, please fill out our guest satisfaction survey to provide more detailed feedback, which helps us improve our services and ensures that your reviews are verified and trustworthy.

We look forward to welcoming you back soon!”

These are the elements that make this reply great and the ones you should have in every review reply:

• Personalization: Referring to the guest by name and mentioning specific details from their review shows the response isn’t a copy-paste job.
• The right tone: The message is warm, sincere, and professional, creating a positive emotional impression.
• Addressing specifics: It acknowledges both the praise and the criticism, which tells the guest their feedback was read carefully.
• Resolving issues: It outlines a concrete action being taken based on the feedback, showing that reviews drive improvement.
• Expressing gratitude: A simple thank-you reinforces appreciation and encourages future engagement.
• Staying on-brand: The tone and style reflect the hotel’s service standards and values, maintaining a consistent brand voice.

What about bad review responses?

Now, let’s see how not to reply to reviews:

“We don’t usually have issues like that, but we’ll look into it. Hope things go better next time.”

When we deconstruct this poor reply, we can see that:

• It’s dismissive: It doesn’t acknowledge the guest’s experience in a meaningful way, and the language suggests the hotel doubts the validity of the complaint.
• Tone is vague and indifferent: Rather than offering reassurance, the response feels flat and unbothered.
• It’s impersonal: It doesn’t use the guest’s name or reference any details from the review, making it feel automated or careless.
• There’s no real ownership or action: There’s no explanation, no apology, and no indication that actual steps will be taken to resolve the issue.

Even when the feedback feels unfair, a good response can still reflect your hotel’s professionalism. A poor reply can do more damage than the original review, while a thoughtful one can turn things around. Additionally, handling negative press effectively is crucial to maintaining your brand's reputation during crises.

Here are some additional don’ts for review replies to remember:

• Don’t use defensive language or argue with the guest
• Don’t ignore specific complaints or fail to offer a resolution
• Don’t send the same generic response to everyone
• Don’t use sarcasm or passive-aggressive tone
• Don’t shift blame or suggest the guest is at fault

Read our detailed guide on responding to hotel reviews.

How review responses can turn unhappy guests into advocates

Even a critical review can be the start of a long-term guest relationship—if it’s handled the right way.

A guest at a mid-size boutique hotel complained about a delay during check-in and issues with their room key not working. They left a two-star review on Google, noting how frustrating the experience was after a long day of travel.

The hotel manager replied within a couple of hours. She apologized about the inconvenience, explained that the front desk had a technical issue that evening, and offered a complimentary upgrade for a future stay. She also provided a direct contact number for further assistance.

The guest edited their review days later, raising it to four stars. A month later, they returned—this time mentioning the excellent customer service they received after the first visit.

Here's how a thoughtful can salvage a bad review and show other readers that the hotel owns its mistakes and genuinely cares about guest satisfaction. Potential guests reading that thread will see that even when things go wrong, the hotel team acts with empathy, professionalism, and a solution-first mindset.

When staff view guest feedback as a chance to improve instead of a threat, it shifts the entire tone of your online reputation.

Using reviews to identify trends and improve operations

One guest mentioning poor lighting might be an isolated case. But when you see ten guest reviews talking about the same issue, there’s a bigger operational problem that needs addressing.

Reviews should be treated as real-time performance reports. If you pay attention to recurring feedback across review platforms and social media posts, you’ll start spotting trends that may not show up in internal reports or your property management system. This kind of insight helps you get ahead of issues that might otherwise affect guest satisfaction or even cause a dip in direct bookings.

ResponseScribe can uncover the patterns for you in no time!

More than just responding to the reviews: it pulls together reviews from multiple hotel review sites, identifies patterns in guest sentiment, and tracks commonly mentioned keywords. For instance, if “long check-in lines” or “rude staff” come up often in guest feedback, the software flags them. Hotel managers can then use that information to address service bottlenecks, schedule staff better, or adjust training.

Guest satisfaction surveys, post-stay surveys, and even online review responses offer another layer of guest data. When analyzed properly, the feedback turns into actionable insights that helps improve operations across multiple properties. Utilizing guest surveys can lead to improved business decisions and overall success for organizations.

You can use these findings to improve staff communication, update outdated facilities, refine your digital marketing efforts, and better meet guest expectations. And acting quickly on these insights can prevent issues from turning into negative reviews or, worse, full-blown social media backlash.

Tracking reviews, guest sentiment, and verified reviews over time will give your team the clarity it needs to keep your hotel’s online presence strong, consistent, and trusted by both past guests and potential guests alike.

Good to know: The best hotel channel managers for 2025.

Common insights to gather from guest reviews

Reading reviews is helpful, but categorizing them is what turns guest feedback into a reliable tool for hotel management.

When you collect and organize feedback regularly, you begin to notice patterns across multiple review platforms and social media channels. These patterns provide data-driven direction for improving the guest journey and aligning with guest expectations.

Encourage your hotel staff or PR team to sort reviews by topics such as:

• Staff behavior: friendliness, professionalism, response time
• Room amenities: comfort, cleanliness, availability of essentials
• Food and beverage: breakfast variety, restaurant service, room service quality
• Check-in and check-out process: speed, clarity, front desk interaction
• Noise and comfort: quietness of rooms, mattress quality, temperature control
• Technology and connectivity: Wi-Fi strength, in-room tech, booking system issues
• Hotel’s location: proximity to attractions, transportation, safety of the area

Guest satisfaction surveys and review collection tools can support this process by capturing more structured insights, especially when combined with a guest satisfaction survey or sentiment analysis. The more up to date information you gather from your target audience, the better equipped you’ll be to attract guests and deliver consistent, high-quality guest experiences.

A post stay survey can also be an effective method for soliciting feedback from travelers after their visit. This also helps you make smarter decisions for your digital marketing campaigns, adjust service strategies for local markets, and deliver the kind of experience that earns glowing reviews and leads to more guests over time.

Replying to reviews on multiple review platforms

Your hotel's online reputation is shaped by what guests say across many platforms, not just one. From TripAdvisor to Google, Booking.com, and even local review sites, your responses—or lack of them—leave a public impression.

Potential guests often read reviews on several platforms before making booking decisions. Ignoring one can damage your hotel’s online presence and weaken your chances of earning more bookings. Each site also comes with its own influence. Your Google Business Profile, for example, affects map results, while OTAs can drive or drop conversion rates. More positive reviews can be achieved by equipping your staff with the right tools and training to improve service quality.

Replying consistently across all review platforms keeps your message clear and your hotel’s reputation intact. It also gives you valuable guest feedback from different angles—what past guests highlight on Yelp might differ from what you see on Expedia or social media.

To stay ahead, track reviews actively, monitor guest sentiment, and respond in ways that reflect your service standards. This ongoing review management helps you better meet guest expectations and build trust with potential guests.

Automating and optimizing the review response process

Manually responding to every guest review may work for a small inn, but for larger hotels or groups managing multiple properties, it becomes difficult to keep up. Creating personalized, thoughtful replies across several review sites requires time, consistency, and coordination between hotel staff, especially when dealing with high review volumes or tight staffing.

This is where automation and smart tools make a real difference. There are two reliable ways hotels can improve their response workflow:

1. Use AI technology to support your review management process: AI-powered tools can help you reply to a large volume of reviews, especially when you run out of ideas. You can adjust them to your tone, style, and personalize them. This speeds up the process, but there's still a lot of work to do.
2. Work with review response services: For hotels with limited internal bandwidth, a dedicated review response service can be a game-changer. These services take over the task of writing personalized responses, ensuring consistency and professional tone across all review platforms. Some providers, like ResponseScribe, combine AI and human editing to deliver customized replies efficiently and help teams stay focused on the guest experience. Hotels can track reviews in one place, monitor guest sentiment, and improve response rates without sacrificing quality. These tools also integrate with your property management system and digital marketing workflow, making them a seamless part of your day-to-day operations.

Learn how the world’s finest hotels use AI to provide exceptional service.

Keep the hotel’s reputation spotless with ResponseScribe

Keeping your hotel's reputation clean takes more than just good intentions. ResponseScribe gives hotel teams the tools to stay ahead, especially when managing guest feedback across multiple properties, platforms, and time zones.

Here’s what makes it useful:

• Centralized review management: All your online reviews, across platforms like TripAdvisor, Google, and Booking.com, show up in one easy-to-manage dashboard. No more bouncing between tabs.
• Sentiment analysis: Track guest sentiment trends over time and flag recurring issues before they escalate into bigger problems or social media backlash.
• Smart response support: Use AI-generated drafts that are tailored to your hotel’s tone and messaging. Editors then polish these drafts so they still sound human, personal, and aligned with your service standards.
• Customizable reply templates: Keep your responses consistent and on-brand without sounding robotic.
• Guest satisfaction tools: Integrate post stay surveys and feedback collection into your response workflow to capture valuable guest data.
• Response tracking: See which reviews have been replied to, which still need attention, and how quickly your team is responding.

ResponseScribe makes review management easier without sacrificing quality. It helps hotels engage guests, improve guest satisfaction, and maintain a strong online reputation.

Book a free demo to see how it fits into your hotel’s guest communication and review strategy.