How to Get More Leads When You Reply to Client Reviews

I recently heard a real estate agent say that he uses ChatGPT to write replies to his clients' reviews because it's a huge timesaver. I get the need for efficiency, but you can be sure those replies are gonna be bland and uninspiring.

There's a better way.

First, yes...you should reply to every review you get. Whether it's on Google, Facebook, Zillow, your own site, etc., you should acknowledge every review. It's the courteous thing to do for the client who wrote the review.

But it's also a good way to convert more leads! Let's dive into that...

Start with a different mindset

You have to start with a slight mindset change: Replying to a review is something you do more for your future clients than for the one who reviewed you.

The client who left the review might read your reply once. But dozens/hundreds/thousands (?) of potential clients who check out your reviews as they're choosing an agent are gonna read your replies, too.

THEY'RE your main audience when you reply to reviews.

Once you make that mindset shift, you'll start to see review replies as an opportunity to get more leads and grow your business. So let's talk about how to apply that mindset shift.

The old & boring way to reply to reviews

Most reviews you get are gonna be pretty short and standard. Maybe something like this:

I'm so glad we found Sally Jones to help us sell our home. She was always responsive to our questions and gave us great advice. Sally made the selling process as easy as it could be. I would recommend her to anyone looking to sell their home in Smithville!

And most agents would write an equally generic "thank you" reply, something like this: "It was a pleasure to work with you, thank you for choosing me, blah-blah-blah..."

Or, like that agent I recently heard, you could ask ChatGPT to write a reply in a friendly tone of voice. Here's the actual reply ChatGPT gave me when I asked it to reply to the review above:

Thank you so much for your fantastic review! 🏡😊 We're thrilled that you found our services helpful and were pleased with our advice. It was a pleasure working with you on selling your home in Smithville. Your recommendation means the world to us! If you ever need assistance in the future, please don't hesitate to reach out. Wishing you all the best in your new chapter! 🌟 #RealEstate #HappyClients #SmithvilleHomes

Nice enough, right? But also totally forgettable and nothing that would encourage a future seller to choose you. Yawn.

A better way to reply to reviews & get more leads

Rather than asking ChatGPT to write the review reply, what if you wrote it yourself? And what if you added some details or background that told the true story of that transaction? What if you wrote it in a way that would make a future seller say, "THAT'S the kind of agent I want to sell my house"?

My wife, Cari, is really freaking good at this. When she replies to a review from a buyer client, she'll add in some details like this:

"Thanks for trusting my advice when we wrote the offer on your new home. I knew it was getting a lot of interest and I'm so glad we were able to beat out three other offers!"

If she's replying to a review from a seller client, she might include some details like this (and this is part of an actual reply she wrote to one seller):

"Selling your home was such a pleasure for me! Thank you to you and your wife for taking my suggestions and painting and re-carpeting so we could take the best advantage of our market."

In another seller reply, she might say...

"I know you were on a tight schedule, and I'm so glad we were able to sell your house in less than a week. Even better, the improvements you made, combined with my stager's expertise, helped us get the home sold above the asking price! Way to go!"

Do you see the difference between these examples and what ChatGPT said in its reply? And how agents normally reply to reviews?

In the buyer example, Cari points out that she knew the house was getting attention, and then showed that she can win a multiple-offer situation. In the seller examples, she's telling future readers that they can trust her advice when it comes to prepping their home for sale -- i.e., she knows what it takes to impress buyers and get a home sold. And in the last one, she's telling people that she can get a home sold quickly when her client needs her to, and for above asking price, too.

Replies like those are how you get buyers and sellers to say, "I want to work with YOU."

Final Thoughts

When your client writes a generic review, it's your job to reply with some details so that people reading your reviews in the weeks, months, and years ahead will really learn how good you are at your job. That's not something you can get ChatGPT to do for you. Taking the time to do it yourself with little details like this will make a difference.

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