Review management for assisted living and memory care communities
Review management for an assisted living community covers two jobs: asking for public reviews on the Google Business Profile, and drafting the replies that appear underneath. Drafts of both the asking and the answering come from us; sending and posting stay with the community's team.
Reviews are public, and a public page is the wrong place for private information. Each request and each reply is composed so that no person living at the community is named, described or hinted at.
Review management, month by month, for one box on the wall
Picture the Maps listing as a square on the wall that other people write in. A family can add a note to it whenever they like, and the community decides how it answers. Review management is the tending of that square: we set out how the request is worded, keep the review link ready to hand, and draft replies in the same plain voice each time.
A request goes to each person the community picks, with no sorting by how the visit went. A note is never bought with a gift either. Replies thank the writer, point to the contact page, and stop. They never repeat a detail the writer shared about anyone.
Review management belongs with the Maps work described under local SEO for communities, and the same contact route the reply names also serves the lead generation work. For where reviews fit among the other squares, see the marketing overview.
Four jobs on a community's review calendar
- Request
The note handed to a visitor on the way out
A short message the community's team can send or read aloud, asking the person to write about the visit. It names no one and promises nothing in return.
- Link
A review link kept ready for any message
A direct link to the community's review box on the Google Business Profile, clicked through every month to confirm it opens the right entry.
- Reply draft
A reply written to be short and plain
Each draft thanks the writer, sends them toward the contact page and repeats nothing the review said about anyone.
- Monthly sheet
A page-turn list of new reviews and waiting drafts
At the month's end the director gets a sheet listing the new public reviews and the drafts waiting for a decision, one line apiece.
Where a review turns up and who holds the pen
| A review shows up on | Our drafting | Left in the community's hands |
|---|---|---|
| The Maps listing, near the community's name | A thank-you reply in a few plain sentences | Pressing the post button on the reply |
| A review that names a person | A reply that names no one and sends the writer to the contact page | The choice to flag the review to the platform |
| A review that disagrees with the community | A calm reply that asks for a conversation, never a debate in public | Any follow-up conversation after the writer reaches out |
| A request sent after a tour | The wording of the message, ready to paste | Choosing who receives it |
| A quiet month with no new reviews | A fresh request wording for the director to consider | Whether to send it |
How a month on the review wall is worked
Open the listing and read what is there
We read every public review and every reply already posted, and list any that carry a name, a detail or a claim the community would want to take down or soften.
Write the request and the reply drafts
New request wording and reply drafts go into one sheet, each marked with the review it answers and written to leave out anything personal.
Pass the sheet to the director
The owner marks up each draft and decides what is posted. A draft of ours never posts itself.
Turn the page
The next month begins with the review link tested again, the wording refreshed and the sheet cleared for new reviews.
What a request or a reply must never contain
- The name of anyone who lives at the community
- A sentence about care, charges or the paperwork the state asks of a community
- A photo or description of any person
- Anything offered to the writer in exchange for a review
- A claim the community has not approved for its own page
- A sentence that argues the point with the writer in public
- A request addressed only to people the community expects to write kindly
Three beliefs about reviews that deserve a second look
Scribbled on the wall calendarAsk only the families who seem pleased, and the page will look better.
What the month showsScreening who gets asked, known as review gating, is something we refuse. The request goes to whomever the community picks, whatever they might write.
Scribbled on the wall calendarA reply should explain exactly what happened.
What the month showsA public reply that explains may repeat something private. Short and plain wins: thank the writer, point to the contact page, leave the rest for a direct conversation.
Scribbled on the wall calendarReviews are a side chore, apart from search.
What the month showsA review is printed right beside the community's name in search results, the same place the rest of our work aims at, so the two are worked together.
Questions owners put about reviews and replies
Can you post replies for us?
If a review stings, can you take it down?
Will you write the reviews?
What if a review mentions a person by name?
Do reviews change how the community appears in search?
Start with the review box on your listing
Tell us about your community in a few words through the contact form, or pick a slot from the call picker for a talk with Ross Cohen, our CEO.
Which living arrangements should we write up first?
Say which arrangements you want described (assisted living, senior living, memory care), which neighborhoods your families come from, and what the community calls its own wings and floors. Leave out every personal name and every personal detail.
Take a pen to the next open day
Once somebody has put a pen to a month, it looks different. Name a weekday and a half-hour block, and we will turn the pages of your community together.
The circle and star in the picture are drawn for the page, not a booking.