Managing reviews for one shop is a habit. Managing them for a network of hotels, restaurants, clinics or stores is an organisation. The questions change: who replies for each location, how to keep one voice, how to compare locations fairly and how to make sure that what customers say reaches the right team.

Start with a clean location directory

Each physical location should have one Google Business Profile, with a consistent name, address and category. Look for duplicates, old listings for locations that have moved and profiles created by former employees. Google Business Profile lets you organise several profiles in business groups and share access with other people, which makes the next steps much simpler.

Keep your own directory as the reference: location, region, responsible team and profile. A renamed site or a duplicate listing should not appear as a second location in your reporting.

Decide who replies, and where

There are three common models, and each can work:

• Central: a small team replies for every location. Consistent, but it needs reliable local facts.
• Local: each manager replies for their own location. Close to the field, but harder to keep consistent.
• Shared: routine replies are handled centrally or automatically, while sensitive reviews go to the local manager.

Whatever the model, give each person the access they need and no more, and plan cover for holidays.

One brand voice, local facts

Customers expect a reply that sounds like your brand and knows their location. Write a short voice guide with your tone, preferred phrases and sign-off. Next to it, keep approved facts for each location: opening hours, services, accessibility, parking, contact channel. A reply that confuses two locations does more harm than a late one.

Set rules for sensitive reviews

Some reviews should always reach a person: health and safety concerns, accusations against a staff member, legal threats, requests involving personal data or refunds. List these situations and say who handles them for each location. The rule protects customers, employees and the brand.

Compare locations fairly

A busy location naturally receives more reviews, and more critical ones, than a quiet one. Compare topics as a share of each location’s feedback over the same period, rather than raw counts. Look for problems that repeat, problems that are growing, and locations whose positive feedback points to a practice worth sharing. Our guide to customer experience analytics for multi-location businesses goes further.

Turn patterns into actions