Alert the owner to negative reviews within minutes
Respond to unhappy reviewers fast, before the damage spreads.
The problem
A 1-star review that sits unanswered for a week costs future customers. Owners usually find out late.
What it does
Every 30 minutes it checks for new reviews, and any review rated 3 stars or less triggers a text to the owner with the excerpt and a link to respond.
- Import
negative-review-alert.n8n.json. - Set REVIEWS_URL to a JSON endpoint of recent reviews [{id, rating, author, text, create_time}]: the Google Business Profile API (accounts.locations.reviews.list, needs API access approval), or a review tool like Birdeye/Podium/Grade.us webhooks/exports.
- The code node uses n8n's workflow static data to remember which reviews it already alerted on (works in active, scheduled runs only).
- Set OWNER_PHONE, attach Twilio, activate.
Credentials: each HTTP node uses a generic credential (Twilio = HTTP Basic Auth with Account SID/Auth Token; Resend/OpenAI = Header Auth Authorization: Bearer <key>). Values like $env.BUSINESS_NAME read environment variables. On n8n Cloud, replace them with literal text or n8n Variables ($vars).
Make / Zapier notes
Zapier: Google Business Profile 'New Review' trigger → Filter (rating ≤ 3) → SMS. That's the easiest path if your Zapier plan includes it.
Compliance notes
Reply publicly and professionally, never share patient or customer private info in replies (HIPAA for clinics), and never pressure reviewers to remove reviews in exchange for anything. Google review rules: Google prohibits review gating (only asking happy customers, or filtering unhappy ones away from Google) and offering incentives for reviews. Send the same request to every customer. A private feedback option is fine only if the Google link is shown to everyone too. Yelp prohibits soliciting reviews at all, so link Google/Facebook, not Yelp.
Expected result
Same-day responses to negative reviews; future readers see you care, and some reviewers update their rating.
Workflow file: negative-review-alert.n8n.json