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Reply publicly to a mixed client review without arguing
Practice: Getting the tone right. About 5 minutes.
About this exercise
A client left a 3-star review on your freelance profile. Write a public reply under 60 words. The first sentence thanks them for the specific thing they praised, address the late delivery with the neutral fact of what changed, and end with one line on what you do now to prevent it. Never use 'unfortunately', 'per our contract' or the client's name, and don't blame them. Write a prompt that gets that reply.
Common mistakes when you ask AI for this
- Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 60 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part: "3 sentences, each under 18 words."
- Opening defensively. The AI starts by correcting the review, which looks petty to future clients. Try: Say it: "Sentence 1 thanks them for the praise about the illustrations."
- Arguing or blaming. AI replies say "the client added work" or "the review is inaccurate", which reads as a fight. Try: Add: "State neutrally that scope grew to 6 and the date moved to Sept 21. No blame."
- No fix, stock lines. The AI ends with "Wishing you the best!" and uses 'unfortunately' or the client's name. Try: Add: "End with my change-order practice. No 'unfortunately', 'per our contract' or names."
What a strong prompt includes
- Sets a word limit
- Leads with thanks for the praise
- States the facts neutrally
- Ends with the fix
- Bans blame and names
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