notes from a small hotel

Reach for the tranquilizers another bad review has appeared

I would rather swallow a frog than reply to an online review.

I read them.

I reread them.

I leave them open while doing three other jobs - but I still don't answer.

I am angry. It has to subside before I am in the right place to reply.

While your dealing with todays check outs and countless other jobs, potential guests are reading your reviews before booking.
Out of curiosity, I looked up the statistics and around 73% of British travellers prefer to see written reviews when choosing somewhere to stay, and over half won't book if they are poor.

Replying isn't really about the reviewer - it's about reassuring those who will read it later. It's for the next guest, the invisable one. And if you can't be arsed to respond, it makes your place look like the worst in the area.