# Ever written a good review just to offset a bad one? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 26, 2017, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312 "2017-12-26T15:37:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2017, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312/1 "2017-12-26T15:37:22Z")
There used to be a small blues bar directly across the street from the main entrance to the National Zoo in DC, appropriately named the “Zoo Bar” (now closed). My friends’ band had a regular monthly gig there for years and years and just out of curiosity one day when I was on Yelp I looked them up and there was some idiot who wrote a bad review of the place because apparently they were incapable of flagging down a waitress and they weren’t pleased with the wine selection. This place was an obvious dive bar and this bitch wants to peruse the wine list?! I wrote a glowing review of the bar, then mercilessly mocked this and other similar reviews. Have you ever written a good review just to offset a bad review from some idiot who was too stupid to understand the restaurant/business/product? ---
**Author:** ![ioioio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ioioio/32/316_2.png) [@ioioio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ioioio)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2017, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312/2 "2017-12-26T16:36:49Z")
I once stayed in a lovely little hotel in NYC. Before booking, I read the reviews, which were overwhelmingly positive. There were four or five extremely negative reviews. After my trip, I went back to the review site and re-read the negative reviews. They seemed to have all been written by the same person, and they really didn’t make sense. The hotel was criticized for failing to provide services that logically they never would’ve promised. One review ranted about remodeling work that interfered with outside access – if you were driving the wrong way down a one-way street. I wrote a positive review and also pointed out the errors in the negative reviews. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2017, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312/3 "2017-12-26T16:43:33Z")
I usually reverse the order you gave; mock the bad one (or at least point out why I think its bad) and then give my honest opinion if its glowing or just well above average. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2017, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312/4 "2017-12-26T16:52:49Z")
Once I wrote a positive online review of a chamber music album recorded by a quartet of women, to counter a review by someone who trashed it (he was offended because the women were attractive by what he deemed “Western” standards of beauty). ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2017, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312/5 "2017-12-26T17:20:55Z")
A local game store had kicked out some kid for breaking rules repeatedly and he must have gotten some friends to rate bomb the place. It was marginally amusing watching random 15 year old girls act offended over the rules for Friday Night Magic: The Gathering but probably less so if you owned the store. So I left a glowing review because it really is a good and unique place in the area. (Yes, 15 year old girls can play M:tG. These ones did not and especially not at this location) ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2017, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312/6 "2017-12-26T17:36:10Z")
Yep. I’ve done it a few times on Yelp, when I thought someone was being a tool (The food was too hot! I didn’t like the pictures on the wall of the restaurant-one star! I don’t like Italian food!). ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2017, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-written-a-good-review-just-to-offset-a-bad-one/805312/7 "2017-12-26T18:12:19Z")
Yes, and also I have a rule of thumb about Letters of complaint and bad reviews- I must give out at least one Kudo for every Hiss.