Hello there 👋

How's it going? Recovered from the chaos of last week yet?

If your feed is anything like ours, it’s absolutely chock-a-block with brands screenshotting reviews like “too spicy”, “too expensive” or “worst coffee I’ve ever had” and turning them into ads.

And while some of these brands are absolutely nailing it, the vast majority that we see are getting so close (🤏) and then tripping at the final hurdle.

So this week we thought we'd break down why our brains can't resist these kind of ads, do a bit of a dive into the details of the 2025 study that found out which versions of these ads can boost CTR by 26.7%, and the tiny copy tweak that determines whether your version falls into the "hell yeah, more clicks!" bucket or the "meh, it's alright I guess" bucket.

(OG subscribers, this might ring a bell. We looked at this concept a year or so ago, but seeing as a big study has been done on them since, we thought we'd update it and add a few extra tips and tricks. Also, absolute legend for still being here. Big love.)

Let's get into it 👇

Why our brains can't resist reading (and loving) bad reviews

Before we get into how to write these, it’s worth looking at what they’re doing to your brain.

(We're big believers in the idea that if you know what’s going on under the hood, you can play around and get creative and still stick the landing. Steal the strategy, not the execution and all that...)

First, have a look at these primo versions of the trend and tell us you don't like and trust the brand more after reading them 👇

We love ads like these (and the brands that run them) because there's some serious psychological tricks going on under the hood.

Let's break them down 👇

Being slightly flawed makes people like you more

Ah, the Pratfall Effect. We talk about this one a lot. (And so does every other marketing newsletter...)

Here's a quick TLDR: in 1966, psychologist Elliot Aronson found out that highly competent people become more likeable when they make a small mistake, not less.

But here's the thing: they only seem more likeable if they’re already perceived as good at what they do.

So, for your brand, that means if you’re already doing a good job, owning a small “flaw” like a bad review can make you feel human, approachable and likeable to your customers.

Think Jennifer Lawrence falling up the stairs at the Oscars. Human and endearing, not embarrassing because it was a small flaw in the context of winning an award for being so good at her job. Competence + little wobble = being more likeable.

(Which is what we told ourselves when we found a typo in last week's subject line.)

Customers don't trust perfect brands

Your customers know that a brand with only 5-star ratings and not one even slightly critical review is probably fake.

​In fact, research shows that brands with a mix of good and bad reviews are seen as more trustworthy than brands with only glowing feedback, because the imperfections signal “real people with real opinions” rather than a PR machine.

And brands highlighting these bad reviews shows transparency and trust too, which customers love.

Sharing bad reviews creates curiosity gaps that our brains can't resist

You know when we looked at the apology trend a while ago?

The exact same thing is going on here. (This is one of the foundational things that makes hooky things hooky.)

As customers scroll Instagram, they fully expect brands to post things that make them look their best.

So when they see a brand account reposting “this is the worst IPA I’ve ever had” or “these guys are a bunch of jerks”, their brain does a double-take.

​That little jolt is what's known as an information gap, a mental itch that appears when what we see doesn’t match what we expected and we absolutely have to find out the information we need to close that tab in our brain.

And that itchy brain feeling buys you the invaluable thumb-stopping second that you need to make an impression.

We love to sort ourselves into in-crowd and out-crowd

​Social Identity Theory tells us that all humans are wired to form in-groups and out-groups. And all day long, we're mentally sorting people – and brands, by extension – into “like us” and “not like us”.

And when you share a bad review in a playful way, you’re not just creating curiosity and likability, you’re also inviting your audience into an in-group of people who “get it”.

Cleverly, it also leans into our tendency to defend our in-group against out-group criticism, turning your existing customers into vocal brand evangelists.

(We've talked about this before too when we looked at Ocean Saver.)

However, even with all that consumer psychology behind you, there are still some important caveats to get it right.

​The study we talked about earlier road-tested the life out of these ads and found some crucial caveats on how to do them.

The first one is pretty obvious: the complaint or insult has to be unjustified or irrelevant to real product performance in order to have that sweet, sweet 26.7% bump.

That means that running an ad saying "turned up mouldy and I couldn't get a refund" is never going to get customers clicking.

(Shocker, we know. But it's nice to have these things confirmed.)

But even when you’ve got an unjustified or over-the-top complaint to play with, there’s nuance in how you reply too.

Your first instinct when you’re thinking of running a bad review ad might be something like this:

At first glance, this kinda feels like you've nailed the brief.

✅ You've acknowledged the bad review
✅ You don’t insult the customer
✅ You defuse the situation by talking about taste being personal
✅ You subtly reassure people about your quality checks
✅ You clearly talk to "your people"
✅ You mention that thousands of customers love your coffee

Going on gut instinct alone, this feels like a clever way to reply to the trend and show off what makes your brand awesome.

(And this is what the vast majority of the examples we see do.)

But, according to the study, doing this is 27% less likely to convert than an ad that just owns the insult and rolls with it.

Why? Because underneath all that cleverness, this copy still feels like it's dodging the insult.

And it's the act of owning the insult (and all the confidence that comes from that) that gives these ads their power and stickiness.

☝️ And this is all backed up by the study too.

In the experiments, the polite, reasonable responses (like our version above) that tried to clarify or gently correct the insult made up the control group.

And that group was 26.7% less effective than that ads that actually bit the bullet and fully owned the insult.

Across the board, those ads were rated as funnier and more mentally tough and pulled in significantly more clicks than the denial versions.

In other words...

Which means that an approach like this would perform way better 👇

With just a few tweaks and clever positioning judo moves, you're taking the same review, talking to the same kind of customer, and you’re still positioning the coffee as big, bold and chocolate-led.

But under the hood, you're doing something very different.

Sure, this copy is more divisive. And it feels scarier to write because it's definitely going to put some people off.

But that's part of the confidence. That "yeah, so what" attitude is part of what make these kind of ads so much more compelling to click.

👉 Instead of trying to soften or explain the insult away, we fully own it in the very first line.

👉 Instead of pushing back, we treat the bad review like a badge of honour because our brand isn't for everyone.

And just doing those two things completely changes the tone and vibe of our reply from an insecure “sorry about that, let us clarify..." into "yeah, we're not for everyone" territory.

And that confidence is what carries the ad and makes it so much more effective.

One last caveat: remember not to punch down

There was one big catch that researchers found in their studies: this type of ad only works when you’re not picking on someone more vulnerable than you.

(Which is our golden rule for writing funny copy, as well.)

In the study, they ran the same insult twice but positioned as either from a young man or an elderly woman:

• When the insult came from the young man, reusing it made the brand seem funnier, more confident and more likeable.
• When it came from the elderly woman, that benefit disappeared and people started to see the brand as a bully.

So, just like with using humour, if there’s any power imbalance at all – age, status, identity etc... – we'd definitely recommend finding a different review or anonymise it and focus on the words, not putting the reviewer on blast.

Put this to work for your brand: how to turn a bad review into a high-performing ad

There are two crucial ingredients for one of these ads:

1) finding the perfect bad review
2) writing a response that's charming and confident and for "your people".

Let's break 'em down.

Part 1: finding the perfect bad reviews

This is the easy bit, once you know what to look for. Just pull up your Trustpilot / Google / Yotpo and hunt for reviews that tick most of these boxes:

👉 It’s about taste or preference, not wrongdoing. ​
Something like “this is way too spicy" or "way too expensive for me" is perfect fuel for a killer ad. Something like “Made me ill for weeks”, unsurprisingly, is not.

👉 It feels a bit over the top or unfair.​
Things like “worst IPA I’ve ever had”, “this brand is disgustingly pro-women”, or “what a bunch of jerks” are all great for bringing a bit of humour to your ad because there’s a tiny bit of melodrama baked in that you can have fun with.

👉 It feels like it was written by somebody who doesn't "get" your brand.​
If you read the review and think “well, that's kinda what we're all about" then you're onto a winner. That's a very easy well of "not like us" signals you can tap into to speak to your people.

👉 You’re not punching down.​
Generic TripAdvisor guy? All good. Elderly customer or clearly vulnerable reviewer? Steer clear or keep anonymous.

(Note: be super careful here. If you're a brand with a mostly male following and you use a female reviewer, even that's gonna feel icky. Who left the review isn't really that important, so if there's any doubt at all, play it safe.)

👉 This is a review that you're not worried about at all​
If your gut reaction is “oof, we should probably fix that” or "hmmm, I'll need to make sure that we mention this to counter that" then keep looking. The power of these ads is finding a bad review that you're actually proud to show off.

Part 2: writing your reply

Once you’ve found the right review, the hard part is not writing an essay back.

In fact, almost every good bad-review ad (that's confusing to write) is doing the same three things:

1. Owning the insult
2. Flipping it into a strength
3. Speaking to "their people"

But what does that look like in practice?

👉 It looks like repeating the exact wording and meaning of the review and agreeing with it. Think things like “Unbelievably spicy. Just way, way too hot. We’ll take that”.

👉 It looks like flipping it into a positive. Something like “If you’re into gentle, background heat, this is going to be way too hot. This is heat that makes your life flash before your eyes."

👉 Finally, you need to send out the bat signal to your in-group with something like: “If you want mild, we’re not your brand. If you like hot sauce that lets you see fractals and touch the face of God, we've got you."

The most important thing to remember is that you’re not arguing with the review and you're not patiently explaining why they’re wrong or saying "no, but...".

Instead, you’re using their words as a shortcut to speak directly to your people and to say "if you think like us, we're the brand for you".

Here's a quick framework you can use as a kicking-off point 👇

☝️ Start there, and then iterate and you'll end up with something confident, bold, funny and, most importantly, more likely to get you that sweet, sweet 27% bump in CTR.

If you’re reading this thinking "we've got this copy we're going to run, but we’d love another pair of eyes on it"... let's chat.

In a few weeks' time, we're both taking a well earned 2-and-a-bit week break. (Well, quote-unquote "break". Joe's getting a new puppy and Jack has kids. But still...)

Between now and then, we're setting aside a few extra slots time to do video reviews for brands that feel like they might need a hand with their messaging, copy or voice but aren't really sure where to start or what's working and what needs fixing.

☝️ If that sounds like you, we'd love to record a personalised 15-min Loom video on your brand.

We'll spend 15 mins walking through all the copy fixes we can see on your site, any low-hanging fruit that could be costing you sales and even some bigger picture ideas on where you're at with messaging, positioning, voice, etc... all based on our experience doing this for ecomm and retail brands like yours for the last decade.

All back and ready for you to implement when you're back in January.

Sound like something that'd be helpful for your brand? Book your free audit here!​

And until next week, stay awesome.

Peace and love ✌️ Jack and Joe co-founders, co-founders & co-pywriters at Do Words Good​