Reviews are the part of this site that has to be trustworthy or nothing else matters. Here’s exactly how they work — no fine print, just the rules.
Where ratings come from
Every rating you see on Native New Hampshire is computed from reviews submitted on Native New Hampshire. We don’t import, blend, or estimate ratings from Google, Yelp, Facebook, or anywhere else. If a business shows 4.8 stars from 12 reviews, that means twelve people wrote reviews here and this is their average. A business with no reviews shows no rating — we don’t invent one.
Who can review, and how
Anyone who’s dealt with a business can review it: one review per person per business. We ask for your name, your town (optional), and your email. Your email is never published — it exists so we can enforce one-review-per-person and reach you if there’s a question about your review.
Every review is read by a person
Reviews don’t publish automatically. A real person reads each one before it appears — usually within a couple of days. We’re checking that it’s about a real experience with the business, not spam, not a competitor, not a duplicate, and not abusive. We are not checking whether it’s positive. Critical reviews that describe a real experience get published, full stop.
What we remove, and what we never remove
We remove reviews that are spam, harassment, obviously off-topic, about the wrong business, or that publish someone’s private information.
We do not remove reviews for being negative. No business can pay to hide, remove, edit, or reorder a review — at any price, on any plan. Paid plans change what a business’s page can show about itself (photos, policies, testimonials) and where it appears in listings. They have no effect on reviews or ratings, ever.
Owners can respond
Business owners can reply to reviews, and their response appears clearly labeled beneath the review. A good response to a hard review says more about a business than ten easy five-stars — we encourage them.
Testimonials are not reviews
Some business pages include testimonials — quotes the business chose to share. These are always labeled as testimonials, displayed separately, and never counted in ratings. Chosen praise and earned praise are different things, and the page always tells you which one you’re reading.
Disagree with a review of your business?
If a review is factually wrong, about the wrong business, or breaks the rules above, contact us with specifics and a person will look at it. If it’s simply harsh but real, the better tool is a public response — and better service next time. That’s how it’s supposed to work.