Get your review link
In your Google Business Profile, choose "Ask for reviews" and copy the short link. It opens the review box directly, so nobody has to search for you first.
Ask every customer, at the right moment
Ask right after a job goes well: when the work is finished, the order arrives or the customer thanks you. Ask everyone, not only the customers you expect to be happy.
Make it one tap
Send the link by text or email the same day, with one line in your own words. Put it on receipts, invoices and a small card or QR code at the counter.
Reply to every review
Thank people by name for good reviews. Answer bad ones calmly, once, with how you will fix it. Future customers read the replies as closely as the reviews.
Make it a habit, not a campaign
A steady trickle of new reviews looks more trustworthy than a burst followed by silence. Add the ask to your normal end-of-job routine.
What not to do
Shortcuts that can cost you every review you have.
Google removes reviews that break its rules and can restrict a profile that keeps doing it.
- Don’t offer discounts, gifts or entries into a drawing in exchange for reviews
- Don’t ask only happy customers, or screen people first and send only the happy ones to Google
- Don’t write reviews yourself, or have family, staff or a paid service write them
- Don’t leave reviews of your competitors, or ask anyone else to
Something to copy
A review request that sounds like you.
“Thanks again for choosing us today. If you have a minute, a quick Google review helps other folks around here find us: [your review link]”
Change the words to how you actually talk. Short and personal beats polished.
Straight answers
Common questions about Google reviews.
Can I offer a discount for a Google review?
No. Google does not allow incentives of any kind for reviews, and reviews it finds that were paid for can be removed. Ask, make it easy, and say thank you.
Can I only ask my happiest customers?
Google calls that review gating and does not allow it. Asking everyone is also better for you: a few honest middling reviews make the good ones more believable.
How do I get a bad review removed?
You can flag a review that breaks Google’s rules, like spam, off-topic posts or someone who was never a customer. A review that is simply negative usually stays. The best answer is a calm reply and more recent good reviews.
How many reviews do I need?
There is no magic number. Look at the businesses that show up above you in the map results for your main service and aim to match their count and how recent their reviews are.
Do reviews help me show up in Google Maps?
Google lists reviews among the things that affect local ranking, along with how relevant and close you are. They also help people choose you once you are found. The Business Profile checklist covers the rest.
Review strategy is part of Local SEO, $1,250/mo.
The Marketing Audit · free
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