How to Get More Google Reviews
Most happy customers will leave a review if you ask at the right moment and make it take ten seconds. Here's how to do both, and what to avoid.
Why reviews matter so much
Reviews are part of what Google calls prominence, one of the three things it uses to decide who shows up in local results. They're also what people read before they call. A steady trickle of recent reviews does more than a burst of them once a year.
Make it take ten seconds
- Get your direct review link. In your Google Business Profile, look for "Ask for reviews" or "Get more reviews." It gives you a link that opens the review box directly, so customers don't have to search for you.
- Make it short. A link like yourwebsite.com/review that forwards to that Google link is easy to say out loud, text and print.
- Put it on a card. A small card with a QR code, handed over when the job is done, works better than an email a week later.
- Text it. A short text the same day, with the link, gets more responses than asking someone to remember later.
Ask at the right moment
The best time to ask is when the customer is happiest: when the job is finished and they've just said thank you. Ask in person, then send the link so they can do it right away. Ask every customer, not just the ones you think will be glowing. Google's rules don't allow picking and choosing.
What Google doesn't allow
- No rewards for reviews. Discounts, gift cards or entries into a drawing in exchange for a review are against Google's rules.
- No "review gating." Asking customers first whether they were happy, and only sending the happy ones to Google, is not allowed.
- No reviews from yourself or employees, and no buying reviews. Google removes them, and it can suspend your listing.
Reply to every review
- Good reviews: thank them by name and mention the job, like "Thanks, Sarah. Glad the new gutters held up in that storm."
- Bad reviews: reply calmly, once, without arguing. Say you want to make it right and give a way to reach you. The next customer reading it cares more about your reply than the complaint.
- Fake or off-topic reviews: flag them for removal in your Business Profile instead of arguing in public.
Replying shows people you pay attention, and it gives you another chance to mention your services and town in your own words.