Reviews are often the first thing a new customer sees about your business. A strong Google rating and a steady stream of fresh reviews help people choose you over the business down the road, and Google has said that review count and score are part of how it ranks local results.
The problem is simple: happy customers rarely leave a review unless someone asks and it's easy to do. Here are seven practical steps.
1. Claim and complete your Google Business Profile
Search for your business on Google and claim the profile, or create one. Verify it, then fill in everything: opening hours, services, photos, your website and your phone number. A complete profile looks more trustworthy and gives reviews a proper home.
2. Get your direct review link
In your Google Business Profile, use the option to ask for reviews. It gives you a short link that opens the review box for your business straight away. Every other step in this guide points customers to that link.
3. Ask at the right moment
Ask when the customer is happiest: at the till after a great coffee, when the haircut is finished, when the job is done and the van is being loaded. Asking in person, in the moment, tends to work much better than a follow-up email days later.
4. Make it effortless
Every extra step loses people. Searching for your business, finding the review button and typing all add friction. Put your review link where customers already are: on a QR code by the till, or on a tap-to-review card. Our Google review cards open your review page with a single tap on an iPhone or Android phone.
5. Build asking into your routine
Give your team one sentence to use: “If you enjoyed your visit, a quick Google review really helps a small business like ours.” Put a card at every till, desk and van so asking happens every time, not just when someone remembers.
6. Reply to every review
Thank people for positive reviews and respond calmly and helpfully to negative ones. Replies show future customers that you care, and a thoughtful response to a complaint can build more trust than a perfect score.
7. Stay inside Google's rules
Asking every customer for an honest review is fine. But Google's policies don't allow:
- Offering discounts, gifts or payment in exchange for reviews.
- Only asking customers you expect to be happy, sometimes called review gating.
- Writing reviews yourself, or asking friends and family who haven't used your business.
Breaking these rules can get reviews removed, so keep it simple: ask everyone, make it easy, and let your service do the talking.