A happy customer tells 10 people how good you are. An unhappy person complains to 100s about you.

Reviews are a double-edged sword, as we know. The Holy Grail is finding that way to get more great reviews while avoiding/burying bad ones.

Few things bother you more than unwarranted, poison-penned reviews.

Let’s improve both how you rank and whether people choose you more by building good reviews that translate into more trust and more customers. Done without breaking Google’s rules.

Reviews Drive Rankings and Revenue

Google uses the quantity, quality, and recency of reviews as data for local ranking signals and information for shoppers to read while deciding. Over time, a steady flow of authentic and good reviews turns into a real competitive advantage.

The Big “Don’t”

When it comes to reviews, Google consistently prohibits two things: “review gating” (only asking happy customers to leave reviews or filtering out the rnegative ones) and incentivizing reviews (by offering discounts or gifts in exchange for reviews). Doing either of these gets your reviews removed or penalizes your profile. It’s a god idea to ask everyone for review, but NEVER pay for reviews.

When and How to Ask for a Review

The best moment to ask for a review is when the consumer is at the peak of satisfaction. Ask for the review right after a great result, such as a completed job or a happy purchase. Ask in person, by text, with an in-store system, or by email. A friendly, personal request works better than a robotic one. For example, there’s no better situation for a restaurant than when a bubbly waitperson confirms you enjoyed your meal and then presents a business sized card asking you to leave a review at this address online.

Good moments include:

  • Immediately after a successful transaction
  • When a customer compliments your service
  • When a problem has been resolved
  • After delivering a product or completing a project
  • When a client tells you they’re happy with the result

Make It Ridiculously Easy to Leave a Review

Use your Google review link (you can create a short one) so customers reach the review screen in one tap. QR codes on receipts, counters, or follow-up emails work nicely.

Put In:

  • Email signatures
  • Follow-up emails
  • Text messages
  • Invoices/receipts
  • Thank-you pages
  • QR codes in your business
  • Your website
  • Appointment-completion messages

Ask Customers to Mention What They Liked

Encourage specific feedback without telling people what rating to give. For example:

“If you have a minute to leave us a Google review, we’d especially appreciate hearing about your experience with our service and team.”

Specific reviews are generally more valuable than dozens of generic ones saying, “Great company!”

Respond to Every Review

Thank people for positive reviews and respond to negative ones in a calm, concerned, appreciative, and professional manner. With poor reviews, acknowledge them. Apologize where and when appropriate—not all the time– and offer to make it right offline. Future customers read how you respond to negative reviews almost as much as they read positive reviews.

Handling Negative and Fake Reviews

A thoughtful reply to a negative review might well win more trust than a wall of five stars. For reviews that violate Google’s policies, like spam, fake, and off-topic ones, should have you requesting removal. Google will judge the veracity of your response, so do so well, and never attempt to remove honest negative feedback. When you’re pecking on Google all the time about negative reviews, they tend to label you an alarmist or indeed a peddler of schlock.

Turn Reviews into Marketing

Always feature your best reviews on your website. And always get them out on your social media, digital platforms, and traditional media. Customer opinions have tons more credibility than all the paid advertising you place. Best reviews reinforce trust everywhere, not just on Google.

Get “Reputation Management” with Our Company

We help businesses build a steady, compliant review engine and manage their reputation. No “black hat” manipulation. Just proven, multi-faceted approaches that work. Let us show you what we have done for others.