How to get more Google reviews

The way to get more Google reviews is boring and it works: ask every customer, at the right moment, with a direct link, and make it take less than a minute. Businesses with lots of reviews rarely have happier customers than everyone else. They simply ask more consistently.

What doesn't work, and can cost you your profile, is buying reviews, writing them yourself, paying for them with perks or only asking people you know are happy. Below is a routine you can run with a phone and a spreadsheet, the scripts I suggest to clients, and the Canadian rules you need to know.

Why reviews matter twice

Reviews affect where you rank in the map pack, and they affect whether people call once they see you. A searcher comparing three plumbers will look at the count, the average, how recent the last few reviews are and whether the owner replies. A 4.6 with recent, detailed reviews and polite replies often beats a 5.0 with eight reviews from 2019. More on the ranking side in how to rank higher on Google Maps.

Step 1: Get your direct review link

In your Google Business Profile, look for the option to ask for reviews. Google gives you a short link that opens the review form directly. Save it somewhere you can paste it quickly, and turn it into a QR code for print. Don't send people to "search for us on Google and find the reviews button". Every extra step loses half of them.

Step 2: Ask at the moment of relief

The best moment to ask is right after the customer feels the result: the leak is fixed, the car is ready, the haircut looks good, the keys are handed over. Ask in person first, then send the link within a few hours while the memory is fresh. A request sent two weeks later gets far fewer replies.

Practical moments by business type:

Step 3: Use short scripts

In person: "Thanks for choosing us. Reviews really help a small business like mine. Would you mind leaving one on Google? I'll text you the link so it takes a minute."

Text message: "Hi [first name], thanks again for having us fix your furnace today. If you have a minute, a Google review would mean a lot: [link]. Reply STOP to opt out. [Your name], [business name]."

Email: a two-line note with the link, your name and the business name, and an unsubscribe line.

Ask about the specific job ("if you mention what we did, it helps others with the same problem") but never tell customers what to write or what rating to give.

Step 4: Automate it

Doing this by hand works until you get busy, which is exactly when you forget. If you use a CRM, booking system or invoicing tool, set it to send the review message automatically when a job is marked complete. I build this into the CRM setups I do for service businesses: the request goes out, and a reminder follows a few days later if there is no click.

Since review requests by email and text go to customers, keep Canada's anti-spam law (CASL) in mind. A recent purchase usually gives you implied consent to contact that customer for a set period, but the message should still identify your business and offer an easy way to opt out.

Step 5: Reply to every review

Replies show future customers that someone is listening. Keep them short and human.

• Positive: thank them by name, mention the job, and keep it to two sentences.
• Neutral: thank them, address the specific point, say what you changed.
• Negative: stay calm, don't argue publicly, apologize for the experience, give a way to continue offline ("Please call me directly at..."). Readers judge your reply more than the complaint.

If a review is fake, from a competitor, off-topic or contains personal information, report it through the profile. Google removes reviews that break its policies, though not ones that are simply unfair.

What not to do, and why it matters in Canada

• Buying reviews or writing your own. Google removes them and can restrict your profile from receiving new reviews. Under Canada's Competition Act, fake reviews can be treated as misleading advertising, and the Competition Bureau has acted against fake reviews before. The article on the Competition Act and online reviews covers the legal side.
• Review gating. Asking "How did we do?" first and only sending happy customers to Google is against Google's policies. Ask everyone the same way.
• Incentives. No gift cards, money off or contest entries for reviews, even for honest ones.
• Reviews from staff or family. They look obvious and they break the rules.
• Sudden bursts. Fifty reviews in one week after two years of silence looks suspicious. A steady flow looks natural because it is.

Turn reviews into sales material

Reviews are useful beyond Google. With the customer's permission, short quotes can go on your service pages next to the work they describe, which helps visitors who never look at your profile. Read the negative ones carefully too: if three people in a row mention late arrivals or unclear pricing, that is a free operations report. Fixing the cause does more for your rating than any reply.

A realistic target

For most local businesses a good goal is a handful of new reviews every month, every single month, with replies within a few days. That is achievable if you ask everyone. Over a year it puts you ahead of most competitors who asked once in a burst and stopped.

Reviews are one part of local visibility. The local SEO guide for Canada shows how they fit with the profile, website and directories, and my local SEO service includes setting up the review routine and replying on your behalf if you want.