Ask for reviews the right way: ask everyone, offer nothing.

The short answer

Ask every customer after every finished job, in the same way, and give nothing in return for a review. Then reply to every review you get, good or bad.

That's it. The rest of this guide is the why, the how, and the small habits that quietly break those two rules. Everything we say about Google's rules comes from Google's own help pages, listed with the date we read them at the end.

Why you ask everyone

Because Google's policy for Maps reviews doesn't allow a business to "selectively solicit positive reviews from customers", or to discourage negative ones.²

It's tempting to ask only the customers you know were happy. It feels like protecting your rating. But a rating built only from hand-picked customers isn't a true picture, and Google treats picking as manipulation. In the US, the FTC says that asking only happy customers isn't banned by name in its 2024 reviews rule, but "could violate the FTC Act".⁵

What counts as asking selectively

• A "How did we do?" message that sends happy customers to Google and unhappy ones to a private form (often called review gating).
• Sending the review link only to people who gave you 5 stars in your own survey first.
• Telling staff to ask only the customers who seemed pleased.
• Skipping the customers whose job had a problem, even if you fixed it.

What to do instead

Pick one moment that every customer reaches, like "the job is marked done" or "the invoice is paid", and ask at that moment, every time. If a customer had a bad experience, the honest route is to put it right and still let them have their say.

Why you offer nothing

Google calls offering "free or discounted goods or services" in exchange for reviews "strictly prohibited".¹

Google's rule covers any review, not only positive ones: its policy lists offering "payment, discounts, free goods and/or services" in exchange for posting any review as fake engagement.² That's stricter than the US federal rule. The FTC's rule bars rewards that depend on the review being positive or negative, but doesn't ban every reward.⁵ On Google, though, Google's own policy applies, so the simple rule that satisfies both is: offer nothing.

Things that are still an incentive

When and how to ask

Ask soon after the job is done, with one short message and your direct review link, and don't chase more than once.

1. Get your review link

Google's help page gives these steps on a computer:³

1. Open your Business ProfileGo to business.google.com and pick your business.
2. Choose Read reviews, then Get more reviewsGoogle shows a short link and a QR code.
3. Copy the link, or save the QR codeSelect Copy for the link. For the QR code, right-click it and choose Save image as. Google says QR codes can only be made in a computer browser, not on a phone.

Google suggests putting the link or code on receipts, in thank-you emails, at the end of a chat, or printed in your shop.³

2. Pick the moment, then use it for everyone

For most local businesses that's the same day the work is finished, while it's fresh. For a project that runs for weeks, it's the handover. Whatever you choose, it's a rule for the business, not a decision about each customer.

3. Say it simply

Short, warm, honest. Ask for their experience, not for five stars, and don't suggest words for them to use. Here's the kind of message we'd draft:

By text

Keep it to two or three lines and the link. Only text customers who have agreed to hear from you by text, and say who you are in the first line.

By email

Use a plain subject line ("How did today go?"), the same short ask, the link as a button or plain link, and nothing else in the email: no offers, no newsletter.

In person or on paper

Mention it once at the end, and leave the QR code on the receipt or a card. Never stand over someone while they write it.

4. One reminder at most, then leave it

Google's policy says merchants "should not require or pressure users to leave ratings".² A single gentle reminder a few days later is a reasonable limit; after that, let it go.

Habits that quietly break the rules

Quotas for staff, scripts for customers, and reviews from people close to the business are all named in Google's policy.²

• Review targets for staff. Google lists "requesting that staff solicit a certain number of reviews" as a problem.
• Asking for particular words. "Could you mention our emergency service in Riverside?" is asking for specific content, which Google also lists.
• Reviews from staff, family or past employees. Google treats content "based on a conflict of interest", including current or former employment, as not allowed.
• Batch asks months later. Not banned, but a sudden burst of old customers can look odd, and their memory of the job has faded. Ask at the moment, every time.

Nell · Front deskJ. Rivera's review ask had "10% off your next visit" added. Google bans offers for reviews, so I took it out. Send the plain version?

Reply to every review

Google recommends replying to reviews; a short, specific reply to each one, good or bad, shows the next customer how you treat people.¹

How to reply on Google

On your Business Profile, choose Read reviews, select the reply icon next to the review, write your reply and select Reply.⁴ Google checks replies against its content policy before they show; it says that usually takes up to 10 minutes but can take up to 30 days. The reviewer is told when you reply, and you can edit or delete your reply later.

What to put in a reply

Showing reviews on your own website

Show real reviews with where and when they were written, and don't add star markup for reviews about your own business.

Google's structured data guidelines say a business that controls the reviews about itself, on its own site or through an embedded widget, is not eligible for review stars in search for LocalBusiness or Organization pages.⁶ So show reviews because they help people decide, not to win stars. Show the mixed ones too, and use a customer's full name only with their permission.

How Digital Minions handles review asks

When a job is marked done, a minion drafts the review ask for that customer, and it waits for your yes before it goes. Every finished job gets the same ask, nothing is offered, and you can set it up as a follow-up that runs on a timer once you turn it on. You see the counts for asked and opened in the app. See the app.

The checklist

1. One moment for everyonePick the point every customer reaches, and ask then.
2. One short messageAsk for an honest review, with your direct link. No suggested words.
3. Nothing offeredNo discounts, draws, freebies or refunds tied to a review.
4. One reminder at mostThen leave it.
5. No staff quotas, no reviews from staff or family
6. Reply to every reviewSpecific, kind, private details kept private.
7. Real reviews on your siteWith source and date, no self-awarded stars.