Why reviews decide who gets the call
When someone compares three local businesses, they don't read your website first. They read your reviews — the count, the average, and whether the owner replies. Reviews also affect rankings for "near me" searches. That helps people find your business and decide whether to call.
How to ask for a review
When a customer tells you they're happy, ask for a review before they leave. Give them a link they can open in one tap. That's it. Businesses get to 300 reviews by asking customers every day. Keep a QR code at the counter and add the link to your booking confirmation. Make the review request part of checkout, as routine as "would you like a receipt?"
Can you ask for 5-star reviews?
You can ask for a review; you can't ask for a rating. "If you had a good experience, we'd love a Google review" is fine. "Please leave us five stars" violates Google's policy, and offering discounts or gifts for reviews can get your reviews filtered or your profile penalized. Never buy reviews — bought reviews read fake because they are.
When to ask
Ask within a few hours of the visit. For salons and clinics, send a short, personal text that evening with one link. One polite reminder a few days later is fine. More than that reads as pestering and gets you ignored.
Reply to every single review
Future customers read your replies too, so write with them in mind. Thank the good ones specifically ("glad the colour correction worked out"), and answer the bad ones calmly with a path to fix it. A calm reply to a one-star review shows future customers how you handle a problem, which ten five-star ratings can't tell them.
Set up a review routine
Review requests stop going out when someone has to remember each one. Set up your booking software to send the request after each visit, or use a simple automated text. Check for new reviews once a week and reply. On the Growth plan, review requests go out after each visit. We draft the replies and send them to your phone for approval.
Want help setting this up?
Book a free consultation and we'll show you how the review requests and replies would work, along with sample content made for your business. Every Growth plan includes this, along with the local SEO work.