Asking customers for a Google review
Reviews largely decide whether someone calls you or the next company on the list. On this page you find your own review link, messages you can send right away, and what Google does and does not allow.
In short
- You ask for a Google review with your own review link from your Google Business Profile. That link opens the review window straight away.
- Ask at the moment the customer is happy, preferably in person. One link works better than explaining where they can find you.
- Google forbids giving anything in return for a review and approaching only satisfied customers.
- PaginaBooster is an online marketing agency from Groningen and helps clients across the Netherlands and Belgium get more inquiries.
Get your own review link
You have one fixed link that opens the review window directly. Choose below where you get it, and the steps appear.
Choose above where you get the link and the steps will appear.
On the computer
Here you can also download a QR code, for example for your invoice or a sticker in the van.
- Sign in with the Google account your business profile was created with.
- Go to business.google.com and open your business.
- Click Read reviews and then Get more reviews.
- Click Copy. You now have the link that opens the review window.
- Want a QR code? Right-click the code and choose Save image as. QR codes can only be made on a computer, not on a phone.
Through Google Search
Works on computer and phone, as long as you are signed in with the right account.
- Search Google for your business name or for my business.
- You see the management panel of your business profile above the search results.
- Tap or click Read reviews and then Get more reviews.
- Copy the link and share it through WhatsApp, email or a message.
In the Google Maps app
Handy when you are on the road and want to send the link quickly.
- Open the Google Maps app and tap your profile photo at the top right.
- Tap Your Business Profile.
- Tap Reviews.
- Tap Get more reviews.
- Tap the link to copy it or share it right away.
Keep the link somewhere you can find it quickly, for example in your phone under your own name or in your email signature. We checked the steps above with Google in September 2026; if a button changes, let us know.
Messages you can use
Copy a message, put your own review link in it and change the name. Short works better than long: the less you ask, the more often you get an answer.
WhatsApp, short
Hi [name], thanks for the job. Happy with the result? Then you would help us a lot with a short review on Google. It takes half a minute: [your review link]
Send this the same day the work is finished, preferably from the number you were already in touch on.
Email after completion
Dear [name], The work is finished and we hope you are happy with it. Would you help us by sharing your experience in a short review on Google? Two sentences is enough, and it helps other business owners find us. You can leave your review here: [your review link] Many thanks and see you next time.
Put this text under the final invoice or send it separately, a day after completion.
Friendly reminder
Hi [name], you are probably busy. If you have a minute: a short review on Google really helps us. [your review link] Thanks in advance.
Send this once, about a week after your first message. If it stays quiet, leave it at that.
What you say on the spot
Glad you are happy with it. If you do not mind, I will send you a link for a review on Google. That is how new customers find us.
Ask in person just before you leave and send the message right after. This brings in by far the most reviews.
Replace [your review link] with the link from step 1 and [name] with your customer's name.
Six things that make the difference
Reviews rarely come in by themselves. This is what we see with the clients who get a few new ones every month. For comparison: two of our clients now have over 550 and over 40 on Google.
Ask at the right moment
Right after completion, appreciation is at its peak. Wait a week and the moment has passed.
Let the person who did the work ask
An engineer who asks before getting into the van gets a review far more often than an email from the office. The customer usually says yes. Send the link right after, because that yes is worth nothing a day later.
One link, no searching
Send the review link itself. Not your website, not your company name with a note that they can find you. Every extra click costs you reviews.
Make it a fixed step
Put the request in your process, for example as standard under the final invoice. What is fixed does not get forgotten.
Ask everyone
Including the customer whose answer you are not sure of. Google requires it, and the occasional critical review among the good ones actually makes the whole credible: profiles with nothing but five stars are distrusted.
Reply to every review
A short thank you is enough. With a complaint: stay calm, name what went wrong and offer a solution, because future customers mainly read your reply.
What Google does not allow
Collecting reviews is fine, but there are limits. Break them and Google removes the reviews or restricts your business profile.
- No rewards. A discount, a gift card or a free product in return for a review is forbidden, even if you let the customer write whatever they want.
- No pre-sorting. Asking only satisfied customers for a review and skipping unhappy ones is not allowed. Ask everyone you have helped.
- Do not buy or arrange reviews. Reviews from family, staff or purchased accounts are recognised and removed, and your profile can be penalised for them.
- Do not review yourself. A review from your own account or from the computer at the office does not count and stands out.
Not sure whether something is allowed? Give us a call at 085 - 002 2208.
Good to know
No. Google calls that fake engagement and forbids it, even for a small gift or discount. What is allowed: simply asking, and making it easy with a direct link.
Reply within a day, calmly and businesslike. Thank them for the feedback, name what went wrong and offer a solution or a phone number. People reading later mainly look at how you respond. Do not argue in public.
There is no fixed number. What counts is having enough to be credible and getting new ones regularly. Ten reviews from this year weigh more than fifty from 2021, because visitors look at the date.
They help. For local results and Maps, Google looks at how well known and well regarded a business is, and reviews are a signal of that. They certainly help the customer decide: between two similar businesses, the one with better reviews almost always wins.
No, that requires a Google account. Many people have one through their Android phone or Gmail. If it does not work, ask whether someone else at the company wants to do it, and do not push.
Only if it breaks Google's policy, for example abuse, advertising or a review from someone who was never a customer. You then flag the review from your business profile. An honest but negative review will not disappear, however annoying that is.
Want to get more customers out of Google?
Reviews are one part of it. In a strategy call we look at your whole visibility: from your business profile to your ads.