How to get Google reviews, and more of them, is one of the most common questions small businesses ask us, and it matters because reviews feed directly into how Google ranks local businesses. The good news is that the methods that work are simple. The bad news is that several shortcuts businesses still use are now banned outright in UK law, not just against Google’s rules. This guide covers both.
Why reviews matter for local search
Google names prominence as one of its three local ranking factors, and says review count and rating play a part in it. You can read that in Google’s own explanation of local ranking. Reviews also do the selling: a searcher comparing three businesses on the map will usually ring the one with recent, specific reviews.
How to get Google reviews: what works
Ask every customer, at the right moment. The best time is straight after the job is finished and the customer is pleased, not a week later by email. Asking everyone, not only the customers you expect to be happy, keeps you on the right side of the rules and gives a more believable spread.
Make it one tap. Your Business Profile gives you a short review link. Save it on your phone and send it by text or WhatsApp while you are still with the customer. Every extra step loses people.
Follow up once. A single polite reminder a couple of days later is fine. More than that starts to feel like pressure.
Reply to every review. Thank people by name and mention the job. Reply calmly and helpfully to negative reviews too, because the next customer reads your reply more carefully than the complaint.
Ask past customers. A one-off message to recent customers who were never asked is legitimate and often the fastest way to get a profile started.
What is banned
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 made fake reviews a banned practice in the UK from April 2025, and the Competition and Markets Authority can now fine businesses directly. The CMA’s guidance on fake reviews sets out what is covered. In practice, do not:
- Write reviews of your own business, or have staff, friends or family do it
- Pay for reviews or offer discounts, prize draws or freebies in exchange for them without making that clear
- Only send the review link to customers you have screened as happy, a practice known as review gating
- Buy reviews from any service, however it describes itself
- Hide or suppress genuine negative reviews in a misleading way
Google’s contributed content policy bans the same things, and it can remove reviews or restrict a profile that breaks it. If a review on your profile was written by you or someone connected to the business, remove it.
Handling a bad review
Reply publicly, briefly and without arguing. Acknowledge the problem, offer to put it right and take the detail offline. If a review is genuinely fake or breaks Google’s policy, report it through your Business Profile rather than responding angrily. We cover the wider profile setup in our post on Google Business Profile for Luton trades.
Frequently asked questions
How many Google reviews do I need?
There is no magic number. Aim to be competitive with the businesses already showing on the map for your main search term, and keep reviews arriving steadily.
Can I thank customers with a discount after they review?
Not if the discount depends on leaving a review. Incentivised reviews must be clearly disclosed under UK law and are against Google’s policy, so the simplest rule is not to offer anything.
Can I remove a negative review?
Only if it breaks Google’s policy, in which case you can report it. Genuine negative reviews stay, which is why a good reply matters.
Reviews and local SEO in Luton
Ivy Hive helps Luton businesses set up a compliant review process as part of our SEO and local SEO service. Get in touch and we will check your profile and show you where reviews are being lost.
