Guide · Reviews

How to ask for Google reviews, and what never to do.

A repeatable way for a Melbourne small business to collect genuine Google reviews: when to ask, who asks, the link, the message, the follow-up and the reply. Written from Google’s published policies and Australian Consumer Law; general information, not legal advice.

The process Message templates

Written by Rifat Hasan Rafi, founder of SIX9 Design · Last reviewed 13 October 2026

Why it matters

What reviews change, and what they do not

Reviews are the single trust signal most Melbourne customers check before they ring. They are also the most policed.

Reviews help with	Because	They do not
Being chosen from the map	A recent 4.7 with replies beats a 5.0 from 2022 with none	Guarantee a map position; Google ranks on relevance, distance and prominence together
The first phone call	People arrive already trusting you; the call is shorter	Replace a clear website; the review gets the call, the site answers the questions
Your own improvement	Patterns in reviews show what customers notice	Fix a bad service; a flood of asks after a bad month looks like what it is

The process

Eight steps that keep reviews coming

The businesses with steady reviews are not lucky. They ask the same way every time.

Get your direct review link
In your Business Profile, use “Ask for reviews” to copy the short link, per Google’s guide. Make a QR code from it for invoices, the counter and the van.
Ask everyone, not only the happy ones
Asking only customers you expect to be positive is “review gating” and breaks Google’s policy. Ask every customer the same way; an occasional three-star review makes the rest believable.
Ask in person at the end of the job
“If you were happy with that, a Google review helps us a lot; I’ll text you the link.” The in-person ask doubles the response rate of a cold message.
Send the link within a day
By the channel the customer already used: text for trades and home services, email for clinics and professional services, a card with a QR code for shops and cafés.
Keep the message short and personal
Their name, what you did, one sentence asking, the link. No rating request, no suggested wording, no reward.
Follow up once, a week later
One reminder if nothing arrived, then stop. Two reminders is nagging; three is a complaint.
Reply to every review within a few days
Thank the good ones specifically; answer the bad ones calmly with what you will do. Replies are public and read by the next customer. Google’s reply guide covers the mechanics.
Check monthly
New reviews, unanswered reviews, anything to report, and whether the website still quotes the latest ones with permission.

Templates

Messages you can adapt

Plain English, one ask, the link. Replace the placeholders; never add a reward or suggested wording.

Channel	Message
Text, trades and home services	Hi [name], thanks for having us out today for the [job]. If you were happy with the work, a quick Google review would help us a lot: [link]. Thanks, [your name], [business].
Email, clinics and professional services	Subject: Thank you from [business]. Hi [name], thank you for coming in on [day]. If you have a minute, we would be grateful for a Google review about your experience with us: [link]. If anything was not right, please reply to this email first so we can fix it. Kind regards, [your name].
Card or QR code, shops and cafés	Enjoyed your visit? Scan to leave us a Google review. It takes a minute and it helps a small local business more than you would think. [QR code] [business name]
Follow-up, one week later	Hi [name], just one reminder: if you were happy with the [job], a Google review would mean a lot to us: [link]. No worries if not. [your name]
Reply to a good review	Thanks [name]. It was good to sort the [job] for you, and we appreciate you taking the time. [your name], [business]
Reply to a bad review	Hi [name], I am sorry the [service] did not go as it should have. I would like to put it right; please call me on [number] or email [address] so I can look into it. [your name], owner, [business]

Names and businesses in the templates are placeholders. The “if anything was not right, reply first” line is a service-recovery offer to every customer, not a filter: the review link still goes to everyone.

The rules

What you must not do

Each of these can cost the reviews, the profile or, under Australian Consumer Law, a great deal more.

No incentives: no discount, gift, voucher, entry into a draw or payment for a review, whatever the rating.
No gating: no survey that sends happy customers to Google and unhappy ones to a private form.
No scripts: no suggested wording, no reviews written for the customer, no asking for five stars.
No fakes: no reviews from staff, family, suppliers or bought accounts, and no reviews of competitors. Fake or misleading reviews breach Australian Consumer Law, and the ACCC has taken businesses to court over them.
No kiosks: reviews come from the customer’s own device, not a tablet at your counter.
No deleting the truth: you cannot remove a genuine negative review; you can reply to it and report it only if it breaks Google’s policy.

Bad reviews

Replying to a bad review

The reply is for the next hundred readers, not the one reviewer.

Wait an hour, not a week
Reply the same day, after you have calmed down and checked what happened.
Acknowledge, do not argue
One sentence that shows you read it, one that says what you will do, one with a direct way to reach you. No blame, no details of their account in public.
Take it offline
Phone or email to resolve it; update the public reply only if it is resolved and the customer is happy for you to say so.
Report only what breaks the policy
Spam, conflicts of interest, harassment, off-topic content. “Unfair” is not a reporting category.
Keep asking
The cure for one bad review is the next five genuine ones, not a reply war.

We build the asking into the website: a review link and QR code on the thank-you page and invoice template, and a reviews section that quotes Google reviews with permission and links back to the profile. Start with the Google Business Profile checklist.

Sources

Google — get reviews on Google (share your review link) · checked 13 October 2026
Google — read and reply to reviews on your Business Profile · checked 13 October 2026
Google — prohibited and restricted content for reviews (incentives, fake engagement, gating) · checked 13 October 2026
ACCC — advertising and promoting your business (misleading conduct, testimonials and reviews) · checked 13 October 2026

How many Google reviews does a small business need?

Enough that the rating is believable and recent: a handful of genuine reviews from the last few months does more than fifty from three years ago. Most Melbourne small businesses that ask every customer settle at a steady trickle of one to four a month. The number matters less than recency, the rating, and whether you reply.

Can I ask customers to mention my suburb or the service in their review?

Ask them to describe what you did and how it went, in their own words; most will mention the service and the area naturally. Do not script their words, supply a review to copy, or tell them what rating to give. Google treats coached or copied reviews as fake engagement, and a page of near-identical reviews reads as fake to customers too.

Can I put Google reviews on my website?

Yes, with the customer’s permission and the words unchanged. Quote the review, attribute it as it appears on Google, and link to the profile so people can see the rest. Do not edit reviews, cherry-pick so heavily that the website rating is misleading, or present old reviews as current. Australian Consumer Law applies to testimonials on your own site as well as to reviews on Google.

What do I do about a review that is fake, abusive or from a competitor?

Reply calmly and briefly so other readers see your side, then report the review from the profile: Google removes reviews that break its content policy, such as spam, conflicts of interest, harassment or off-topic content, but not reviews that are merely negative. Keep any evidence, such as a booking record showing the reviewer was never a customer. Reporting can take days or weeks and is not guaranteed.

Do Google reviews help my ranking in the map results?

Google says review count, score and recency are among the things that influence local ranking, alongside relevance, distance and how complete the profile is. Nobody can promise a position, and buying or faking reviews is the fastest way to lose the profile altogether. Genuine, recent reviews with replies are the honest lever.

Should I ask for reviews by text, email, QR code or in person?

Whichever channel the customer already used with you, sent within a day of the job. Text works best for trades and home services, email for clinics and professional services, a QR code on the counter or invoice for cafés and shops. Ask in person first and send the link afterwards; the in-person ask lifts the response rate more than any wording does.

Can SIX9 Design get reviews for me?

No, and nobody honest can. We build the parts that make asking easy: a review link and QR code on the website’s thank-you page and invoices, a reviews section that quotes Google reviews with permission, and a Google Business Profile that matches the site. Websites cost A$169, A$299 or A$449 once. The asking, and the replying, is yours.

Keep exploring

Google Business Profile checklistSet up and keep the listing the reviews sit on How to write a service pageWhere the proof from reviews belongs on the website Tradie website checklistReviews, licences and job photos for trades Restaurant website checklistHours that match Google, menus and bookings Web design MelbourneWebsites with the review link built in

Get started

Earn the reviews.
Build the site that shows them.

Tell us what your business does. We confirm the pages, scope and total in writing before any work starts, and the review link goes on the thank-you page from day one.

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