Google review request template: no cherry-picking

Why check your review requests now?

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK's competition and consumer protection regulator, confirmed continuing misleading-review investigations in its 14 October 2026 enforcement update. It says businesses that host or use reviews should have effective systems to prevent misleading content.

For a salon in Musselburgh, that makes this a sensible time to check what happens after an appointment. Google has its own rules for review requests too. The CMA update isn't a new Google policy, and breaking Google's rules doesn't by itself establish a breach of UK law.

Can I ask only happy customers for Google reviews?

No. Google's review rules prohibit discouraging negative reviews or selectively asking customers for positive ones. Sending the Google link only to customers who first say they're happy conflicts with that rule, even if every published review is genuine.

The problem is often hidden in an otherwise polite survey. A garage in Livingston might ask how the repair went, send pleased customers to Google and send unhappy customers only to a private complaint form. Calling the first step a satisfaction survey doesn't change what the process does.

Private feedback is fine. It becomes a filter when someone's answer decides whether they get the public review invitation. Keep complaint handling available without taking away the same opportunity to review.

How to ask for honest Google reviews

These templates leave the customer free to describe what happened. Replace the details in braces before sending. Keep the job description accurate and leave out anything personal that doesn't need to be in the message.

Short text after a job

Hi {first name}, thanks for choosing {business name} for {job}. If you'd like to, please leave an honest Google review of your experience: {review link}. It's completely optional. Thanks, {sender name}.

Email after an appointment

Hi {first name}, thank you for visiting {business name}. I'd welcome an honest review of your experience, including anything that could have gone better. You can leave it on Google here: {review link}. Thank you, {sender name}.

An automated review request message is one your booking or job system sends for you. It should follow the same rules as a message you send yourself.

Automated review request message

Hi {first name}, this is a follow-up from {business name} after {job or visit}. If you'd like to share your experience, you can leave an honest Google review here: {review link}. There's no obligation to post. Thank you, {sender name}.

Use the actual business and sender names so customers know who is asking. For a clinic, a general 'visit' is safer than putting treatment details into a message someone else might see.

If a direct contact line is useful, add it for everyone: 'You can also contact {contact details} about your visit.' Don't make public feedback the happy route and private feedback the unhappy route.

What are the Google review incentives rules?

Don't offer a discount, a free item or entry into a prize draw in return for a Google review. Google's policy prohibits reviews posted in return for rewards, including where the reward isn't tied to a positive rating. 'Any honest review gets a reward' doesn't solve that problem.

Keep goodwill gestures separate from reviews. If a customer deserves an apology or a refund, deal with that on its merits, not in exchange for removing or changing their review. Don't ask for a particular rating in the invitation either.

How to automate requests without filtering customers

Choose an event that starts the message without judging satisfaction, such as a job being marked complete. Apply the same invitation rule across comparable jobs. Don't make a positive survey answer, staff judgement or the absence of a complaint the condition for sending.

Personalisation should change the greeting and relevant job details, not who gets a voice. A joiner in Dalkeith can mention the completed fitting without writing 'Since you're delighted with it, please recommend me on Google.' That sentence assumes the answer before the customer has given it.

I'd test the whole process rather than approving the message in isolation. These are the checks I'd make:

• A customer who gives positive private feedback can reach the Google review link.
• A customer who gives negative private feedback gets the same review invitation.
• A customer who skips the survey isn't excluded because they didn't answer.
• Staff aren't removing customers from the invitation list just because a complaint is open.
• People who decline further messages aren't chased repeatedly.

This is about fair selection, not sending messages to everyone regardless of permission. Keep contact preferences and permissions separate from satisfaction, and check them before you send.

What to check after messages start going out

Keep a simple record of completed jobs, invitations sent, failed messages and exclusions with reasons. Compare that record with the diary. If missing invitations cluster around complaints, the process needs checking, not better wording.

Read the reviews for repeated issues rather than chasing a target star rating. Unclear estimates or late arrivals give you something useful to fix. The invitation is only part of the job; answering Google reviews needs care too.

Don't treat a complaint as a reason to stop asking everyone else. Deal with the problem and keep the invitation process fair. Otherwise the next batch of reviews may tell you more about who received the link than about how the business is doing.

When you don't need to pay for help

Don't pay for ongoing search work just to send a review link. If you only finish occasional jobs, a saved message and a note of when you sent it may be enough.

If your current invitation goes to customers on the same neutral basis, offers no reward and asks for an honest account, leaving it alone is fine. You don't need new software because it has a 'review growth' feature.

If appointments run late or quotes aren't explained, fix that before paying someone to request more reviews. Better wording won't repair the experience.

Get your review requests checked properly

Neglected requests can leave recent work unrepresented, while a happiness filter risks a misleading picture that can damage trust. Customers who can't judge your business confidently may book with a competitor whose honest reviews and replies answer their doubts.

I check the messages your customers receive, who gets them and what happens after each survey answer. I remove satisfaction-based filters, rewrite the wording and test the route from a completed job to the public review link. That includes checking that an unhappy answer doesn't quietly stop the invitation.

That's part of my SEO and Google Business Profile service: helping your business get found in search results and looking after its listing on Google Search and Maps. I'm affordable on purpose because local firms shouldn't need an agency-sized budget to fix a practical problem. Every job starts with a free consultation and a written quote before any work begins.

Please book the free consultation (opens in a new tab) so I can check how your review requests work.