How does automating review requests actually work?
When a job is marked complete in your job management software, it automatically sends a review request link to the customer. The link is smart: it first asks the customer to select a star rating. If they choose five stars, it sends them directly to your Google listing to post the review. If they select anything lower, it captures that feedback privately rather than pushing it to Google.
This means you are collecting your best reviews publicly and handling any concerns internally, without having to manually follow up after every single job.
Should you still mention reviews in person, even with automation running?
Yes. Asking on site, even briefly, makes a real difference. Simply saying something like "Would you feel comfortable leaving us a review?" before you leave the job warms the customer up. The automated request then goes out once the job is complete regardless, but the in-person conversation means the customer is expecting it and more likely to act on it.
The combination of a verbal ask on site and an automated follow-up is stronger than either approach alone.
Can you incentivise your team to collect more reviews?
Paying your team a small amount per review they bring in is one approach that came up directly in the session. The figure mentioned was around fifteen dollars per review, with others in the industry using anywhere between ten and twenty-five dollars.
If you have team members doing site visits, they are the ones building the relationship with the customer face to face. Giving them a financial reason to make the ask is a straightforward way to lift your review volume.
What if a low review does come through to Google?
Do not stress about the occasional low rating. A score of 4.9 rather than a perfect 5.0 can actually look more credible to a potential customer. A profile with almost all five-star reviews and one or two lower ones reads as genuine rather than suspicious.
Focus on volume and consistency. A high number of strong reviews built up over time carries far more weight than a perfect score with very few reviews behind it.
What else can you do right now to improve your Google profile?
Posting a Google update once or twice a week is one of the quickest wins available. Very few of your competitors are doing it, and it takes only a few minutes. Write a short post about what you are working on this month, list a few suburbs you service, add your phone number, attach a photo, and post it. You can draft the text in an AI tool and paste it straight in.
Beyond updates, fill out your profile description with as many relevant keywords as you can: your trade, variations of it (plumber, plumbing, plumbers), suburb names you service, and specific service types. Link every social profile you have, including LinkedIn if you have one, even if you do not use it actively. Every connection counts toward how Google ranks your listing locally.
What should you do this week?
Spend at least thirty minutes reviewing and updating your Google Business profile. Work through your keywords and add any suburbs or service types you have missed. Post one update today, even a plain text one with a photo. Then look honestly at your review collection process: if it is not automated, that is the highest-value thing you can put in place.
