Review generation is the routine of asking real customers to leave a review, at the right moment and with as little effort as possible on their part, so a business builds a steady flow of honest feedback on the platforms that matter to it. It is about making the request automatic, not about manufacturing praise.
How review generation works
Most satisfied customers never think to leave a review, while unhappy ones are more motivated to. A review generation process corrects that imbalance by asking everyone. The request usually takes one of these forms:
- an email or text sent automatically when a job is marked complete or an order is delivered, with a direct link to the review form
- a QR code on a receipt, invoice, table card or the back of a business card
- a personal request from the person who did the work, followed by the link
- an invitation sent through a review platform such as Trustpilot or Feefo, which ties the review to a verified order
On Google, your Business Profile gives you a short link that opens the review box directly. Timing matters: a plumber’s customer is most willing just after the leak stops, while an online shopper needs time for the parcel to arrive and the product to be used.
Why it matters
Google says review count and score factor into local ranking, and the pace at which new reviews arrive, often called review velocity, shows customers the business is active. A profile with a steady trickle of new reviews looks more trustworthy to customers than one that gathered fifty in a single month two years ago.
UK law sets the boundaries. Under the DMCC Act 2024 and the CMA’s guidance on fake reviews, a review given in return for an incentive must be clearly disclosed as such, and buying or writing fake reviews is banned. Google goes further: its policies do not allow incentives for Google reviews at all, whether a discount, a free product or entry to a prize draw. An incentivised review on Google risks removal even when the customer is genuine.
Common mistakes
- Asking only customers who seem happy, which is review gating.
- Offering a discount, gift or prize draw entry for Google reviews.
- Sending one burst of requests to every past customer, then nothing for a year.
- Linking to a general page rather than straight to the review form, adding steps that lose people.
- Writing the review for the customer, or asking staff to review their own employer.
- Asking for reviews on a platform your customers do not use, so the request is ignored.
How to act on it
Pick the point in your process when customers are most satisfied and the job is clearly finished, and attach the review request to it. Automate it through your booking system, CRM or review platform so nobody has to remember. Keep the message short and personal: what you did for them, a one-line request and a direct link.
Send it to every customer, without filtering, and allow one polite reminder at most. Reminding people what the job was (“how did the rewiring in your kitchen go?”) helps them write something specific, and reviews that describe the work are more useful to the next customer. Watch the numbers monthly and reply to each review as it arrives. Setting up this routine is part of the local SEO work I do, alongside the profile itself.