How to Get More Google Reviews as a Contractor

To get more Google reviews as a contractor, ask every customer soon after the job, with a link that opens your review form in one tap. Then do it every time, not when someone remembers. Never offer anything in return for the review, and never ask only the customers you think are happy. Both break Google's rules.

That's the whole method. The rest of this post is how to make it stick in a shop where the techs are running late and the office phone doesn't stop.

Why reviews matter more for trades than most businesses

Nobody browses for a plumber. They search when something's leaking, look at the map, and pick someone who seems trustworthy in about thirty seconds. Stars and review counts do a lot of that work.

In BrightLocal's 2026 survey of 1,002 US consumers, 97% said they read reviews online, and Google was still the most-used review site, at 71%. For a trade business with no website, the Business Profile and its reviews may be the only thing a customer sees before they call. We cover that situation in getting booked from Google without a website.

Why most shops don't get many reviews

Almost every contractor says the same thing: "Our customers love us, but they don't leave reviews." Usually the customers were never asked, or were asked in a way that took too much effort:

• The tech didn't ask. It feels awkward at the door, and they're already late for the next job.
• The office meant to follow up. Then the phone rang.
• The customer said "sure" and forgot. They didn't know where to find your profile, and nobody sent a link.
• The ask came weeks later. By then the no-heat night is a vague memory.

None of that is a people problem. It's a system problem, and systems can be fixed.

Eight steps to more Google reviews

Step 1: Get your review link

Google gives every Business Profile a direct link to its review form. On a computer, open your Business Profile, select Read Reviews, then Get more reviews, and select Copy. You can save a QR code from the same screen. Google notes that review QR codes can only be generated in a computer browser, not on a phone (Google Business Profile Help).

That link is the most useful thing in this post. Without it, a customer has to search for you, find the right profile and scroll to the review button. Most won't bother.

Step 2: Ask at the right moment

The best time to ask is soon after the job is done, once the customer has felt the relief of it working: the heat's back on, the drain runs, the breaker stays up. Within a day or so is good. For an installation, give them a day or two to live with the new system first.

Weeks later, the ask competes with everything else in their inbox, and the details have faded.

Step 3: Ask every customer, every time

This is the step a lot of advice gets wrong. You'll find guides that say "only ask customers who seemed happy" or "send happy customers to Google and unhappy ones to a feedback form". That's called review gating, and Google's content policy prohibits businesses that "selectively solicit positive reviews from customers" (Google Maps content policy). The FTC, asked whether a business can request reviews only from customers it thinks are happy, answered that its rule doesn't name the practice, "But this practice could violate the FTC Act" (FTC questions and answers).

There's a practical reason too. A profile with only perfect reviews looks less believable than one with a few honest four-star notes and a thoughtful reply under each. We go into the details in what review gating is, and why to avoid it.

So ask everyone. The unhappy customer was going to tell somebody either way. You'd rather they told you first.

Step 4: Make it one tap

The ask should take the customer less than a minute:

• A short message. Two or three sentences, naming the job and tech. No essay about your family business.
• The direct link. Not "find us on Google".
• One thing to do. Not "review us on Google, Facebook, Yelp and Nextdoor".

We've written review request email templates for HVAC, plumbing and electrical jobs that you can copy.

Step 5: Never offer anything in return

No discount on the next visit. No gift card. No entry into a drawing. Google's policy prohibits offering incentives "such as payment, discounts, free goods and/or services" in exchange for posting a review, and says incentivized reviews "are not allowed and will be removed from Maps" (Google Maps content policy).

The FTC's Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule, in effect since October 21, 2024, bans incentives conditioned on a review expressing a particular sentiment, positive or negative (16 CFR § 465.4), and the FTC notes that the rule authorizes courts to impose civil penalties for knowing violations. It's tempting when a competitor seems to get away with it. Don't.

Step 6: Put the link where customers already look

Besides the ask after the job, put your review link:

• On every invoice and receipt
• In your email signature
• On a leave-behind card or truck sticker, with the QR code
• On your booking page or website

These don't replace the direct ask. They catch the customers who wanted to review you and didn't know how.

Step 7: Respond to every review

Reply to good reviews briefly and personally. Reply to bad ones calmly: acknowledge the problem, offer to make it right, and take the details offline. Never share the customer's details in a public reply, never argue, and never threaten a reviewer. The FTC rule bans using unfounded legal threats, intimidation or false public accusations to prevent a review or get one removed (16 CFR § 465.7).

Future customers read your replies as closely as the reviews.

Step 8: Hear about bad days first

The best way to avoid a one-star review isn't a filter. It's finding out a customer is unhappy while you can still fix it. When you ask every customer for a quick rating, the low ones are your early warning. A phone call the next morning, with a return visit, an apology or a fix, often turns a public complaint into a customer who stays.

Just don't make the fix conditional on a review, or on a changed review. The call is about the customer, not your rating.

How FSM Navigator does it

FSM Navigator runs a service business from first booking to renewals: booking page, quotes, dispatch, the job on the tech's phone, invoicing and service agreements. Review requests are the step after the job, and they follow the rules above on their own:

• About a day after a job is marked completed, during your business hours, the customer gets an email asking them to rate the visit from 1 to 5 stars. Each job gets one email, and a customer asked recently isn't asked again until the waiting period you set has passed.
• On Pro and Enterprise, everyone who rates sees your Google review link, whatever score they gave.
• Ratings below your threshold also get a private feedback form, where the customer can ask to be contacted, and on Pro and Enterprise your team gets an alert.
• The email offers nothing in return and doesn't ask for five stars.

Rating emails and private feedback run on every plan, including Free. The Google link, team alerts and rating reports are on Pro and Enterprise; see pricing for the plans.

This post is general information, not legal advice. If you have questions about your own review practices, talk to an attorney.