Module 7 of 13

Reviews and reputation

How to earn reviews properly, what UK law says about incentivising them, and how to answer a bad one.

6 min read · free, no sign-up

Asking is allowed. Buying is not.

Asking a genuine customer for an honest review is normal and encouraged. Paying for reviews, writing them yourself, or offering a reward in exchange for a positive one is not — and in the UK it is a consumer-protection matter, not just a platform rule.

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 explicitly targets fake and incentivised reviews. Treat "just write us a five star and we will knock £10 off" as the legal risk it is.

The mechanics of actually getting them

Ask at the moment of relief — the job just finished and worked. Ask in person first, then send the link within the hour while goodwill is fresh.

Make it one tap. A short link straight to the review form, sent by text, converts far better than "search for us on Google and leave a review".

Answering the bad one

Reply once, briefly, without arguing, and move the detail offline: acknowledge, state the fact that matters, offer a way to fix it. You are not writing for the angry reviewer; you are writing for the next customer reading it.

A business with 40 reviews averaging 4.6 and thoughtful replies reads as more trustworthy than one with 12 flawless ones.

In practice — A roofing company in Nottingham

A one-star review said the crew left debris in the garden. True — a bin bag split.

The reply named the job, said what happened, said they had returned the same week to clear it, and left a phone number. Two later reviewers mentioned that reply as the reason they called.

Action checklist

  • Create a short direct link to your review form and save it in your phone.
  • Ask in person at the point the customer is visibly happy.
  • Send the link by text within the hour.
  • Never offer money, discounts or gifts in exchange for a review.
  • Reply to every review within a few days.
  • Reply to negative reviews once, factually, and take it offline.

Free tool for this lesson

Listing completeness checker does this lesson's work in your browser. Nothing is stored and no sign-up is needed.

Exercise

Write and save two reply templates — one for a positive review, one for a complaint — that you would be content to see quoted in a local newspaper. Adapt rather than paste them.

Time needed: 25 minutes

Read the source

Primary documentation, so you can check anything here rather than take our word for it.

Working through this and want your business listed while you do? Add it free. A listing costs nothing and promotion is always optional.