Reviews and Local Rankings: How to Build Velocity Without Violating Policy

You have 500 reviews. Your competitor has 50.

Why are they outranking you?

Because you got your 500 reviews over 10 years, and you haven't had a new one in 3 months. Your competitor got their 50 reviews in the last 30 days.

To Google, your business looks "dormant." To Google, your competitor looks "trending."

Review Velocity—the rate at which you acquire new feedback—is a critical ranking signal. It proves you are active, relevant, and servicing customers right now.

The Ranking Power of Text

Star ratings (4.9 vs 4.2) influence humans. Review Text influences robots.

When a customer writes:

"Mike did a great job with our emergency leak repair. He arrived on time and fixed the burst pipe."

They just laid down two high-value keywords for you. Google associates your profile with those terms.

The Strategy: Do not just ask for a review. Ask for specifics.

• Bad Ask: "Please leave us a review!"
• Good Ask: "Mike, would you mind mentioning the project we did for you (the leak repair) in your review? It helps other neighbors find us."

Building a Velocity Engine

You cannot rely on hope. You need a system.

1. The "Driveway Ask" (High Conversion)

The technician is onsite. The problem is fixed. The customer is relieved.

• Tech: "I'm glad we got that fixed. I have a favor to ask. My boss tracks my performance based on reviews. Would you mind scanning this QR code and giving me a thumbs up?"
• Why it works: It makes it about helping the person (the tech), not the company.

2. The SMS Follow-Up (Medium Conversion)

If they didn't do it onsite, send a text within 1 hour of closing the job.

• Script: "Hi [Name], thanks for choosing us. Here is the link to leave that review we talked about: [Link]"
• Timing: Open rates drop 50% after 24 hours. Speed is key.

3. The Email Drip (Low Conversion)

Email is for backup. It captures the slow movers.

Review Gating: The "Third Rail"

Do not do this: sending a form that says "Rate us 1-5." If they click 5, you send them to Google. If they click 1, you send them to a private feedback form.

This is Review Gating. It is explicitly banned by Google. If caught, they can wipe all your reviews.

• The Rule: Every customers must have equal access to the public review button.

Handling Negative Reviews

You will get a 1-star review. It happens.

1. Reply Fast: Reply within 24 hours.
2. Be Professional: "I'm sorry we missed the mark. Please call us to fix it."
3. Burial Strategy: The only cure for a bad review is 10 good reviews. Activate your Velocity Engine to push the negative one off the front page.

Verification Checklist

• Shortlink Created: Do you have g.page/[yourname]/review link ready?
• Tech Training: Do your techs know how to ask? (Incentivize them: $20 per 5-star review they generate).
• Response Rate: Are you replying to 100% of reviews (good and bad)?

Common Mistakes

[!TIP] Don't Buy Reviews Never buy reviews. They are easy to spot (generic names, no text, foreign IPs) and Google purges them regularly. It isn't worth the risk.

• Review Stations: Don't have customers log in to your iPad to review you. multiple reviews from the same IP address look like spam. They must use their own phone.
• Ignoring No-Text Reviews: Reply to them anyway. "Thanks for the 5 stars!" It counts as activity.

FAQ

Q: Can I remove a fake review? A: You can report it to Google, but they rarely remove it unless it violates policy (e.g., hate speech, conflict of interest like an ex-employee). "They lied" is usually not enough for removal.

Q: How many reviews do I need? A: You need 10 more than you have today. It is a race with no finish line.

Sources and References

1. Google Business Profile Help: Get Google Reviews - Polices
2. Moz: Impact of Reviews on Local SEO - Ranking correlation studies.

Changelog

• 2024-04-18: Initial publication.

---

Read Next in This Hub:

• Local Pack Visibility - The goal.
• Proof Assets - Beyond reviews.

Related System:

• Review Capture System - Automate the ask.