By the Rank in Chat team ยท Updated 27 October 2026
Short answer
Ask every happy customer soon after the job, send them a direct link, and invite them to mention what you did and where, without scripting them or offering anything in return.
Specific, genuine reviews give people and AI assistants something concrete to repeat: "fixed our boiler the same day in Oakham" says far more than "great service".
Five steps that stay within the rules
- Ask every happy customer, at the right moment. Ask soon after the job or visit goes well, in person or with a short message, rather than in a bulk email months later.
- Make it easy. Send a direct link to your review page on Google or the site your customers use most, so it takes one tap to start.
- Invite detail without scripting it. Something like 'It really helps if you mention what we did and where' is fine. Don't tell people what to say or offer anything in return.
- Ask everyone, not just the ones you expect to be glowing. Picking only happy customers to ask (sometimes called review gating) is against some review sites' rules and makes your reviews less believable.
- Reply to reviews. Thank people, and answer criticism calmly and factually. Your replies are public and show how you deal with people.
The honest limits
Reviews are one part of the picture, not a switch. Assistants also rely on your website, your listings and what other sites say about you, and nobody outside the AI companies knows exactly how each one weighs reviews. Never buy, swap or write reviews: besides breaking the rules, it can get genuine ones removed.
What a useful review looks like
Compare these two, both genuine-sounding and both five stars:
- "Great service, would recommend!"
- "Came out on a Sunday to fix a leaking pipe in our kitchen in Stamford. Tidy, explained everything, fair price."
The second one tells a reader (and an assistant) the service, the area, the availability and what it was like. You can't write it for the customer, but you can make it likely by asking at the right moment and mentioning that detail helps.
Where to ask for reviews
Start with the place your customers already look, which for most local businesses is Google. Then add one or two sites that matter in your sector, such as a trade directory, a booking platform or a professional body's listing. Spreading thinly over ten sites helps less than steady reviews on the ones people use. Keep your business details identical on each, as our local recommendations guide explains.
See where you stand first. It's free.
We ask ChatGPT and Google's Gemini the kind of questions your customers ask, then email you whether you were named, roughly where, and who was suggested instead. A person reviews your check before we send it, usually within 2 working days.
Get my free checkQuestions people ask
Do AI assistants read reviews?
Assistants that look things up on the web can come across reviews and summaries of them, and reviews are one of the signals that help describe a business. Exactly how each assistant uses them isn't public, so we don't claim more than that.
Can I offer a discount for a review?
Don't. Many review sites forbid incentivised reviews, and UK consumer law is strict about fake or misleading reviews. Ask for honest feedback and leave it there.
What about a bad review?
Reply politely, stick to facts, and offer to put things right offline. A calm reply to a fair complaint can reassure people more than a page of five-star reviews.
How many reviews do I need?
There's no magic number, and we won't invent one. Recent, specific, genuine reviews arriving steadily are more useful than a burst of short ones.