How to get gmb reviews

If you want to know how to get GMB reviews steadily rather than in occasional bursts, the answer is to ask every happy client at the same moment, in the same way, with a single tap to your review page. Once that request is automated, reviews on your Google Business Profile arrive every week without anyone remembering to ask. This guide shows you how to set up that request on the levelpartner.ai platform and how to keep it running.

What you get once it is set up

A workflow sends a short review request by SMS or email when a job, case or project reaches a defined finish point. The message carries a direct link to your review page. If the client does not respond, one polite reminder follows. New reviews appear in the Reputation section of the platform, where your team can read and reply to them.

The result is a review profile that reflects your whole client base, not just the handful of clients someone happened to ask. For a firm of 20 or 200 people, that steady flow matters more than any single glowing review.

Before you start

Have these ready before you build anything:

• A verified Google Business Profile for each location you want reviews on. Verification is done with Google, not on the platform.
• Access to the platform's Settings, with permission to connect integrations.
• A clear trigger that means "this client is happy and finished". For an agency, that might be project sign-off. For a mortgage broker, completion. For a consultant, the final workshop. For an estate agent, keys handed over.
• Consent records in your CRM for the channels you plan to use, and opt-out handling switched on.
• A named person who will read and reply to reviews each week.

How to set it up

1. Click Settings in the left-hand menu.
2. Click Integrations.
3. Sign in with a Google account that manages the profile.
4. Find Google Business Profile and click Connect.
5. Select the correct business location.
6. Click Connect to finish.
7. Check for the green Connected status and the Connected Pages list.
8. Open Automation, then Workflows, and create a workflow.
9. Add a trigger for your finished, happy client event.
10. Add the Send Review Request action.
11. Enter an Action Name and choose the Review Type.
12. Click the Reputation Settings link to set the message.
13. Save and publish the workflow.

Keep the request message to two or three sentences with the review link at the end. Our guide to writing a review request message has wording for text and email and the follow-up rules. Add a short wait before the request so it does not land in the same minute as the final invoice or handover email, and allow one reminder only for contacts who have not responded. Test on a staff member's contact record and check the link opens your review page on a phone, then look in Reputation the following week for new reviews.

Writing the request people actually respond to

Short beats clever. A request that works names the person who helped, says what was finished, and asks one question. For example: "Hi Sam, it was good working with you on the move. Would you mind leaving a quick review of how Jo handled it? It takes a minute: [link]".

Send it from a name the client recognises, not a generic company address. Avoid asking for a five-star review or offering anything in return for a review. Both break Google's review policies and can lead to reviews being removed.

What this is for in a 10 to 250 person company

When revenue has stalled, reviews do two jobs. They help you appear in local search when someone looks for a firm like yours. And they reassure the prospect who has already heard of you and is checking before they call.

An automated request replaces the informal habit of asking "the good ones" for a review. That habit produces a thin, uneven profile. The workflow replaces it with a consistent process that runs for every client who reaches the finish line.

Once it is live, the weekly time cost is small. Someone reads new reviews, replies to each one, and flags any complaint to the right manager. Keep it to a fixed weekly slot so it does not drift. If you want to see how review requests fit into the wider picture of monitoring and replying, read our guide to running reputation management for a growing firm.

When not to automate the request

Do not automate requests for clients with an open complaint, a recent cancellation or a case that ended badly. Add a condition to the workflow that skips contacts with a complaint tag or a lost-stage opportunity.

Be careful in regulated work. A mortgage broker or consultant should check that asking for a review fits their own compliance rules, and that the request does not invite clients to share personal financial details in public.

Troubleshooting

The review link opens the wrong page

The link usually points to the profile rather than the review form, or to a different location. Copy the review link again from the connected location in Reputation and send yourself a test message.

Reviews do not appear in the Reputation section

The connection to your Google Business Profile has often expired or was made with an account that does not manage the location. Reconnect it in Settings using the Google account that owns or manages the profile.

Clients receive the request twice

Two workflows, or two triggers in one workflow, are firing for the same event. Check Automation for duplicate review workflows and make sure only one trigger starts the sequence.

Nobody responds to the request

The timing or the wording is usually at fault. Move the request closer to the moment the client is happiest, shorten the message, and send it from the name of the person who did the work.

Frequently asked questions

Is it allowed to send automated review requests?

Yes, as long as you ask every eligible client in the same way and do not offer incentives or ask only for positive reviews. Selectively asking happy clients while filtering out unhappy ones is review gating, which Google's policy forbids. In the US the FTC's rule on fake reviews has applied since October 2024, and in the UK the DMCC Act has banned fake reviews since April 2025. Our guide to review gating and the review rules explains each.

Should we send review requests by SMS or email?

Use both if you have consent for both. SMS tends to be read sooner, and email gives you room for a little more context. Test each with your own clients for a month and keep what works. Our guide to sending an automated text message covers consent and timing for the SMS version.

How do we reply to reviews once they arrive?

Reply to every review, positive or negative, from the Reputation section. Thank people by name, keep it short, and take any complaint offline with a direct contact. If the reviewer then messages you, the thread lands in the unified inbox alongside their other conversations, so whoever picks it up sees the full history.

Can we collect reviews for more than one location?

Yes. Connect each location's profile and build the workflow so each client receives the link for the office that served them. A field on the contact record for the branch makes this straightforward, and our workflow automation examples show how to branch a workflow on a field like this.

The journey this guide describes