How to Ask for Reviews: 6 Ways + Examples

Customer reviews are a valuable source of information necessary for the effective operation of an analytics system and business as a whole. They not only reflect the general opinion of your audience but also provide the data needed to make the right management decisions and formulate a development strategy.

By knowing how to ask customers for reviews properly, you will be able to create a continuous flow of information for analysis. In turn, it will allow you to analyze the company's position in the market and the effectiveness of its marketing strategy in real time.

In this article, you'll find effective ways to ask customers for reviews with examples and tips and learn what to do with the reviews you receive. 

Why Ask for Reviews: Key Benefits

Most people read online reviews before purchasing a product or a service. As Statista states, 43% of US citizens regularly search for online reviews, and only 2% never check them. More than that, 21% of people occasionally check product or service reviews. 

It is important to realize that all reviews are valuable, whether positive or negative. Let's consider their benefits, starting with the positive ones:

1. Promotion. You can spot your most loyal customers who speak about your business. They will likely help you raise your Net Promoter Score (NPS). Reviews can influence purchasing decisions. Customers who read positive reviews are more likely to purchase or engage with your business. This can lead to higher conversion rates and increased sales.
2. New customers. You can provide your new users with reviews so they feel certain when ordering your products or services. Positive reviews from satisfied customers serve as social proof of the quality of your product or service. When potential customers see that others have had a positive experience, it builds trust and confidence in your brand.
3. Online reputation. Positive reviews upgrade your business ratings, which helps build credibility for those seeing your products or services for the first time. This can drive sales and boost shoppers’ confidence. A strong reputation is a valuable asset. Positive reviews contribute to a favorable brand image and can counteract the impact of negative feedback or crises.
4. Online visibility. Reviews can improve online visibility, especially on platforms like Google, Yelp, or TripAdvisor. Search engines often consider the number and quality of reviews when ranking businesses in search results, potentially increasing your website's organic traffic.
5. Outreach. The more you ask for feedback, the higher the chance users will leave them. And this is a powerful tool used to activate your brand promoters. Reviews often contain valuable feedback and insights from customers. This feedback can help you understand what customers like and dislike about your products or services, allowing you to improve and better meet their needs.
6. SEO and local rankings. Local businesses can benefit significantly from reviews, as they can improve rankings in local search results. Positive reviews, especially on Google My Business, can boost your presence in local searches.

The idea of dealing with negative feedback is usually viewed unfavorably by employees and company executives. This is obvious — hardly anyone likes to read about themselves in such a way. However, studying negative feedback has its advantages:

1. Areas for improvement. Negative reviews can be valuable sources of insight. They highlight areas where you can improve and give you the chance to demonstrate your commitment to addressing customer concerns. Asking for customer reviews allows you to measure customer satisfaction systematically. By monitoring review trends, you can identify areas where your business consistently excels or falls short.
2. Getting to know your target audience better. Negative reviews are often honest and informative. People show emotion — they share their needs, which allows you to build a psychosocial profile of your target audience. 
3. Overcoming objections. By properly analyzing negative reviews, you can make them an effective tool for your marketing policy. If the problem is solved by customer service in front of potential customers, it will increase the level of trust in the business.

To harness these benefits effectively, it's essential to encourage customers to leave reviews, respond promptly to reviews (both positive and negative), and continually seek ways to improve your products or services based on customer feedback. This proactive approach can help your business thrive and maintain a positive online reputation.

When to Ask for Reviews 

Reviews are most beneficial when they are honest, informative, and accurate. To get this kind of feedback, you need to approach the communication process with care. The following rules will help you:

1. Do not ask for a review immediately after purchase. The customer needs time to review the product, evaluate its pros and cons, and analyze the process of interacting with the company. 

2. Give the customer time to leave a review on their own without unnecessary reminders. Calculate after what period customers usually leave their feedback. If you do not have such information, rely on the data of thematic articles and market research.

3. Rely on the product's characteristics. The more complex it is, the longer it will take to get feedback. For example, for food or bank transfers, a couple of days will be enough, but for cars, online marketing services, and software, several weeks will be necessary. 

4. Choose the ideal time to send your messages. According to PowerReviews, people are more willing to leave comments on Wednesday and Saturday. They have a better perception of messages received during the first half of the business day — between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Another good period would be the end of the workday — from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., depending on company business hours. 

5. Consider the characteristics of your target audience. If you work primarily with office workers, don't bore them with messages in the middle of the workday. If your customers are trendy party people, don't try to communicate with them in the early morning hours

Things to Keep in Mind When Asking for Reviews 

How to ask for a customer review? By keeping the following considerations in mind, you can create a review collection process that encourages genuine and constructive feedback from users, enhances your online reputation, and ultimately contributes to the growth and improvement of your business.

1. Make it Easy

Ensure the review submission process is user-friendly and mobile-friendly. Avoid unnecessary steps or complex forms that may deter users from leaving reviews.

2. Transparency is Key

Be transparent about why you're asking for reviews and how they will be used. Users should understand the purpose and value of their feedback.

3. Incentives and Compliance

If you offer incentives for reviews, be aware of relevant laws and guidelines, such as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rules in the United States. Ensure compliance with ethical standards.

4. Diversity of Feedback

Encourage a wide range of feedback, including both positive and negative reviews. Avoid filtering or censoring reviews excessively, as authenticity is crucial.

5. Respond to Reviews

Show that you value feedback by responding to reviews, particularly negative ones. Address concerns and thank customers for their input.

6. Review Guidelines

Establish clear guidelines for reviews, including rules against offensive or inappropriate content. Enforce these guidelines consistently.

7. Privacy and Data Protection

Protect users' privacy by not requesting sensitive information in reviews. Ensure that your data collection and storage practices comply with relevant privacy regulations.

8. Encourage Specificity

When asking customers for reviews, encourage them to provide specific details about their experiences. Make it clear that this will help improve service in the future or promise a bonus for detailed information. This helps other users make informed decisions and provides actionable feedback for your business.

9. Thank Reviewers

Show appreciation to those who take the time to leave reviews, whether through personalized thank-you messages, discounts, or other incentives.

10. Stay Genuine

Avoid fake reviews or manipulating the review process, which can harm your brand's reputation and potentially lead to legal consequences.

Asking for Reviews From Customers

Methods for obtaining feedback may vary depending on the communication channel you choose. Let’s see where and how users can leave reviews.

Reviews via Email

There are several rules that you need to keep in mind before writing an email asking for reviews. These are considered the best practices to achieve the desired results.

1. Personalization. This is always a good idea to create personalized emails, so make sure to address your client by their first name.

2. Make it easy. The customers should clearly understand what you want from them: place a link where you want the review to be. 

3. Keep it short. The longer you write, the less motivation clients have to read your email, meaning only a few will leave you the review. 

Ask for Google, Facebook, and Yelp Reviews

Use the right words to ensure that users will be motivated to provide honest reviews. You should politely ask for a review to create a positive vibe and represent your business as a caring brand. Use the following asking-for-review templates to achieve the best results.

Google Reviews

How to Ask for Reviews on Google My Business

Asking for reviews on Google My Business (GMB) is a great way to boost your online reputation and attract more customers. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to ask for reviews on Google My Business:

1. Claim and optimize your GMB listing.
2. Log in to your GMB account.
3. Find your "Write a review" link in the dashboard.
4. Generate a direct review link using Google's "PlaceID" tool.
5. Shorten the link if needed (e.g., with Bitly).
6. Ask your customers in person.
7. Send review request emails with the direct link.
8. Promote your GMB listing on your website and social media.
9. Respond to existing reviews.
10. Make review requests a routine part of your business operations.
11. Follow up with satisfied and dissatisfied customers.
12. Monitor and respond to reviews.

Facebook Reviews

Is asking for Facebook reviews effective? Yes. Facebook is another powerful tool that can help your business. Many people have personal Facebook accounts. To be specific, according to Statista, 2.9 billion people use Facebook regularly. Let's figure out how to ask for reviews on Facebook.

People are eager to share information on social media — they just need a little motivation. Remind customers that they can leave comments on your official profile - create themed posts and offer small bonuses. 

A strong comment generator can also be a repost of an independent review of your product. As a rule, such posts collect a huge number of reactions — commenting on them is easy and convenient because the consumer only needs to agree or disagree with the author. 

To work with a continuous flow of reviews, remember to update your page regularly and share useful information. Be friendly with your subscribers to the extent that the company's communication policy allows.

Yelp Reviews

How to ask for reviews on Yelp? According to Yelp, 97% of customers purchase after visiting Yelp. However, Yelp’s review policy states that Yelp doesn’t allow business owners to ask users to leave reviews on the platform. We respect that and do not suggest you ask for feedback directly. But there is nothing wrong with telling customers you have a Yelp profile and inviting them to check it out. This way, you can simply encourage them to leave a review without directly asking them.

For example, you can add a Yelp profile button on your website as a pop-up. Claspo pop-up builder offers many ready-made templates with clickable social media buttons. Choose a template you like, add a Yelp icon from our built-in icon stock, and insert a link to your profile. You can also add/remove/change icons of other social networks on your pop-up to adapt it to your needs and the website design. This pop-up will draw attention to your Yelp profile and easily redirect your customers to the platform. Now, asking for Yelp reviews is super easy!

View all templates

Review via SMS

According to Statista, nearly 66% of people read reviews from their PCs or Macs. Moreover, 56% check reviews from their mobile browsers, and 41% check reviews via mobile apps. So, you can ask customers to ‘give us a review’ via short message service and include a link that can lead the clients to any of the options mentioned above or suggest using an app to leave feedback. 

Use an ask-for-review template when forming an SMS to your customers. You can use them as is but don’t forget to adjust them to match your tone of voice.  

These are quite short options, but you can always go for a bit longer messages. Follow your brand’s style and voice to be more recognizable and connect with your customers more!

Review For a Landing Page

You can create your landing page to collect reviews. This is a popular practice among many business owners and their marketing teams as it allows them to get valuable feedback from many users and store them in one place. Besides, you can use it as a social-proof museum. 

With this tool, you can encourage customers to be more vocal about their opinions. Here they won’t be limited by a number of characters or any rules that many platforms have. More than that, you can create specific survey forms or use SEO software to be more visible to your future customers. 

After creating the landing page, promote it to show customers where they can share their thoughts about your business and read reviews from other customers. The simplest but most effective way to promote it is to place a catchy pop-up on your website. It may contain a teaser such as a slider of existing reviews, encourage customers to join this review gallery, announce a bonus in exchange for a review, and redirect to your testimonial page.

Review from a Vendor

If your business is B2B-oriented, you can ask vendors or business partners for reviews. Vendors are businesspeople, too, who understand the importance of a proper review. So, you can exchange your thoughts about each other’s businesses.

The most important thing here is to be sincere as you both know what you need from each other, and the review is just another part of the business deal. Simply say to your partner when you meet next time: “Mr. Jones, thank you for your loyalty! It is always a pleasure to work with you, and I hope you think the same. Would you share your experience of working with us for our testimonial page?” 

Review on a Website

A common practice is to use call-to-action buttons with text like “Leave a Review” next to the reviews block on the homepage, in the user’s account, on the checkout page, and so on. However, these built-in buttons can get lost among paragraphs and generate less feedback than expected. In turn, widgets contrast with other content and attract more attention.

Claspo offers different widget layouts: for example, pop-ups that appear in the middle of the screen and overlay the rest of the content or floating boxes located at the top or bottom of the page that accompany the user as they scroll, reminding them to leave a review. Moreover, Claspo widgets not only redirect users to review pages but also include a short questionnaire to collect reviews quickly. You can choose a ready-made survey template or create a unique widget from scratch by dragging and dropping elements, such as checkboxes, radio buttons, drop-down lists, or text input fields, into your layout. With Claspo's flexible display rules, widgets can appear on different pages and under certain conditions.

Use this template

You can also place the existing reviews on your page. Many content management systems have special scripts or plugins that help to use previews from other pages on your  website. 

Reviews are extremely important to your website as they are packed with specific keywords that are important for SEO. It means that you can even boost your Google position just by reposting reviews. Note that these reviews should be in the form of text as Google won’t pick up on these reviews if they look like an image. 

How to Deal With Obtained Reviews 

Dealing with obtained reviews on your website involves managing where reviews are posted and how negative feedback is handled.

Where to Post Reviews

On Your Website

Create a dedicated reviews or testimonials page on your website. Showcase positive reviews to build trust with potential customers.

Third-Party Review Sites

Encourage customers to leave reviews on trusted third-party platforms like Google, Yelp, TripAdvisor, or industry-specific review sites. These platforms can boost your online visibility and credibility.

Social Media

Share positive reviews on your social media profiles to reach a broader audience. You can also enable reviews and ratings on your social media pages.

Email Marketing

Include snippets of positive reviews in your email marketing campaigns to demonstrate customer satisfaction.

How to Deal with Negative Reviews

Respond Promptly

Address negative reviews as soon as possible, preferably within 24-48 hours, to show that you take feedback seriously.

Take It Offline

Encourage the reviewer to contact you privately to discuss the matter further and find a resolution. Provide contact information or a customer support link.

Showcase Positive Responses

When resolving negative reviews, consider showcasing positive outcomes or follow-up reviews if the issue was successfully resolved.

Avoid Removing Negative Reviews

Resist the urge to remove negative reviews unless they violate your review policy or contain offensive content. Transparency and authenticity are essential.

Learn from Feedback

Use negative reviews as an opportunity to learn and improve your products or services.

Prevent Recurrence

If a recurring issue is identified through reviews, take steps to prevent it from happening again.

Remember that negative reviews can provide valuable insights for improvement and authenticity in your online presence. Handling them professionally and constructively can help you maintain a positive reputation and demonstrate your commitment to customer satisfaction.

How Can Claspo Help You Get More Reviews?

Claspo's robust pop-up builder combines customizable design options, intelligent targeting, and comprehensive analytics to help you capture attention, engage visitors, and drive conversions. 

Using Claspo pop-ups, you can collect reviews in different ways. For example:

• Promote your special website review page,
• Redirect to Yelp, Facebook, Google My Business, and other platforms for leaving reviews, or
• Place a short questionnaire directly on the pop-up.

Plus, you can set up your pop-ups to appear in the right place and in the proper context. For example, you can display a pop-up on the checkout page and ask for feedback about their shopping experience, or show it when a visitor has been inactive on the site for a long time and ask what is preventing them from purchasing. Finally, your pop-up can appear if a visitor intends to leave your site without purchasing and ask them what went wrong.

Claspo allows you to download survey results in CSV format and see the reviews of each customer separately. Thanks to numerous Claspo integrations, you can transfer reviews collected through pop-ups to your ESP or CRM for further analysis and for building timely communication with satisfied and dissatisfied customers.

Use this template

Proactively seeking feedback allows you to address issues promptly and foster a stronger customer relationship.

Conclusion

Honest, accurate, and informative reviews are a valuable resource for your business. Therefore, collecting feedback should be a top priority of your communications policy.

In this article, we have provided basic rules, examples, and tips for asking for reviews on different platforms. Use them to motivate as many prospective and current customers as possible to share their thoughts and thus get the "fuel" that powers your analytics system. The continuous work of the system allows you to assess the current market situation, identify the strengths and weaknesses of your business, and choose the best directions for further development.