TIMED TO JOB COMPLETION
Ask once. Ask well.
Automated review requests can schedule a neutral SMS, email or WhatsApp ask after a completed job and permission checks. Eligible customers receive the same review link regardless of sentiment, with opt-outs respected. Google prohibits incentives and selective positive solicitation; UK consumer rules separately address fake and concealed incentivised reviews.
Updated
What you’ll find here.
Scoped narrowly to automating the ask itself, three ready-to-adapt message variants timed to the moment a job finishes, and the correct, Google-sanctioned way to generate a review link, rather than broader reputation strategy.
- The rules on what a review request may and may not say are cited to Google's own review policy and the CMA's work on fake and incentivised reviews
- The review link is generated the way Google's own support documentation describes, not guessed at
- Message permission and any soft opt-in eligibility are assessed before sending; recent custom alone is not permission
The job, broken down.
- Sending a review request shortly after a job or visit finishes
- Using the business's own Google review link
- Asking eligible customers the same way regardless of sentiment, with contact permissions and opt-outs respected
- Routing a negative-sounding reply privately to the business
- Never offering an incentive in exchange for a review
The same job, handled.
| The task today | With AI doing the legwork |
|---|---|
| Review requests happen when someone remembers to ask | A request can go out after completion where contact permissions allow it |
| Only the customers who seemed pleased get asked | Eligible customers get the same neutral request regardless of sentiment; opt-outs are respected |
| A complaint reply needs attention from the business | A complaint reply is routed for human handling without hiding the review link or discouraging a public review |
Built in steps.
Connect
We connect the job, booking or point-of-sale system that already knows when a job or visit is complete, so the request goes out at the right moment rather than in a weekly batch.
Time it
The request goes out shortly after completion, while the experience is fresh, and eligible customers get the same ask regardless of sentiment; permission and opt-out checks still apply.
Ask, neutrally
The message links straight to the business's own Google review link, generated the way Google's support pages describe, with no incentive offered and no suggestion that a positive review is wanted more than an honest one.
Route replies
A complaint reply is routed to the business for human handling. The customer keeps the same public review link and is never discouraged from leaving an honest negative review.
Do the maths.
Remembering to ask every customer for a review after a job, one at a time, by memory.
| Input or step | Value |
|---|---|
| Times a week | 40 |
| Minutes each time | 2 |
| People doing it | 1 |
| Cost per hour | £14 |
| Hours a year | 69 (about 9 working days) |
| Cost a year | £971 |
Illustrative inputs, not a client's figures: forty completed jobs a week, two minutes each to remember and send a request. Change the inputs to your own with the calculator. See how we calculate this.
These are illustrative workflow scopes. The audit checks the actual software, supported access, licences, permissions and human review rules before a build is agreed.
Why the timing and the wording both matter
A review request can be scheduled after a job, rather than relying on someone to remember a weekly batch. Its wording, contact permissions and treatment of feedback matter as much as timing.
Three ready-to-adapt messages
These are illustrative starting points, not approved sending scripts. Check the channel and contact permission first; include an effective opt-out where applicable, and use the business’s own Google review link.
- SMS: “Thanks for choosing [business] today. If you have thirty seconds, a Google review helps other people find us: [link].”
- Email: subject “How did we do?”, body thanking the customer by name for the specific job, and the same link, with no discount or incentive mentioned anywhere.
- WhatsApp: the same message as the SMS, sent through the business’s existing WhatsApp Business number rather than a new channel the customer has not seen before.
Staying inside Google’s rules, and the UK’s
Google’s own policy is specific about what is not allowed: no “incentives, such as payment, discounts, free goods and/or services, in exchange for posting any review,” and no discouraging negative reviews or “selectively solicit[ing] positive reviews from customers.” Both rules shape this workflow directly: eligible customers receive the same request regardless of sentiment, while opt-outs and contact permissions are respected, and nothing is ever offered in return for leaving one. The link itself should come from the business’s own profile, which Google’s support documentation describes as generated under “Read Reviews and then Get more reviews,” rather than a placeid-style URL assembled by guesswork.
This sits alongside wider UK consumer protection work: the CMA’s ongoing case on online reviews covers fake and concealed incentivised reviews and references guidance published in April 2025 under the UK’s newer consumer protection regime. None of that changes what this page automates, the ask itself, but it is the reason the ask has to be built this carefully rather than as a generic “leave us a review” blast.
For messaging by SMS, email or WhatsApp, the ICO’s soft opt-in guidance lets a business contact its own recent customers about a similar product or service without separate prior consent, as long as there was a clear chance to opt out both when their details were collected and in every message sent. A recent purchase does not by itself establish that a review request qualifies. Assess the message and permissions before sending, honour opt-outs and do not treat a bought-in list as eligible for this customer relationship rule.
On the tools you already use.
- Google Business Profile
- Your job or booking system
- SMS sending service
- WhatsApp Business API
- Gmail or Outlook
Who needs it most.
What it costs.
Every price is published and fixed in writing before any work starts.
AI Opportunity Audit
In person across Leeds and West Yorkshire, or by video call. A written report of your top 5 automations, yours to keep.
AI Lead & Ops Sprint
Enquiry capture through to booking, follow-up and CRM logging, plus one ops automation. The monthly fee covers monitoring, tuning, a monthly review and up to 2 hours of changes.
Fractional AI Team
Ongoing AI builds, staff training and a monthly review.
Prices exclude VAT where applicable.
The build guarantee. We agree written acceptance criteria before any work starts. If the build doesn’t meet them, we fix it at no extra cost, and if we can’t, you don’t pay for it.
Where the facts come from.
- Prohibited and restricted content: reviewsGoogle
- Create a link or QR code so customers can leave reviewsGoogle
- Electronic and telephone marketing: the soft opt-inInformation Commissioner's Office
- Online reviewsCompetition and Markets Authority
Questions, answered straight.
Can I offer a discount for a review?
No. Google's own policy prohibits offering incentives, payment, discounts or free goods or services, in exchange for a review, and the CMA separately addresses fake and concealed incentivised reviews under UK consumer rules. The requests here never offer anything in return.
Can I only ask happy customers for a review?
No. Google's policy specifically prohibits selectively soliciting positive reviews or discouraging negative ones. Eligible customers receive the same request regardless of sentiment; contact permissions and opt-outs must still be respected.
Do I need consent to text or email a review request?
The ICO's soft opt-in rule lets a business email or text its own recent customers about similar products or services without separate prior consent, provided they were given a clear chance to opt out when their details were collected and in every message. Recent custom alone does not establish eligibility. Assess the actual message, channel and permissions, and respect opt-outs before sending.
How is the Google review link generated?
Through the business's own Google Business Profile: under Read Reviews, then Get more reviews, Google generates a link (and a QR code) to copy and share. The automation uses that same link rather than a guessed-at URL.
What does a review request automation cost?
A workflow like this is usually a fixed-price package agreed in writing before any work starts (most clients begin with the AI Opportunity Audit at £495, credited against a build). The Fractional AI Team at £1,500 a month covers ongoing work if you want it looked after. Prices exclude VAT where applicable.
Where to go next.
Respect opt-outs. Ask the same way.
Start with a 20-minute call.
Tell us the job that keeps coming back. We’ll tell you honestly what’s worth automating and what isn’t, and put a number on each one.