Marketing & Brand Growth
Reviews are free feedback and free marketing, if you ask honestly and read them.
A customer comparing two businesses will often read the reviews of both. Many owners know this, yet do not ask, ask in the wrong way, or read only the five-star ones. This session covers how to ask every customer without pressure or incentive, how to reply, how to use praise in your marketing with permission, and how to learn from the complaints.
Explore this page6 sections
Reviews are read by the people you want to win.
A new customer cannot test your work before choosing. Reviews are the closest thing they have to a trial, and they take them seriously. A business with recent, specific, honest reviews is easier to choose than one with none, or with a few from long ago.
But reviews are also governed by strict rules. Platforms prohibit paying for reviews, offering discounts or gifts in exchange for them, and selectively asking only happy customers. Indian consumer-protection rules also address fake reviews. The right approach is simple: serve well, ask everyone, make it easy and reply to all.
What the session covers
36 topics across 7 areas. Seven parts, from asking to learning.
Why Reviews Matter to CustomersWhat people look for.5
- Recent, specific comments over a perfect score
- How a business replies
- Reading the whole picture, including mixed reviews, rather than only the score
- Where customers look: map, search, marketplaces, social media
- Why a few lines can decide a choice
No platform's score is a guarantee of quality, and customers know it. They read the comments.
Asking HonestlyAt the right moment, in the right way.5
Google, for example, allows businesses to ask customers for reviews and to share a review link or QR code, and states that businesses must not offer incentives or selectively solicit positive reviews. Other platforms have their own rules, so read them before you ask.
- Asking after the work is done and the customer is satisfied or has had the chance to say otherwise
- Asking everyone, not only those you expect to be happy
- A short, polite request in person, by message or on the bill
- Sharing a direct link or QR code where the platform provides one
- Letting the customer write in their own words
What Not to DoThese can damage the business, not just the listing.6
- Paying for reviews or hiring someone to write them
- Offering discounts, gifts or free items in exchange for a review
- Asking only happy customers, or discouraging negative reviews
- Pressuring customers to review while they are still at your premises
- Writing reviews for your own business or for a competitor's, or asking staff and family to do so
- Asking for a review to be changed or removed in return for anything
Platforms can remove reviews and take action against a business listing. Fake reviews may also be treated as an unfair trade practice under Indian consumer-protection law. Check the platform's current policy and take qualified advice if unsure.
Replying to ReviewsPublic, brief and human.5
- Reply to every review, as promptly as you reasonably can
- Name something they mentioned
- Keep replies short, polite and free of advertising
- Acknowledge criticism and offer to put it right offline
- Never reveal customer details or argue publicly
Unfair or Rule-Breaking ReviewsReporting, not retaliating.5
- Telling a harsh genuine review from a fake or abusive one
- Using the platform's flag or report option
- Why you generally cannot delete customer reviews yourself
- Replying calmly even when the review is unfair
- Keeping a note of what happened
Learning From ReviewsThe best use is inside the business.5
- Reading all reviews monthly, not only the latest
- Listing repeated praise and repeated complaints
- Sorting problems into product, service, price and communication
- Sharing findings with staff
- Choosing one thing to change and checking the next month's reviews
Using Praise in Your MarketingOnly with care and permission.5
- Asking the customer before you quote or show their comment
- Using real comments, unedited in meaning
- Not selecting only to mislead or inventing testimonials
- Crediting platforms and respecting their rules about reuse
- Where it helps: profile, WhatsApp status, signboard, quotation
Rules on endorsements and testimonials apply to small businesses. Check current guidance from ASCI and the Department of Consumer Affairs.
What participants leave with
- A short script for asking for a review in person and by message
- A review link or QR code, where the platform provides one
- Reply templates for praise, criticism and an unfair review
- A monthly review reading sheet
- A list of the platform rules they must follow when asking
What this session is not
- A way of buying, boosting or removing reviews
- A promise of a higher star rating
- Legal advice on defamation, consumer law or platform disputes
- A tour of every review site
How the session runs
Two to three hours, in a small group, with each participant's phone. Owners look at their own reviews on the main platform they use, as a stranger would. They draft a request and a few replies, swap them with a neighbour and revise. The practitioner then goes through the platform rules on asking, and each owner sets out the one thing they will change inside the business as a result of what customers have already said.
What your students leave with
- A simple, honest way of asking customers for reviews, without incentives
- A review link or QR code set up, if the platform offers one
- Reply templates for praise and criticism that read as personal
- A clear understanding of what the platforms prohibit
- A method for turning review comments into improvements
- Guidance on using customer comments in marketing with permission
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
Serve well, ask everyone, reply to all, and learn from what you read.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.