Your Google rating is lower than shops nearby? How to raise it, the right way

People often look at the stars before they pick a shop. If yours are lower than the shops around you, find out why from your own reviews, fix that, and then ask every customer for a review. Reply to each one. Your rating can only move up as new, better reviews come in.

Rekha runs a small salon on a busy lane. Haircuts, facials, bridal makeup. Her regulars love her work.

One day a new customer said, "I nearly went to the salon at the corner. Yours had fewer stars."

That night Rekha opened Google Maps. Her salon had 3.8 stars. The two salons near her had 4.3 and 4.5.

She had never asked anyone for a review. The few she had were mostly from unhappy days.

This is an example, with a made up salon and name.

Do not guess why your rating is low. Your customers have already told you.

1. Open your listing on Google Maps.
2. Tap the reviews. Sort them by Lowest.
3. Read the last ten low reviews. Write down what each one is about.

Look for the same complaint again and again. Rekha found three. People waited too long. The prices on the board were old. One chair was always broken.

To see your whole listing the way a new customer does, see what people see when they search for your shop.

A reply alone does not stop the next bad review. Fixing the cause does.

• If people wait too long, give booking times on WhatsApp. Tell walk in customers how long the wait is.
• If prices confuse people, put a clear, new price list at the counter.
• If one staff member gets complaints, talk to them in private. Train them.
• If something is broken or dirty, fix it this week.

Rekha changed the price board, fixed the chair and started taking bookings on WhatsApp.

Reply to the good ones and the bad ones. New customers read your replies.

For a bad review, stay calm. Say sorry for what went wrong. Say what you changed. Ask them to call you. For example: "Sorry you waited so long. We now take bookings on WhatsApp so this does not happen again. Please call us on our number so we can make it right."

Never argue. Never share a customer's details. Our guide on replying to Google reviews has more examples.

Your happy customers are usually quiet. So ask everyone.

Ask every customer the same way, not only the happy ones. Asking only happy customers and skipping the others is called "review gating". Google does not allow it (Google).

Rekha asks each customer at the counter after they pay: "If you have a minute, a Google review helps us a lot."

Many people will not search for your listing to review it. Give them a shortcut.

1. Get your review link from your Google Business Profile (Google).
2. Print it as a QR code on a small card at the counter.
3. Send the link on WhatsApp after the visit.

Our guide on getting more Google reviews shows each step.

These break Google's rules (Google):

• Do not buy reviews. Not with money, not with gifts.
• Do not give discounts for reviews. "10% off for a review" is not allowed.
• Do not write fake reviews, or ask staff and family to write them.
• Do not ask people to change or remove a bad review in return for something.

Google can remove reviews that break these rules. It is not worth the risk.

• You have read your low reviews and fixed what they name.
• Every review has a reply.
• New reviews come in each week.
• Your newer reviews have more stars than your older ones.

Your rating is an average of all your reviews. Old low reviews stay. So the number moves slowly, over weeks, as new reviews come in. There is no shortcut. Replying to new reviews fits into a ten minute weekly routine for your Google listing.

Meanwhile, the shops near you are collecting reviews too.

Can I delete bad reviews?

No. You can flag a review that breaks Google's rules, like spam or abuse. A fair bad review stays. Reply to it and fix the cause.

Should I ask only my regular customers?

No. Ask everyone the same way. That is Google's rule.

How long will it take?

It depends on how many customers you serve and how many review. Nobody can promise a number or a date.

Can I reply from my phone?

Yes. Open your listing in Google Maps, tap Reviews, then reply (Google).

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