Claim and verify your Google Business Profile if you have not already done so. This is the single most important listing you own. Without it, reviews you earn can end up on an unclaimed profile that anyone can edit, or not show at all in local search results.

Make sure your business name, address and phone number are identical on Google, Facebook and any directory sites like Golden Pages or Trustpilot. Even a small difference, like ‘St’ versus ‘Street’, confuses Google and chips away at the trust signals that push you up the local rankings.

Set up a free Trustpilot or Checkatrade profile if you work in a trade where customers specifically search those platforms. Electricians, plumbers and roofers in Ireland often get checked on Trustpilot before a customer rings, so having a profile there with real reviews adds a second layer of credibility.

Ask face to face the moment a job is finished and the customer has seen the result. If they say ‘that looks brilliant’ or ‘you’ve saved us’, that is your cue. A simple ‘I’d really appreciate it if you left us a Google review, it takes about two minutes’ works far better than a text sent a week later.

Follow up with a short text or WhatsApp message within a few hours of finishing the job, including a direct link to your Google review page. Most people mean to leave a review and forget. A link that takes them straight to the review box removes all the friction. You can get your short review link from the ‘Share review form’ button inside Google Business Profile.

Never ask for a review before the job is done or before any snag has been sorted. If a customer is still waiting on a part or has flagged a concern, hold off. An unhappy customer who feels pushed to review early is how you end up with a one-star post about ‘unfinished work’.

Train anyone who works with you, apprentices, van drivers, office staff, to mention reviews naturally at the end of a job. If two lads finish a big rewire or a bathroom fit-out together, the one who does the handover should be the one who asks. Make it part of your closing routine, the same as tidying up and taking a final payment.

Create a short branded URL or QR code that goes straight to your Google review form and print it on your invoice, job sheet or business card. A QR code on the bottom of your invoice means a customer can scan it on the spot while you are packing your tools. Free tools like QR Code Generator let you create one in minutes.

Add a ‘Leave us a review’ button or link to the footer of any email you send, including quotes and invoices. Past customers who were happy but never got around to reviewing are a huge untapped resource. A visible link in every email keeps the door open without you having to chase individually.

Reply to every five-star review with a short personal response that mentions the job type and the area. Something like ‘Delighted we could sort the boiler out for you in Kilkenny, thanks a million’ does two things: it shows future customers you are responsive, and it feeds Google location and service keywords naturally.

Respond to every negative review within 24 hours, calmly and without arguing. A composed, factual reply that acknowledges the concern and offers to sort it offline often impresses readers more than a row of five-stars. Losing your cool in a public reply, even if you are right, will cost you more jobs than the original bad review.

Flag any review that is clearly fake, left by a competitor or violates Google’s policies, using the ‘Report review’ option in your Google Business Profile. Fake reviews do get removed, but it can take time. Document everything, take a screenshot, and if it is affecting your rating significantly, raise it directly with Google Business Profile support.

Screenshot your best reviews and share them on your Facebook or Instagram, especially ones that mention a specific job or town. A review that says ‘fixed our burst pipe in Galway at 7am on a Sunday’ is worth far more than a generic post about your services. Real words from real customers land differently.

Pull two or three of your strongest reviews onto your website homepage and services pages, updating them every few months. Do not just rely on a Google widget that might not load properly. Hard-coded quotes with the customer’s first name and town, where they are happy to be named, build trust for visitors who may never check your Google listing.

Use the language your customers use in reviews to write your website copy and ad headlines. If five different people describe you as ‘tidy, quick and fair’, those are the exact words you should be putting in front of new customers. It is free market research that most trades never bother to use.

Set a realistic weekly or monthly target for new reviews and track it the same way you track turnover. Even one new review a week adds up to over fifty in a year. A consistent flow signals to Google that your business is active, which helps your ranking in local searches.

Never buy reviews, offer discounts in exchange for reviews or ask friends and family to leave reviews from the same address or device. Google’s systems flag suspicious patterns, clusters of reviews from the same location, sudden spikes or reviews from accounts with no history, and will remove them or, in serious cases, penalise your entire profile.

Do a full audit of your review profiles every three months: check your average rating, look for any unanswered reviews, and compare your volume to your main local competitors. If the electrician or plumber down the road is pulling ahead on review count, that is an early warning sign worth acting on before it costs you jobs. A simple Google search for your trade and your town will show you exactly where you stand.