Google reviews
9 ways to get more genuine Google reviews, within the rules
Nine practical ways to get more real Google reviews without incentives, review gating or anything that breaks Google’s policy or the FTC rule.
3 min read
Reviews, ratings and reputation, explained
Plain guides to what review platforms remove, what they keep, and what to do either way. Written by the team that checks reviews against platform policy every day.
- Guides
- 41 articles, 10 topics
All posts
Negative reviews
7 mistakes owners make replying to negative reviews
Seven common mistakes in replies to negative reviews, from arguing and over-sharing to offering refunds for edits, and what to write instead.
3 min read
Negative reviews
A bad review is hurting my small business. What now?
One or two bad reviews are costing you calls. Questions owners ask in that moment, answered straight: what can come down, what cannot, and what helps.
4 min read
Google reviews
Should you reply to every Google review? A plain answer
Do you need to reply to every Google review, good and bad? When a reply helps, when it hurts, and what to say to a star-only review.
4 min read
Google reviews
What actually happens after you flag a Google review?
You reported a Google review. What happens next, how to check its status, what “no violation” means, when an appeal is worth it, and what to do while you wait.
4 min read
AI search
AI-generated fake reviews: how to spot them and what to do
AI makes fake reviews cheap to write. What the FTC rule and Google’s policy say about them, signs worth checking, and how to report them.
3 min read
AI search
How to check what AI says about your business: 8 questions
Eight questions to ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews about your own business, and how to read and record what comes back.
4 min read
AI search
What to do when ChatGPT or Google AI gets your business wrong
An AI answer has the wrong hours, an old complaint or a competitor’s review on your name. Where the mistake comes from and what you can correct.
5 min read
AI search
How do ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews summarise your reviews?
How AI Overviews and ChatGPT summarise business reviews: where the review data comes from, why one bad theme repeats, and what you can honestly change.
8 min read
Reviews and the law
Are review removal services legit? A plain-English walkthrough
Are review removal services legit? Some are. A legitimate one reports policy-violating reviews to the platform, never guarantees results or needs your login.
11 min read
Reviews and the law
Defamatory Google review: report it or call a lawyer?
What to do about a defamatory Google review: why a policy report comes first, when the legal route applies, how the law differs, and what to keep.
10 min read
Choosing help
9 red flags when hiring a review removal company
Is that review removal company a scam? Nine red flags, from guaranteed removals to requests for your Google login, with a simple check you can run for each.
7 min read
Review removal
12 review platforms and how each handles removal requests
Review platform removal policies compared: who can report, the policy grounds that get a review taken down, for 12 sites from Google to Houzz.
6 min read
Reviews and the law
What does the UK DMCC Act say about fake reviews?
Are fake reviews illegal in the UK? Yes, since 6 April 2025. What the DMCC Act bans, what businesses and review sites must do, and what to do about a rival.
8 min read
Reputation management
How do I choose an online reputation management company?
How to choose an online reputation management company: what ORM covers, how firms price it, questions to ask, what no firm can promise and how to check claims.
10 min read
Guides
15 review sites that matter for small businesses
Review sites for small business: which 15 matter, for which trades and countries, and how to decide which to look after first. A plain guide without the hype.
5 min read
Guides
Signs of a fake review: 9 that violate platform policy
Signs of a fake review: nine signs a review breaks Google’s or Trustpilot’s published policies, and four that feel like signs but are not.
7 min read
Reputation management
How to fix a bad online reputation: a plain guide
How to fix a bad online reputation: find what people see, fix what is true, remove what violates policy, push down what cannot be removed, and keep it fixed.
11 min read
Google reviews
Why did my Google rating drop? Causes and what to do
Why did my Google rating drop? New bad reviews, removed good ones, a slow month or an attack. How to tell which from your own profile, and what to do next.
12 min read
Negative reviews
What to do when you get a bad review: the first 48 hours
What to do when you get a bad review: how to read it, check it, reply, fix what is real and challenge what violates policy, without making it worse.
12 min read
Search reputation
Do Google reviews affect your local ranking?
Do Google reviews affect ranking? Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help local ranking, as part of prominence. What that means, and what not.
5 min read
Reviews and the law
Can businesses offer incentives for reviews? The policies
Can you offer incentives for reviews? Google, Yelp and Trustpilot say no, and US and UK law limit it too. What is allowed, what is not, with links to each policy.
6 min read
Reviews and the law
Are fake reviews illegal? The law in four countries
Are fake reviews illegal? Yes, in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, for the business that buys or writes them. What each law says, with links to the source.
7 min read
Google reviews
A Google review left on the wrong business: what to do
A Google review left on the wrong business is about a visit that never happened. Why it happens, why it can come down, and how to reply until it does.
6 min read
Negative reviews
Google review extortion: when someone demands payment
Google review extortion: one-star reviews, then a demand for money to make them stop. Why you should never pay, what to keep, and how Google treats these.
6 min read
Negative reviews
Review bombing: what to do when bad reviews arrive at once
Review bombing is a sudden flood of bad reviews, often from people who were never customers. How to tell it apart from a bad week, and what to do first.
6 min read
Platforms
Glassdoor review removal: what Glassdoor takes down
Glassdoor review removal: Glassdoor keeps honest negative employer reviews, but not ones that name staff, leak confidential details or come from a conflict.
6 min read
Google reviews
A Google review from a former employee: can it be removed?
Can you remove a Google review from a former employee? Often yes: Google treats past employment as a conflict of interest. What qualifies, and what stays up.
6 min read
Google reviews
How long does Google take to remove a review?
How long Google takes to remove a review: Google says evaluation typically takes several days, with no fixed timetable. What decides the pace.
6 min read
Platforms
Facebook and TripAdvisor review removal
Facebook and TripAdvisor review removal: what each platform removes, and why for a hotel TripAdvisor is often the page that matters.
5 min read
Platforms
Yelp review removal: why it is different
Yelp hides reviews rather than deleting them, refuses paid removal, and forbids businesses from asking for reviews at all. What that means for you.
5 min read
Platforms
Trustpilot review removal: what comes down
Trustpilot review removal: Trustpilot polices businesses as sharply as reviewers. What it removes, what it refuses, and what a case needs before it acts.
6 min read
Guides
Why reporting a fake Google review yourself usually fails
Reporting a fake Google review yourself usually ends in an automated no. Why it happens, what a removable review has in common, and what to do instead.
7 min read
Reputation management
How long does online reputation management take to work?
A review, a star rating and a page-one result move on three clocks. What governs each, what the first weeks produce, and the four reasons the work stalls.
6 min read
Search reputation
What is search engine reputation management (SERM)?
SERM decides what page one says when someone searches your name: what it covers, how to audit it slot by slot, the four levers that move a result, its limits.
6 min read
Negative reviews
How to deal with a competitor posting fake reviews
Vague low ratings from new accounts, all at once, are an incident, not a bad week. What to do on day one, why it is one case, and where lawyers help.
6 min read
Google reviews
Google review removal in 2026: which reviews can be removed
Which Google reviews can be removed in 2026? Only those that violate a published policy, not merely negative ones. What it covers and why a flag alone fails.
7 min read
Negative reviews
How to respond to negative reviews without losing customers
How to respond to negative reviews: your reply is for the next person deciding whether to call. The four kinds of bad review and the reply that works for each.
5 min read
Reputation management
The difference between SEO and online reputation management
SEO gets you found by people who do not know you; reputation management decides what they see when they check. They sound alike, so firms hire the wrong one.
5 min read
Reputation management
10 benefits of reputation management for small businesses
What online reputation management changes for a small business: local ranking, AI answers, fake reviews, price and hiring. Ten points, each tied to its source.
6 min read
Google reviews
Best practices for managing Google Business Profile reviews
Reviews are a process, not something that happens to you. What Google’s policy acts on, the asks that break it, how to reply, and what to keep on record.
6 min read
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